From the DenverPost: As Colorado wildfires burn, fears that climate change is causing “multi-level emergency” mount
Heat, aridity, mega-fires and smoke are intensifying faster than projected.

The town that built back green. After a tornado demolished Greensburg, Kan., it rebuilt without carbon emissions. Can its lessons help communities and economies rebound from fires, hurricanes and covid-19?

From the WashPost: The pandemic is rewriting the rules of science. But at what cost? An Excerpt:

The pandemic has upended norms of the scientific process, from the way studies are funded through the publication of findings. Researchers have been presenting their results online or sending them directly to media outlets rather than awaiting publication in prestigious academic journals. And the stodgy process of peer review has evolved into forthright — and sometimes acrimonious — assessments in the unbridled atmosphere of the Internet.

From NOAA: Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters: Overview
2020 in Progress…

In 2020 (as of October 7), there have been 16 weather/climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each to affect the United States. These events included 1 drought event, 11 severe storm events, 3 tropical cyclone events, and 1 wildfire event. Overall, these events resulted in the deaths of 188 people and had significant economic effects on the areas impacted. The 1980–2019 annual average is 6.6 events (CPI-adjusted); the annual average for the most recent 5 years (2015–2019) is 13.8 events (CPI-adjusted).

Today is Global Ethics Day

The Carnegie Council’s Global Ethics Day takes place on the third Wednesday of every October. The seventh annual Global Ethics Day (#GlobalEthicsDay2020) will take place on October 21, 2020. Inspired by Earth Day, Global Ethics Day provides an opportunity for organizations around the world to hold events on or around this day, exploring the meaning of ethics in international affairs — and to share your #GlobalEthicsDay2020 activities widely on social media. https://globalethicsday.wishpondpages.com/emergencymanagementvideo2020/

JOIN OUR VIDEO COMPETITION TO COMMEMORATE GLOBAL ETHICS DAY.The Global Ethics Day Sub-committee of the Ethics Special Interest Group of the FEMA Higher Education Program is hosting a Video Scholarship Competition to highlight the ethics of access and equity in Emergency Management. Voters from across the globe will vote for the most impactful video, and finalists’ videos will be a part of the Carnegie Group’s Global Ethics Day Celebration for 2020. These videos will help inform ongoing emergency management education and Scholarship.

The mission of the Global Ethics Day Sub-Committee is to engage student reflection about the importance of ethics in Emergency Management and to give them a voice of influence in the emergency management ethics discourse.

Submit your video to get a chance to win a $1,000 scholarship!

From the NYTimes: After the Pandemic, a Revolution in Education and Work Awaits. Providing more Americans with portable health care, portable pensions and opportunities for lifelong learning is what politics needs to be about post-Nov. 3.

Drought in western U.S. is biggest in years and predicted to worsen during winter months. The drought is exacerbating wildfires and taxing water resources. Some excerpts:

The largest and most intense drought in years is engulfing the West and threatens to grow larger and more severe in the coming months.

The drought has already been a major contributor to record wildfire activity in California and Colorado. Its continuation could also deplete rivers, stifle crops and eventually drain water supplies in some Western states.

Nationwide, drought has expanded to its greatest areal coverage since 2013; 72.5 million people are in areas affected by drought. More than one-third of the West is in “extreme” or “exceptional” drought, the two most severe categories, according to the federal government’s U.S. Drought Monitor.

From GovTech: Schools/Colleges Navigate the Challenges of Covid-19.

I can only guess at the politics involved, but as of 7:30 pm on the PBS Newshour, Judy Woodruff announced that CA will receive federal funding for the fires.

Update: From the Wash Post on Oct. 17: Trump administration rejects, then approves, emergency aid for California fires, including biggest blaze in state history

From the Wash Post: Trump admin rejects emergency aid for California fires, including biggest blaze in state history.

“Fueled by extreme heat and tinder-dry conditions, wildfires exploded across California in September, blazing through almost 1.9 million acres, destroying nearly 1,000 homes and killing at least three people. One wildfire, the Creek Fire, became the largest single blaze in California history and grew so fierce it spun up fire tornadoes with 125 mph winds.

But the Trump administration this week refused to grant an emergency declaration that would open up hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for areas devastated in those fires, California state officials confirmed to The Washington Post early on Friday.

It’s unclear why the request was denied, when similar declarations were granted earlier this year for other wildfires. President Trump has previously threatened to withhold emergency fire aid to California over disputed claims that the state isn’t doing enough to prevent wildfires.”