AEDRI (Arts Emergency and Disaster Research Initiative), led by Dr. Leah Hamilton, is the University of Kentucky's research lab in the Department of Arts Administration within the College of Fine Arts. AEDRI is dedicated to developing research to enhance disaster resilience and emergency readiness in the arts sector. The research lab centers on the intersections of arts administration, emergency management, and disaster sociology.
AEDRI is currently engaged in the following nationally and university-sponsored initiatives:
Kentucky Heritage Emergency Response Network (KHERN), funded by LYRASIS (Performing Arts Readiness Project), the Foundation of Advancement in Conservation, and the Sustainable Futures Design Lab with UK Trust Hub.
Between Two Rivers: Safeguarding the Future of Greenup County’s Arts and Culture, a project supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts
Arts and Cultural Heritage in Protected Areas: Management Strategies, Sustainable Tourism, and Crisis Impacts, with research partners at the University of Perugia and University of Macerata (Italy), funded by the UKinSPIRE Fellowship program.
Research Highlights
Cover Artwork: "I Leave the Past to Set Me Free"
by Artist and Kentucky native, Lacy Hale.
This report is a collection of stories and data from Kentucky artists, craftspeople, artisans, arts managers, teaching artists, arts community leaders, arts board volunteers, arts funders, and governmental agency representatives—all affected by the compounding events of natural disasters in Kentucky in 2021 and 2022. Their experiences were collected between January 2023 through January 2024 and resulted in the findings and recommendations in this report.
Thank you to the following Kentucky Arts in Disaster study participants who have agreed to be publicly recognized:
Kirk Banks, Master in Residence/Ceramics, Appalachian Artisan Center
Wathetta Buford (posthumously), Bowling Green African American Museum
Brent Björkman, Director/Clinical Professor, Kentucky Museum & Kentucky Folklife Program at Western Kentucky University
Dee Davis, President of the Center for Rural Strategies/Publisher of the Daily Yonder
Beth Dobyns, Past President, Mayfield-Graves County Art Guild
Lacy Hale, Artist
Melissa Helton, Literary Director, Hindman Settlement School
Grace Henderson, Teaching Artist
Valerie Horn, Director, Cowan Community Action Group
Don Jenkins, Director, Little Shepherd Amphitheater
Dr. Liza Kelly, Professor of Music, Western Kentucky University
Kim Kobersmith, Journalist/Content Writer
Nicole Musgrave, Folklorist, Media Maker, and Teaching Artist
Yoko Nagomi, Interdisciplinary Artist and Cultural Consultant
Doug Naselroad, Master Luthier and Founder, Appalachian School of Luthiery
Mimi Pickering, Director of the Community Media Initiative, Appalshop
Jesse Ray Sims, Fine Artist and Illustrator
Alan White, Assistant Professor of Theater, Western Kentucky University
*If you participated in the study and would like to be listed as a contributor, please email Leah Hamilton - l.hamilton@uky.edu