Gulf Coast Youth Recovery

Photo: Thatcher Cook for Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps' work with young people affected by Hurricane Katrina helped families regain a sense of normalcy and provided youth with safe spaces for self-expression, according to a December evaluation by the Recovery Action Learning Library, or RALLY, a New Orleans foundation created to monitor and evaluate the impact of recovery efforts.

Mercy Corps asked RALLY to evaluate the impact of its youth programs on young people, their parents and their communities in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The study, funded by Mercy Corps, found that the program had "a meaningful impact" that reached beyond the participants.