Hi Fireshed Members,
There are a lot of exciting things on the horizon for The Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition in 2021. In the wake of the uncharacteristically destructive 2020 wildfire season, we all want to develop the community connections and wildfire mitigation projects that will keep us safe in 2021. To help us make strides towards a community wildfire resilience, help The Fireshed identify and recruit community ambassadors this Fall and Winter! Full details are below.
This Wildfire Wednesdays features:
Information on recruiting or becoming a Fireshed Ambassador for your community
Why We Must Learn to Live with Fire: An Article by Stephen Pyne
2020 Virtual Wildland Urban Fire Summit Next Week: Join for Free!
Thanks,
Gabe
Becoming a Fireshed Ambassador
The Fireshed Neighborhood Ambassador approach means engaging with your neighborhood to help them understand their wildfire risk and encourage and motivate residents to take action to reduce that risk. This approach builds community and promotes taking personal responsibility for where you live – which is in a fire adapted ecosystem! Within this program, offerings can be tailored to the needs and context of a community while still meeting the overarching purpose.
For full information on becoming a Fireshed Ambassador, click here.
There are numerous benefits to the Fireshed Ambassador approach - whether you are an Ambassador or a community member working with your local ambassador.
Engaging your neighbors to take action in targeted high wildfire risk neighborhoods
Accomplishing actions like improving egress and access, reflective signage, home hardening and evacuation preparedness projects in addition to fuels reduction around homes.
Enhancing relationships with fire departments and local forest and fire professionals
Building a network of residents who can share their experiences and help other residents as they begin their efforts for the benefit of the whole community.
Building a network of supporters who can encourage and support city and county wildfire policies and codes.
Increasing community capacity and preparedness in the event of a wildfire.
Our Burning Planet: Why We Must Learn to Live with Fire
KYLE GRILLOT/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
By suppressing all wildfires and incessantly burning fossil fuels, humans have upset the role that fire has historically played in providing ecological balance. We need to rethink our view of fire and accept its presence by changing how we manage lands and plan our communities.
In his article “Our Burning Planet: Why We Must Learn to Live with Fire,” environmental and fire historian Stephen Pyne describes three important paradoxes:
The more people attempt to take fire out of places that have co-evolved or co-existed with it, the more conditions change that worsen the fire scene.
Despite the expansion of feral flames, so abundantly recorded in global media, the amount of land burned on Earth continues to shrink.
As we ratchet down our binge-burning of lithic landscapes by cutting our use of fossil fuels, we will have to ratchet up our burning of living landscapes.
To read the full article, click here.
2020 Virtual Wildland Urban Fire Summit: Join for Free
Join this informative event, next week.
Fire season is a challenging time let alone during the COVID-19 pandemic. Local governments, state and federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations that have a passion for fire prevention will host a virtual NM Wildland Urban Fire Summit (WUFS) on Thursday, October 22 and Friday October 23, 2020. The event provides a continuous effort among community leaders, fire responders, and government personnel to share the latest techniques, cohesive strategies, and resources for wildfire adaption and economic resiliency, wildfire preparedness, and planning.
Registration is open until the day of the summit at no charge. Registration is available at https://www.nmcounties.org/calendar/.