With many of its facilities in ruins, and its employees, customers, volunteers and donors scattered by Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans’ Audubon Nature Institute turned to the Web to raise the money needed to get back to its mission.

By Abny Santicola

And there were other things that ANI had not been prepared to implement, such as a structured strategy for extended communications with employees in the event of a massive shut down.

The storm’s intense winds knocked out power at ANI’s aquarium. Backup generators struggled to maintain the facility’s life-support system, but in the end, most of the 10,000 aquatic animals in the collection died. Established tree canopies — outdoor ceilings, so to speak, formed when the leaves from different trees meet — at the research center, Audubon Park and Woldenberg Riverfront Park were severely damaged, as well. The zoo was in a bit better shape, as only a few animals in its collection were lost.