As wildfires are increasingly causing negative impacts to communities and their livelihoods, many communities are demanding more proactive and locally driven approaches to address wildfire risk. This marks a shift away from centralized governance models where decision-making is concentrated in government agencies that prioritize reactive wildfire suppression. In British Columbia (BC), Canada, Community Forests – a long-term, area-based tenure granted to Indigenous and/or local communities – are emerging as local leaders facilitating proactive wildfire management.
Read more in the article by IBioS faculty member Dr. Shannon Hagerman and Colleagues.