Document Type

Dissertation

Date of Award

5-2023

School/College

Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs (SOPA)

Degree Name

Ph.D. in Urban Planning and Environmental Policy

Committee Chairperson

Glenn Johnson

Committee Member 1

Robert Bullard

Committee Member 2

Lalita Sen

Committee Member 3

Andrew Ewoh

Keywords

• climate displacement • ecological knowledge • environmental justice • Hurricane Harvey • hypersegregation • oral histories

Abstract

On the Gulf Coast of Texas, a large disparity exists between the number of homes still in need of repair after Hurricane Harvey and the number of homes actually repaired by the City of Houston, Housing and Community Development, 6 years after the storm. This research was conducted through the lens of environmental justice, with attention to climate change impacts and the vulnerability of previously segregated neighborhoods over extended periods of time. The most vulnerable, seniors, were interviewed to collect their personal experiences post Hurricane Harvey to determine the true extent of home damage, how they recovered from the storm, and what impact that recovery period post-storm had on their health and displacement from the home. In the context of a just planning model and through the lens of environmental justice, their ecological knowledge and participation should be used to improve housing recovery. Oral histories allow others an alternative perspective to their own and offer policy makers insight into complex nuances, actors, and events that have transpired post-disaster.

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