New Research by DeWaard and Colleagues on Migration Out of Disaster Affected Areas in the United States

Posted: 2/19/2023 (CSDE Research)

In a new paper, published in the most recent issue of Demography, entitled ” Migration as a Vector of Economic Losses From Disaster-Affected Areas in the United States”, CSDE External Affiliate Jack DeWaard and colleagues demonstrate how human migration is associated with the economic losses due to extreme weather disasters. Taking a comparative case study approach and using data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York/Equifax Consumer Credit Panel, the researchers document the size of economic losses attributable to migration from 23 disaster-affected areas in the United States before, during, and after some of the most costly hurricanes, tornadoes, and wildfires on record. Employing demographic standardization and decomposition to determine if these losses primarily reflect changes in out-migration or the economic resources that migrants take with them