Born and raised in Montana, Dr. Kimiko Barrett (Kimi) has a deep interest in rural landscapes and the people who live there. She has a natural aptitude for connecting and energizing people in the pursuit of community resilience and climate adaptation.
Kimi is a committed agent of change in how we live with inevitable wildfires. Drawing on the expertise within the broad networks she has built, she has led research of national significance on topical issues such as the true cost of wildfires, the cost of building wildfire-resistant homes, and measuring wildfire impacts through structure loss. Her work has changed the national wildfire narrative and shaped new strategies for engaging communities on wildfire resilience.
Kimi managed Headwaters Economics’ Community Planning Assistance for Wildfire program for six years. In that capacity she worked with firefighters, land use and planning staff, government agency personnel, and elected officials in more than 80 communities across the country, helping them devise community-driven solutions to reduce wildfire risk and increase community adaptation efforts. Kimi’s experience with local-level efforts ensures that her research and policy work addresses real problems on the ground.
Uniquely positioned in the nexus of communities, science, and natural hazards, Kimi is regularly quoted by major media outlets. She is frequently interviewed by the New York Times, LA Times, Bloomberg, and Washington Post, National Public Radio, The Economist, the Associated Press, and Marketplace. And because of Kimi’s outstanding ability to engage diverse audiences, she is a sought-after speaker, regularly presenting at professional trainings, university seminars, community workshops, conferences, and congressional hearings. Kimi was recently appointed, served, and led efforts as a member of the Federal Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission.
Kimi has had a lifelong interest in community cultures, social change, and science. Her professional career and her exceptional communication skills are built on the groundwork of academic degrees in political science and Japanese, forestry, and geography.
Wildfire hazard assessment maps can help communities build safer neighborhoods, prioritize mitigation resources, and adapt to wildfire.
Community Planning Assistance for Wildfire (CPAW) is helping communities reduce wildfire risks and costs. Four new communities join 26 others this coming year.
Almost half of the full community costs of wildfire are paid for at the local level, including homeowners, businesses, and government agencies.
The wildfires that burned the edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park devastated nearby communities and underscore the need to reduce the risks and costs of future catastrophic events.
Mapping and understanding communities at risk from wildfires just became easier with a new interactive tool generated by Headwaters Economics.
Five urban areas in the West and Southwest are taking steps to mitigate wildfire risks and costs through the perspective of land use planning.
Case studies show how five urban areas in the West are using innovative land use planning tools to adapt to the increasing risks from wildfires.
An independent analysis by Headwaters Economics shows that the first round of funding from the Community Wildfire Defense Grant program prioritized high-risk, low-income communities.
In this video produced by Headwaters Economics, homeowner Brodey Simkins describes the tragedy of losing his home to wildfire and his commitment to rebuilding with wildfire in mind.
According to a report called “Missing the Mark,” published last year by the Columbia Climate School and Headwaters Economics, an independent, nonprofit research group based in Montana, the most effective strategies to reduce communities’ wildfire risk aren’t just those that focus on forests, but also those that construct and adapt our homes and neighborhoods.
“We can’t address this by just treating the forest. If we’re wanting to address the entire Wildland Urban Interface, then we must very strategically and deliberately invest in the urban as much as we are in the wildland,” said Kimiko Barrett, the wildfire research and policy lead at Headwaters Economics.
On the contrary, local governments depend on new development to bring in more property-tax revenue. “If I’m a county commissioner, why would I care if that house burns down?” Kimi Barrett, a policy analyst at Headwaters Economics, a nonprofit research group, tells the authors. “Because I’m not going to pay for it.”
Kimiko Barrett, a wildfire researcher with Headwaters Economics, said there are several reasons people live — and are moving to — these locations, including out of necessity.
“We as a culture must fundamentally rethink wildfire and what it means to coexist with increasing risk,” said commission member Kimiko Barrett, of Montana-based Headwaters Economics.