Managing intergovernmental responses to terrorism and other extreme events

Coordinating response operations to extreme events is an extraordinarily complex task for public managers. The performance of the intergovernmental system is examined in the context of the events of 11 September 2001 from the theoretical perspective of complex adaptive systems. A model of auto-adaptation is proposed to improve intergovernmental performance in extreme events. This model is based on the concept of individual, organizational, and collective learning in environments exposed to recurring risk, guided by a shared goal. Such a model requires public investment in the development of an information infrastructure that can support the intense demand for communication, information search, exchange, and feedback that characterizes an auto-adaptive system.