When disasters wipe out affordable homes, entire economies suffer

+ COVID-sniffing dogs US Edition - Today's top story: Disasters can wipe out affordable housing forever unless communities plan ahead – that loss hurts the economy [View in browser]( US Edition | 9 February 2022 [The Conversation]( A year after Hurricane Harvey hit the coastal tourist town of Rockport, Texas, restaurants were still struggling to reopen full time. The town had lost much of its affordable housing in the 2017 storm, and without it, many of Rockport’s low-wage workers had left. Officials faced a dilemma – how to encourage affordable housing while also rebuilding the town to stand up to future storms. Today, towns shattered by tornadoes in Kentucky and recovering from wildfires in Colorado and California are facing similar questions. As urban planning expert Shannon Van Zandt of Texas A&M University explains, [low- and middle-income households face the highest risks from disasters – and the hardest recovery – for three key reasons](. If they can’t recover, businesses won’t be able to find workers and the entire local economy suffers. Also today: - [School closures and their steep cost to children]( - [The Republican tactic of distrust]( - [How scientists makes fake snow]( Stacy Morford Environment + Climate Editor [Disasters can wipe out affordable housing forever unless communities plan ahead – that loss hurts the economy]( Shannon Van Zandt, Texas A&M University The most affordable homes face the highest risks from disasters for three key reasons. Education - [Pandemic-related school closings likely to have far-reaching effects on child well-being]( Sandra M. Chafouleas, University of Connecticut The ways in which school closings affect children are just beginning to be known, but early indications are they’re taking a negative toll on kids’ learning and overall well-being. Science + Technology - [Olympic skiers and snowboarders are competing on 100% fake snow – the science of how it’s made and how it affects performance]( Peter Veals, University of Utah Snowmaking machines can produce enough snow to cover a run, but artificial snow is very different from natural flakes that fall from the sky. Politics + Society - [The Jan. 6 Capitol attacks offer a reminder – distrust in government has long been part of Republicans’ playbook]( Amy Fried, University of Maine; Douglas B. Harris, Loyola University Maryland The Republican Party has a decadeslong relationship with using distrust to incite its base and draw in more supporters – the Jan. 6 Capitol attacks just offer the latest example of this tactic. Health + Medicine - [Dogs can be trained to sniff out COVID-19 – a team of forensic researchers explain the science]( Kenneth G. Furton, Florida International University; Julian Mendel, Florida International University; Kelvin J. Frank Jr., Florida International University Dogs have such sensitive noses that they can be trained to detect the odors of crop pests, endangered species, illegal drugs – and diseases like COVID-19. Arts + Culture - [Study suggests new evidence of discrimination against Black coaches in the NFL since 2018]( Joshua D. Pitts, Kennesaw State University An analysis of 267 NFL offensive and defensive coordinators since 2003 finds that the Chiefs’ Eric Bieniemy’s odds of being hired as a head coach would have gone up significantly if he weren’t Black. Ethics + Religion - [Japan’s Shinto religion is going global and attracting online followers]( Kaitlyn Ugoretz, University of California Santa Barbara An anthropologist of Japanese religion met followers of Shinto religion online and found how they were building a community and sharing instructions on practice. - [How Lourdes became a byword for hope]( Dorian Llywelyn, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences St. Bernadette’s visions of the Virgin Mary in the 19th century inspired the pilgrimage site millions of Catholics flock to each year. Economy + Business - [The 50 biggest US donors gave or pledged nearly $28 billion in 2021 – Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates account for $15 billion of that total]( David Campbell, Binghamton University, State University of New York; Elizabeth J. Dale, Seattle University; Jasmine McGinnis Johnson, George Washington University Three scholars weigh in regarding the priorities of these wealthy American donors, who gave less to social service and racial justice groups than in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Trending on site - [How Brad Pitt’s green housing dream for Hurricane Katrina survivors turned into a nightmare]( - [Where are memories stored in the brain? New research suggests they may be in the connections between your brain cells]( - [Not everyone is male or female – the growing controversy over sex designation]( Today's graphic [The number of people living in the wildland-urban interface, where development and wilderness meet, expanded disproportionately in areas facing the highest risk of wildfire from 1990 to 2010.]( From the story, [The fastest population growth in the West’s wildland fringes is in ecosystems most vulnerable to wildfires]( Like this newsletter? 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