BACK HOME: GOOD ARIZONA STORIES IN THE OFFING

posted by Michael Chihak

A crew of three, 1000 miles in four days and three nights through eastern and northern Arizona to gather stories for upcoming Arizona Week episodes. We experienced a fascinating range of people, topics and tales.

Six months into the program, it was our first road trip, and we declare it a success by any measure. Look for the following stories:

-- Friday's program on how White Mountains residents and businesses are coping with the aftermath of the Wallow Fire.

-- How the Navajo Nation is seeking to expand economic opportunities among its people, for which the unemployment rate approaches 50 percent. We talk with Navajo Nation President Ben Selly.

-- Flagstaff is the big nugget in a northern Arizona gold mine of tourism. Mayor Sara Presler tells us how businesses and the community as a whole leverage their advantage and share the wealth in the region.

-- Wildfire history in Arizona shows a century of trying many approaches. The state should focus on fire the way it does on water, with a strategy and an infrastructure to deal with it on a daily basis, rather than only in crisis, ASU fire historian Steve Pyne recommends.

Those and more coming from a most fulfilling road trip, the first -- and certainly not the last -- for Arizona Week.