Count me among those who harbor hope for local fire- and life-safety education during the 2010s. It won't be an easy decade, though. Economic reports from public educators have been sobering. Too often, their role in the system is being classified as non-essential, with even veteran educators being re-assigned or terminated. It will take years for fire departments to recover from painful cuts to municipal budgets.

It is hard to see a silver lining for public safety these days and yet, I know that progressive fire chiefs can and will weather this storm.

One reason is that Assistance to Firefighters Grant funding is spurring creativity and increasing focus on prevention and education at local, state and national levels. Model programs that demonstrate measurable success should earn supplemental funding. With it, they can be brought to scale and sustained over time, helping fire-service educators reduce the public's risk of fire and injury.

The U.S. fire service can implement more approaches that have proven successful elsewhere in the world: home visits to help vulnerable audiences indentify and reduce risks; firefighter collaboration with social- and health-services providers; and commitment to a comprehensive and systematic approach to public-safety education. We know these work.

The fire service deserves and enjoys the public's abiding trust and respect. This conveys a powerful "social authority" to drive positive change for safety. Championing home fire sprinklers is one important way the fire service can influence community safety for generations to come.

A strong focus on residential prevention, early warning, fixed protection and effective response will be the hallmarks of the modern fire department in the 2010s. Despite the economy, successful fire chiefs will ensure a systems approach to fulfill our dreams for 2010 and into the future.

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Return to the 2010 Decade Forecast: Sighs of the Times main page.

Or jump to another 2010 Decade Forecast perspective:

• Cultural Barriers
  By Kelvin Cochran, U.S. Fire Administrator
• Booming Woes
  By Denis Onieal, Superintendent, National Fire Academy
• Emerging Economy
  By Rob Brown, Chief, Stafford County (Va.) Fire Department
• Volunteer Issues
  By Philip Stittleburg, Chief, LaFarge (Wis.) Fire Department, and Chairman, NVFC
• Apparatus Advances
  By Peter Darley, President, FAMA, and Chief Operating Officer and Vice President, Darley Co.
• Expanded EMS
  By Gary Ludwig, Deputy Chief, Memphis (Tenn.) Fire Department, and Chairman, IAFC EMS Section
• Federal Deficits
  By Bill Webb, Executive Director, CFSI
• Safety First
  By Rob McLeod, Deputy Chief, Chandler (Ariz.) Fire Department, and Chairman, FDSOA
• Creative City Managers
  By Bill Wolpin, Associate Publisher/Editorial Director, American City & County magazine
• Renewed Hope
  By Meri-K Appy, President, Home Safety Council
• Budget Efficiencies
  By John R. Hill, President, Envizion Financial