ENCORE EPISODE! Rebuild:LA Episode 041: Forgotten Altadena with the Future Organization’s Aimery Thomas

Send us Fan Mail In our last Encore Episode before the premiere of Season 5, we revisit the Future Organization and its founder, Aimery Thomas. After the Eaton Fire, Thomas and his partner, Leila Towry, looked around their destroyed Altadena neighborhood and realized their training as researchers of vulnerable populations uniquely positioned them to help their community. They decided to survey 1,228 neighbors to learn what happened during the fire, how they survived it, and what they were doing to rebuild. Their report, titled ARISE (Altadena Resident Impact Survey and Evaluation), was released in 2025, and we spoke to Thomas not long after, in September of last year. In their report, still available online, they outline the disappointment, confusion, anger, and sadness many Altadenans felt in the aftermath of the fire, and their hopes as they navigated their way back home. Resources: The Future Organization The ARISE Study LA County Government Altadena Town Council Support the show