Fire Communication & Education
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Despite the increasing challenges wildfires are posing around the globe, and the flourishing production of high quality wildfire scientific knowledge, the ability of fire science to impact knowledge on the ground, for people, society, economy, and the environment, in a way that facilitates change in the current wildfire management system has been limited. We believe that one reason for this limited impact is due to the fragmentation of this scientific knowledge. Therefore, we propose a Translational Wildfire Science (TWFS) as a new field of knowledge that captures the comprehensive dynamics of wildfire events, that provides information relevant, useful, and accessible to practitioners and citizens, and that facilitates the transfer of scientific knowledge into practice. The foundations of TWFS, including the main principles, the overarching characteristics, and the approach of a TWFS scientist, are presented. Finally, the next steps to be undertaken to consolidate TWFS as a new scientific field are identified.
Webinar recording.
Presenter: Henok W. Asfaw, Postdoc and Project Manager for the First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership Project, University of Alberta
Description: This webinar presents results of research carried out as part of the First Nation Wildfire evacuation partnership in Canada and was recently published in a book titled “First Nations Wildfire Evacuations: A Guide for Communities and External Agencies”. The book brings together residents’ wildfire evacuation experiences drawn from seven case study First Nations communities in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario. This book is a way for us to share the research results to First Nations, government agencies, non-government organizations, and host communities to reduce negative impacts of future wildfire evacuations. We also believe that the book would serve as a valuable guide for building community wildfire evacuation preparedness and response capacities not only for First Nations but also other Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in Canada and beyond. Based on research featured in the recent book First Nations Wildfire Evacuations, A Guide for Communities and External Agencies, by Dr. Tara K. McGee and Dr. Amy Cardinal Christianson; with the First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership.
Webinar registration.
As our climate crisis deepens, feelings of anxiety, grief, and hopelessness are on the rise. Staying engaged in climate solutions over the long term requires us to avoid emotional burnout; yet when bombarded with so much bad news – mass extinction, dying oceans, displaced communities and burning forests – this is easier said than done. This talk explores the mental health dimensions of climate disruption among students, scientists, activists, and frontline communities, and shares practical strategies for building the emotional resilience to channel despair into meaningful action.
Webinar recording from Wildfire webinar sessions hosted by Oregon State University.
Webinar recording.
Attendees will:
- Receive updates from the Forest Service on the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program (CFLRP);
- Learn about an approach for building and maintaining a solid foundation for collaborative efforts using the 4-Ps (Purpose, People, Process, and Products);
- Hear from speakers about how CFLRP changed their collaborative efforts; and
- Be able to ask questions and join in a discussion about the process of building and maintaining a solid foundation for collaboration.
A public engagement tool for understanding human-nature relationships and relevant drivers of change
Webinar registration.
Description: Wildland fire is a phenomenon that impacts people and communities from the local to the national scale. These impacts are generally entwined with the human and ecological meanings and services that people derive from public lands. Fire planning requires an understanding of differing perceptions related to desired objectives and outcomes, as well as barriers and opportunities for implementation of adaptation strategies. While convening a diverse range of people with their varying perspectives to discuss wildland fire planning and management may be common, rigorous social science approaches that can be practically applied by practitioners within these forums are limited. We have developed a ‘social vulnerability’ protocol focused on exploring diverse human-nature relationships and the drivers of change influencing such relationships, which can support both decision-making and public relations. This webinar reviews past applications of the social vulnerability protocol to support planning and management, demonstrates the protocol in its web-based form for virtual engagement, and explores opportunities to apply the protocol within the context of wildfire planning and management.
Presenter: Chris Armatas, Research Social Scientist, Forest Service & Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute
Webinar recording.
Part 2 of this webinar series will feature three researchers in a combined presentation, panel and small breakout group interactive format. During registration, you will have the opportunity to choose your top two breakouts. We will pre-assign you to a room ahead of the webinar. These small group breakouts will be an opportunity to connect with researchers and other practitioners about the research topic in your group.
Presenters (and your choices for small group breakout sessions):
Karin Riley – Recent work includes Evaluating Rural Pacific Northwest Towns for Wildfire Evacuation Vulnerability (https://bit.ly/EvacPNWspatial).
Shefali Lakhina – Recent work includes Wildfire Preparedness and Evacuation Planning in a Pandemic (https://bit.ly/EvacConverge)
Amanda Staciewicz/Travis Paveglio – Recent work includes Preparing for Wildfire Evacuation and Alternatives: Exploring Influences on Residents’ Intended Evacuation Behaviors and Mitigations (https://bit.ly/EvacStasiewicz)
This webinar is geared towards wildfire adaptation practitioners who are implementing community evacuation preparedness and planning programs. It will not be covering information on individual homeowner evacuation preparedness.
Webinar recording.
Hear from presenters from around the country who share their personal experiences and lessons learned in moving their natural resource programs to a hybrid platform. They cover various types of hybrid events, including meetings, trainings, workshops and large-scale conferences, and how to ensure accessibility. This event is open to everyone but is targeted for natural resources professionals who are considering organizing hybrid events in the future.
Webinar recording.
Part 1 of this webinar series will feature three practitioners in a combined presentation and panel format. Learn about the evacuation planning and preparedness work happening in Oregon (City of Ashland and Deschutes County) and Colorado (Boulder County). Featured Speakers: Chris Chambers (Ashland Fire), Nathan Garibay (Deschutes County OEM), and Mike Chard (Boulder OEM)
This webinar is geared towards wildfire adaptation practitioners who are implementing community evacuation preparedness and planning programs. It will NOT be covering information on individual homeowner/renter evacuation preparedness.
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In this study, patterns of wildfire risk were explored from operational relative risk assessments (RRA) completed by land managers on 5087 wildfires from 2010 to 2017 in every geographic area of the USA. The RRA is the formal risk assessment used by land managers to develop strategies on emerging wildfires when concerns and issues related to wildfire management are in real-time. Only 38% of these wildfires were rated as high risk and 28% had high ratings for values at risk. Large regional variations were evident, with the West Coast regions selecting high risk and the South-west and Eastern regions selecting low risk. There were finer-scale influences on perceived risk when summarized on a jurisdictional level. Finally, risk summarized by USA agencies showed that the National Park Service and USDA Forest Service selected high risk less frequently compared with other agencies. By illuminating patterns of risk, this research intends to stimulate examination of the social, cultural, and physiographic factors influencing conceptions of risk.