In a week of volatile caucuses and competing claims about the state of our Union, how are things are on the home front?
In a week of volatile caucuses, ferment on Capitol Hill and competing claims about the state of our Union, it’s fair to ask how things are on the home front. We've been finding more than a few reasons to be optimistic, to be honest. Our own Jill Ament
discovered Central Texas firefighters working with experienced counterparts from California to explore ways to get ahead of future fire dangers. Farther north, there’s a renaissance in Abilene – one that points to a rebirth of life in many smaller Texas towns and cities. Amid all this change, commentator W.F. Strong reminds us that sometimes Texans might find things haven't really changed that much at all, if you take a somewhat longer view. Texans have been through a lot – and as the story below from
Joy Diaz on family separation shows, the challenges keep on coming. After all, optimism doesn’t mean turning a blind eye to the challenges we face. We continue to monitor the news at texasstandard.org and we invite you to keep up with the latest there. Until next week, we'll see you on the radio.
- David Brown
To Address Wildfire Risk, Texas Firefighters Look To California
Firefighters that faced down some of California’s recent megafires came to Central Texas last week to share their experiences – and to point out wildfire risks in Austin.
“Mixed status” families have members that vary in immigration statuses – but usually, it means an undocumented parent with U.S.-born children. What happens to the family when a parent is deported?
Head To The Texas Plains To See Abilene’s Renaissance
A transformation is underway in the Storybook Capital, with a contingent of millennial entrepreneurs, new businesses and the renovation of historic sites.
In Presidio, Locals Weigh Risks and Rewards Of Transmigrante Traffic (Marfa Public Radio)
Report: Knowing Someone Who Is Detained Or Deported Can Pose Health Risks For Latino Americans (KERA)
'Don’t Forget About Us': School Revamp Bittersweet For San Antonio Community Rocked By Closure (Texas Public Radio)
Archivist Launches African American Genealogy Conference: 'You Never Know Who You're Related To' (KUT Austin)
When I moved here two years ago from Oregon and joined the KUT multimedia team, I assumed Texas would be a complete 180 from my home state. But I’ve found the two states are markedly more similar than their red/blue distinctions might reveal. Working on two recent stories in west Texas with the Standard's
Michael Marks brought me closer to environmental and agricultural issues (and mountains) I knew so well in Oregon. Balancing agricultural gains and environmental preservation is a controversy that city dwellers don’t grapple with on a day-to-day basis. Using photography to show the detailed, difficult and draining process of
relocating 30-plus bighorn sheep from one part of a mountain range to another hopefully connects Texans to species preservation efforts that happen in the sparse, secluded mountains out west. On the flip side, the dwindling domestic sheep industry has not benefited from the existence of the native bighorns. Shooting a story about a family in Marathon who has
raised sheep for generations added a different perspective to our coverage of west Texas. Visual journalism gives audiences the opportunity to see unfamiliar places. This type of reporting is important everywhere – and I’m proud to be doing it in Texas now.
