This handbook was originally produced in 2001 as a guide for local practitioners on how to build sustainability into a community during the recovery period after a disaster. In the fall of 2005, after witnessing the catastrophic devastation of the Gulf Coast of the United States from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and as the nation was embarking on a recovery period of unprecedented scale in its history, the Natural Hazards Center took a second look at Holistic Disaster Recovery and how it could be improved to help communities take a comprehensive and long-term approach to recovery.