Plenary Session: What Makes a Resilient and Flourishing Community?

In his writings on disaster response and recovery, Daniel Aldrich has observed that “much research and policy remain focused on physical infrastructure-centered approaches to such events.” Joel Kotkin, whose focus is economic opportunity, also notes that “much of urban thinking today centers on the physical form of the city: its resources, infrastructure, and built space.” In this session Mr. Aldrich and Mr. Kotkin will discuss what is typically ignored by top-down, centralized planning – the critical role of human and social capital in communities that demonstrate resilience in the face of tragedy and are flourishing centers of upward mobility.