Welcome to our Blog: Disaster Economics

Hello, and welcome to our blog! We’re Aarush Dey and Andrew Salce, two high school students from New York who share a passion for exploring how major disruptions such as natural disasters, pandemics, or geopolitical events affect the economy. Through this blog, we aim to dive into a critical yet often overlooked topic: the ways in which these significant events shape markets, industries, and global systems.

For me, Aarush, this topic hits close to home. I experienced Hurricane Harvey firsthand at the age of eight-years-old while living in Houston, and it’s something I’ll never forget. The torrential rains and flooded streets made my hometown city seem unrecognizable. I witnessed friends, family, and neighbors feel the crushing weight of uncertainty as homes were damaged and businesses were torn apart. After the storm subsided, the recovery process went on for months. This period is what really opened my eyes as I witnessed how deeply natural disasters disrupt everything in a society, not just in the moment, but for months and years afterward. As a child, I naturally questioned how one event could cause such widespread and lasting impacts. In pursuit of answers, I enrolled in an online microeconomics course through Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth when I was 11 years old. This course, along with passion projects centered around economics and global systems, helped me develop a foundation in understanding how major disruptions – whether caused by natural disasters, pandemics, or financial crises – can reverberate through entire economies.. Over time, I have taken interest in market patterns, more specifically, how external events like hurricanes, supply chain breakdowns, or even geopolitical conflicts can cause ripples in global markets. Taking courses to learn was a great start, but what I’ve grown to truly enjoy is discussing these complex topics in a way that makes them accessible and engaging for everyone, removing any limit on discussion. That’s why this blog exists: a platform in which I can transform those childhood questions into something meaningful – a way to reach an audience to share my thoughts, start interesting conversations, and inspire new ways of thinking about how we approach these challenges.

In my case, Andrew, my interest in business has found its way into many aspects of my life. I have pursued many different side projects outside of school as a result of exposure to my parents' business mindsets. It all began when I was nine years old and first learned about the concept of investing. To this day I remember my first ever investment, four shares of the most interesting company to me at the time, Hasbro. From there I progressed, getting part time jobs as a caddie, hockey referee, and golf instructor to build up capital for future investments. These would end up being extremely successful as through a combination of luck and research I was able to 4x my overall profits over the span of two years. Originally, I limited myself to working and investing, but when a colony of bees decided to infest the side of our garage I gained a new idea, and after relocating the invaders and investing in some more hives in the area I started my first ever business, Bee Happy Honey. Through this experience I learned about the challenges in starting a business from registering an LLC to gaining licensing. Since starting my first business, I’ve continued to explore new ventures and am currently in the process of obtaining a license for a vending machine business, which I plan to grow in the near future. Most recently, I have tried my hand at investing in retired lego sets, an abstract but hopefully profitable venture, wish me luck. Now with an entire attic full of way more legos than any one person should have possession of, I feel content taking a break from the hustle to write a blog about business, with my equally devoted friend, Aarush.

We’re so excited to have you join us on this journey. Stay tuned for our first post which will be published in around two weeks, where we’ll explore the recent California wildfires. We’ll dive into the financial impacts of this devastating event, but just as importantly, we’ll highlight the incredible stories of resilience and recovery that emerge in the face of such challenges.

Thanks for stopping by! If you would like to keep up with upcoming posts, please feel free to sign up your email address and follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn. Additionally, if you want to learn a little more about us and our mission, check out our About page at the top of this site. Let’s make sense of Disaster Economics together!