Bridging the Organizational Divide: A Comparative Institutional Analysis of United States and International Humanitarian Service Delivery Structures

Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the New Orleans, Louisiana metropolitan area in August 2005, made many United States citizens more aware of how their national government undertakes its humanitarian relief responsibilities. Many learned for the first time, for example, that the federal government is a secondary responder and attends to natural disasters only when states and localities request such support and assistance. That U.S. framework and the international relief implementation structure are remarkably similar. This paper compares and contrasts these two aid implementation approaches with an eye to clarifying their similarities and differences and to identifying how each might better be understood for the future to secure improved coordination and more effective outcomes.

Max StephensonEmail: