Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network Annual Workshop - Ashland, OR

FAC Net Annual Workshop participants representing areas across the U.S. Credit: FAC Net

What a week we had in Ashland, Oregon (April 22 to 25) thanks to the amazing staff from Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network, a wildfire resiliency learning network. HWMO is now officially a Core Member of FAC Net on behalf of our amazing partners across Hawaii and the Western Pacific. FAC Net members from Ashland welcomed us with open arms as they hosted this year’s annual workshop and showcased the inspiring multi-partner work they were doing to protect community and natural areas.

We hiked, we ate, we shared, we listened, we got out of our comfort zones, all of this together with a group of inspiring people from across the U.S. doing the important work to create a more wildfire-resilient future. We were sad to leave our new and old friends but very energized to come back to Hawaii and continue the critical work HWMO is doing to make Hawaii safer from wildfires

On a captivating and education field tour of Lithia Park where a combination of methods to reduce wildfire hazards including prescribed fire are being used to restore the watershed.

Hearing stories about residents teaming up with the Ashland Fire Department and local contractors to create a Firewise Community.

Just like in Hawaii, there are Firewise Communities all over Ashland. Here’s our Executive Director, Elizabeth Pickett, pointing one out.

We were treated to some amazing food throughout the week — and most importantly, ate meals with awesome people!

Views of Ashland's Mountains

Ashland Fire Station and Wildfire Signs

Ali Lerch of Ashland Fire Department welcomes everyone.

Active Self Active Bystander Training

Elizabeth Pickett pointing out a Firewise USA sign.

FAC Net Jeopardy gets hyper competitive.

Very interesting panel on smoke from wildfires.

Eating delicious food together.

Preparing for the field tour.

Biodiverse canopies.

Color swatch matching game.

Learning about the fire history of Ashland.

Views of the forested mountaintops.

Fuels reduction in Lithia Park.

View of homes intermixed with the wildlands.

Beautiful trails abound.

Hearing about wildfire management in Lithia Park.

Switchbacks galore.

Burn evidence.

Collaboration lessons learned.

Firewise Community shares their stories.

Group rotation to hear stories about becoming a Firewise Community.

Partnership between residents and local firefighters.

Sharing a common bond over protecting communities from wildfire.

Firewise committee member shares lessons learned.

Residents share their perspectives on what it's like to be in a Firewise Community.

An evening of fine appetizers, fun poetry sharing, and a speech from the Fire Chief.

Black Out Poetry.

Poetry to get out of our comfort zones.

Exploring Ashland including its famous Lithia Water.

A night out at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Good times with amazing people from FAC Net.

A reflection poem from Pablo, HWMO’s Community Outreach Coordinator:

It was a truly inspiring and motivating week in Ashland, 
hearing from locals and their sobering stories about 
the realities of a vastly changing climate, 
of summers that so smoky kids stay indoors for weeks on end, 
of people packing their bags and leaving 
because their lungs cannot inhale particulate pollution.

I was able to join a community of connectors from across the U.S., 
of people in the wildland fire field who are taking measures 
in their areas to scrap status quo and think outside of the box, 
to topple silos and bridge groups who've never sat at tables together.

The immense wildfire situation we face requires everyone 
and requires solutions both new and revived, 
where traditional knowledge centuries in the making intertwines 
with the creative capacity we all have to adapt and innovate.

It takes us all to create fire-adapted communities.

Method to the Madness Podcast - HWMO Interview

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HWMO Community Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler (left) and Method to the Madness host, Niklas Lollo

On December 23, just before the holiday season was in full swing, HWMO's Community Outreach Coordinator, Pablo Beimler visited his alma mater, University of California, Berkeley, and was interviewed by Niklas Lollo, a current graduate student and co-host of the Method to the Madness podcast. The show, which airs regularly on KALX 90.7FM (staffed by students and community volunteers), celebrates "the innovative spirit of the Bay Area." Each episode, they "explore the people behind the ideas, what makes them tick, and why so many of them have come out of" the beautiful Bay Area.

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Pablo Beimler was interviewed about various topics including the work HWMO does in the Pacific and his past experiences in the fire world.

During the interview, Pablo talked story about how HWMO came to existence and the innovative work our organization is doing to safeguard communities and natural areas in Hawaii. Topics ranged from the differences between wildfire behavior on the islands and on the mainland, Firewise Communities, the Pacific Fire Exchange, and what to expect in the coming years for wildfire management in Hawaii. Tune in and you'll also hear about some of Pablo's past experiences working in the Stephens Fire Science Lab at UC Berkeley and Lake Tahoe for CAL FIRE.

Big mahalo to Niklas Lollo and the folks over at KALX for dedicating a half hour of their air time and inviting us to be on the show!

Hawaii Conservation Conference Wildfire Forum - 2014

As the wildfire issue continues to grow in Hawaii, PFX has taken another step to help raise the awareness level and grow the network by holding a Wildfire Forum on July 15th at the Hawaii Conservation Conference in Waikiki. PFX invited an eclectic group of speakers to provide perspectives ranging from the science, management, and community fields. The forum was meant to embody the spirit of the Cohesive Strategy: improved wildfire response, promotion of resilient landscapes, and fire adapted communities. The forum titled: Perspectives on Hawaii's Wildfire Problem - from Science and Management to Community Action, was moderated by PFX Co-Coordinator and UH Cooperative Extension Wildfire Specialist Dr. Clay Trauernicht who started the event with new data supporting the claim that wildfires are a growing concern in all of Hawai'i. Maps and data compiled by Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO) and analyzed by Dr. Trauernicht showed an increase in wildfire incidents over the past decade, incidents that occur almost entirely near roads and communities. 

Following Dr. Trauernicht's introduction to the topic, Wayne Ching, long-standing Fire Management Officer for Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DOFAW) kicked off a series of brief presentations. Mr. Ching, representing years of first responder knowledge, gave background on DOFAW's fire management program. He explained: "We're not a full-time firefighting agency. We're like a militia…" To address the need for support, DOFAW had relied heavily on its commitment to partners to help prevent mitigate, and suppress wildfires. A reduction in budgets, though a challenge, said Mr. Ching, had opened up new opportunities, including partnering with the U.S. Forest Service to expand its programs and suppression capabilities.

Adding to the suppression perspective, Chief Terry Seelig stepped up to the podium representing the Fire Prevention Bureau of the Honolulu Fire Department. Chief Seelig stressed the importance of partnership in order to strengthen fire suppression capabilities, a concern addressed by the formation of the Oahu Wildfire Information and Education Group (OWIE). OWIE was formed to share information amongst agencies and coordinate communication of such information to communities. Chief Seelig promoted the need to connect with communities by using "common nomenclature" to help communities understand wildfire issues and clarify the role and expectations of government agencies in fire emergencies. Suppression agencies, he explained, already had their hands tied due to a large amount of ignitions that were all due to human carelessness, recklessness, or a lot of times, maliciousness. Fortunately, no lives had been lost in a wildfire in Hawaii. "We fortunately haven't had that type of situation - don't wanna say lucky, because luck is something you can't count on. We try to count on planning, preparedness, and prevention."

Rhonda Loh, Chief of Natural Resources Management for the National Park Service at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (HAVO) phased into land management perspectives on the wildfire issue. Within all parks, the number and size of fires had increased over the years, most notably in HAVO where lava and lightning ignitions added to human ignitions. With over 50 federally listed plants and animals, fire management at the parks had proven a challenge but also an opportunity to explore new strategies for land management. Park Service personnel had conducted research burns in a variety of different regions of Volcanoes National Park to customize strategies that they could then mold to each area. 

On the science side of the forum, Creighton Litton, Associate Professor at University of Hawaii at Manoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) presented a collaborative research project that explored an often-overlooked ecosystem in the conservation field: nonnative grasslands of the Pacific Islands. Critical gaps and research needs existed in both fire ecology and wildfire prediction in these novel ecosystems. Now twenty-five percent of Hawaii's land area, nonnative grasslands in Hawaii had built up to unprecedented average fuel loads, "over twice as much as other grasslands around the world," Dr. Litton exclaimed. As climate change would only exacerbate wildfire conditions, the need for fire-resistant restoration through innovative and collaborative efforts would continue to grow.

Rounding out the presentation portion of the program, Pablo Beimler spoke on behalf of Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO) as the Education and Outreach Coordinator and representing the community aspect of the wildfire issue. Mr. Beimler highlighted HWMO's spearheading of Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs) on Hawaii Island and just recently, Western Maui. CWPPs brought together "firefighters, land managers, and community members to discuss wildfire-related concerns and to make a prioritized action plan for all involved, explained Mr. Beimler. "The reason that collaborative, collective action is needed to deal with wildfires is because wildfire impacts span boundaries and across jurisdictions." HWMO recently received funding to complete 6 more CWPPs on Hawaii Island, Maui County, and Oahu in the next two years, opening up new federal funding opportunities for communities concerned with wildfire. 

A short panel discussion with the presenters concluded the forum with audience members bringing-up questions on a variety of different wildfire topics. Panel members shared their expertise in what was a unique make-up of individuals, each with their own perspectives but aligned in their efforts to understand, prevent, and mitigate wildfires in Hawaii.

Banner photo: Panelists from left to right - Dr. Creighton Litton, Wayne Ching, Rhonda Loh, Chief Terry Seelig, Pablo Beimler (not pictured).