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Since wildfire season is looking all-around worrisome, here's a 
about the stories that still need attention.
First, very few places in the West have building codes to make homes safer from wildfires. They've been fought by building associations. 1/ https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials
about the stories that still need attention. First, very few places in the West have building codes to make homes safer from wildfires. They've been fought by building associations. 1/ https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials
Another example of that in Colorado, despite long-standing recommendations to make community building standards safer - via @_msakas 2/ https://www.cpr.org/2021/01/26/stronger-building-codes-and-other-rules-can-save-homes-from-wildfires-so-why-doesnt-colorado-have-a-statewide-law-mandating-them/
Most people at risk of wildfires have no idea what they're facing - because almost no states have rules about disclosing that risk. 3/ https://www.npr.org/2020/10/21/924507691/millions-of-homes-are-at-risk-of-wildfires-but-its-rarely-disclosed
There's a growing recognition that more "good fire" needs to be restored, but too often, there's no recognition of Native American tribes that did that for millennia and are still working to bring it back. 4/ https://www.npr.org/2020/08/24/899422710/to-manage-wildfire-california-looks-to-what-tribes-have-known-all-along
Many communities are struggling to find the funds to make themselves safer from wildfires by retrofitting homes and creating vegetation buffers. Federal funding has largely gone to firefighting - from me and @NathanRott 5/ https://www.npr.org/2020/09/11/908929411/why-firefighting-alone-wont-stop-western-mega-fires
Many wildfire victims are also still struggling to get back on their feet - and rebuilding better is often out of reach. Important reporting from @lilyjamali 6/ https://twitter.com/lilyjamali/status/1390366016971042816?s=20
Almost every wildfire survivor I interview these days talks about how little time they had to get out. Communities still have work to do to evacuate the most vulnerable - from @Mollydacious @adembosky 7/ https://www.kqed.org/news/11844521/when-wildfire-breaks-out-during-a-pandemic-whos-responsible-for-elderly-evacuees
As journalists, we need to ask if the way we write about wildfires makes things worse or better. Is the size of a wildfire the right number to focus on? From the work of @pyrogeog 8/ https://www.npr.org/2020/10/07/921209244/four-million-acres-have-burned-in-california-why-thats-the-wrong-number-to-focus
Ok, last one. One of the hardest things about wildfire protection is that you can't cherry-pick. It takes community-wide coordination. This paper from @MichaelWWara describes the scale of investment that might be needed. 9/ https://woodsinstitute.stanford.edu/system/files/publications/New_Strategy_Wildfire_Epidemic_Whitepaper_1.pdf
Not to overlook this one! Wildfire smoke affects millions of people, causing widespread public health problems. This primer from @NPR Short Wave explains why. 10/ https://www.npr.org/2020/08/26/906385624/the-science-of-wildfire-smoke
