Mark Schleifstein

Mark Schleifstein is the hurricane and environment reporter for NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. He is co-author of the 2002 series, "Washing Away," which warned that much of New Orleans could be flooded by hurricane storm surge because the area's levees were too low and subject to overtopping. The series - which won awards from the National Hurricane Conference and the American Society of Civil Engineers - received international attention after Hurricane Katrina, because it had foretold the disaster lying in wait for the city. Schleifstein's reporting on Katrina was among the newspaper's stories honored with 2006 Pulitzer Prizes for Public Service and Breaking News Reporting and the George Polk Award for Metropolitan Reporting.

Schleifstein is also co-author with John McQuaid of the book "Path of Destruction: The Devastation of New Orleans and the Coming Age of Superstorms." Stories he wrote on coastal science issues were honored in 2006 with a special award from the American Geophysical Union. He also was co-author of the 1996 series, "Oceans of Trouble: Are the World's Fisheries Doomed?", which won the 1997 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. 

Schleifstein is a member of the board of directors of the Society of Environmental Journalists. With The Times-Picayune since 1984, he has covered City Hall, the 1988 Presidential campaign, the 1987 Louisiana governor's campaign, and the environment.