NFPA Journal - Fall 2021 - 8

Editor's Note by Scott Sutherland
Executive Editor, NFPA Journal
What's Going On
N
ow that COVID has been relegated
to the background-at
least temporarily, and at least
in our well-vaccinated corner
of the world-we've been
enjoying a more or less typical summer
here in coastal New England. In our household,
that means hosting a stream of guests,
trying to stay on top of the piles of beach
sand that get tracked throughout the place,
and waiting (impatiently) for the local corn
to ripen.
It also means I have a wealth of opportunities
to explain to those houseguests what
I do for work and what this magazine is all
about.
The other night, a visiting friend asked
me what was going on with Journal these
days and if we were working on anything
interesting.
" Batteries, " I replied instantly, thinking of
this issue's cover story. " Batteries for flying
taxis. Huge batteries that can power entire
cities. We're kind of all about the batteries these
days. "
I was a little surprised by the speed and
clarity of my response, since I can sometimes
fumble for concise answers to simple
questions about NFPA and the magazine we
produce. Meanwhile, my inside voice was
offering me its two cents: Actually, there's
a lot more going on than just batteries,
champ...
" Huh, " my friend said. " So you don't just
write about fire. " She paused, then offered,
" You should call yourselves the National
Worry-About-Anything-That-Can-Go-Wrong
Association. "
It's a conversation I've had many times
over the years-I think my stock reply to the
go-wrong quip was along the lines of " Well,
somebody has to " -with the result being that
one more civilian now knows that NFPA isn't
just about fire.
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Scott Sutherland
ssutherland@nfpa.org
ART DIRECTOR
Doug Sternberg
dsternberg@nfpa.org
Emboldened, I decided to roll with it. I
proceeded to list for her some of the other
non-fire topics in the issue that was just
hours away from going to press: crowd
management ( " Perspectives " and " In Compliance " ),
building safety and the Miami condo
collapse ( " Dispatches " ), venue safety and the
Indiana state fair disaster ( " Looking Back " ),
drone training for fire departments ( " Dispatches "
again). In the interest of accuracy, I
also checked off some of this issue's coverage
that was decidedly about fire: historic fires,
international factory fires, fires in the United
States, wildfire. " So, yeah, not just batteries, "
I concluded. " Fire too. "
" Huh, " she said again, this time with a bit
more emphasis. " I had no idea. "
Most people don't, but there's a large
and growing effort on the part of NFPA to
change that. Journal is certainly part of that
effort, and our ambition with every issue
is to provide coverage that illustrates the
breadth and depth of NFPA's global mission.
What's going on? Plenty. Am I working on
anything interesting? I sure am-let me tell
you about it.
THE NFPA JOURNAL MISSION It is the mission of NFPA Journal to provide NFPA members and
other stakeholders with important information on fire, electrical, and life safety topics and on issues
related to NFPA's codes and standards development, education initiatives, and advocacy efforts.
We will do this by identifying stories that are relevant and timely for our readers; upholding the
highest journalistic standards of thoroughness and accuracy; and conveying that information in an
attractive, well-designed publication across all platforms. The content of NFPA Journal solely reflects
the personal opinions of the contributors and does not necessarily represent the official position of
NFPA; the meaning and intent of NFPA codes and standards can be obtained only through NFPA's
published procedures for requesting formal interpretations. The contents of this magazine may not
be reprinted without the written permission of NFPA. NFPA Journal is a registered trademark of NFPA.
8 | NFPA JOURNAL * FALL 2021
SENIOR EDITOR
Jesse Roman
jroman@nfpa.org
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Angelo Verzoni
averzoni@nfpa.org
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Adrienne M. Albrecht
PROOFREADER
Ellen M. Cosgrove
DIRECTOR OF SALES
Bill Mello
wmello@nfpa.org
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CIRCULATION MANAGER
Michael Carinci
VICE PRESIDENT
OUTREACH AND ADVOCACY
Lorraine Carli
COPYRIGHT © 2021 NFPA. All rights reserved. PRINTED IN USA. NFPA Journal (ISSN 1054-8793) is a
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NFPA Journal - Fall 2021

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