Since our very first episode, this show has been about a lot more than the Endangered Species Act. It's a vessel for compelling stories and conversations rooted more deeply than headlines can convey in Montana and in this region.
Today marks a shift. This is our first story that's not about wildlife or the ESA. In a way, this is a teaser for the future of what this feed will hold. We'll have more multi-part narrative series like season one. We'll also have one-offs, investigations and even the occasional live conversation, like this one.
What unites everything is this: The Wide Open is a home for nuanced and compelling storytelling and thinking about the West. The kind of stuff that's deeply important to people who live here, but just won't find a home anywhere else.
I moderated a live panel and an event called Free Press Fest, put on by Montana Free Press. There I talked with four experts about maybe the thorniest question about wildfire in the West: Fires are getting bigger and more destructive – but wildfire is part of our ecosystems - it's here to stay. So, how do we live with it? I'll drop us straight into this busy ballroom at Montana State University as I sit with our four panelists:
Kimiko Barrett, Sr. Wildfire Researcher & Policy Analyst, Headwaters Economics
Joe O’Connor, Managing Editor, Mountain Journal
Shawn Thomas, State Forester and Administrator, Montana Dept. of Natural Resources and Conservation
Dr. Cathy Whitlock, Regents Professor Emerita of Earth Sciences, Montana State University
Community Planning Assistance for Wildfire (CPAW)
Wildfire Prevention and Preparedness
