Fire Science 

Exchange 

Network

Fiscal Year 2023

ANNUAL SUMMARY
Fire Science

Exchange 

Network

Fiscal Year 2023

ANNUAL SUMMARY

The Fire Science Exchange Network 

(FSEN) is a science delivery 

organization made up of 15 regional 

fire science exchanges across the 

United States. Created in 2010, 

the exchanges provide relevant 

and current wildland fire science 

information to federal, state, local, 

Tribal, academic, non-profit, and 

private stakeholders. Collaboration 

among fire managers, practitioners, 

and scientists is a key strength of 

the network, allowing each exchange 

to deliver wildland fire science 

information that is directly applicable 

to managers making decisions in 

real-time. Funded by the Joint Fire 

Science Program, the exchanges 

submit their annual accomplishments 

categorized by activities, 

participation by organizations, and 

stories of societal impacts. This 

report provides a snapshot of those 

results for fiscal year 2023.

In fiscal year 2023, the 

exchanges collectively: 

Produced Published

257 newsletters 93 blog posts

Developed Hosted 

26 syntheses 94 webinars

Hosted Developed 

107 conferences 44 short courses 

workshops and continuing

education units

Created 

104 video productions

The Appendix at the conclusion of this report contains 

three tables summarizing a complete breakdown of 

activities conducted in fiscal year 2023.

Alaska

Fire Science

Consortium

Pacific

Fire Exchange

California

Fire Science

Consortium

Southern

Rockies

Fire Science

Network

Oak Woodlands

& Forests

Fire Consortium

Northern Rockies

Fire Science

Network

Great

Plains

Fire Science

Exchange

Southwest

Fire Science

Consortium

Southern

Fire Exchange

Tallgrass Prairie and 

Oak Savanna Fire 

Science Consortium

Consortium

of Appalachian

Fire Managers

& Scientists

North Atlantic

Fire Science

Exchange

Lake States

Fire Science

Consortium

Great Basin

Fire Science

Exchange

Northwest

Fire Science

Consortium
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

1

FSEN Highlights

Approximately 23,000 individuals participated 

in FSEN-organized wildland fire science delivery 

activities in fiscal year 2023 (up 2,000 from fiscal 

year 2022). The pie chart highlights participation 

by organizational groups. Participation by 

organization is similar to last year’s numbers, apart 

from private groups, which increased from 8% in 

fiscal year 2022.

Beginning in fiscal year 2021, the exchanges 

focused on capturing the influence of their 

activities according to categories of societal 

impact developed by Meadow and Owen (2021). 

Societal impacts are “the ways that research, and 

the process of conducting research, influences 

the world beyond the academic realm.” Meadow 

and Owen’s 2021 guidebook offers approaches 

for planning projects that optimize engagement 

with societal partners, identifying new ways 

to impact the world beyond academia, and 

providing tools to develop the skills to assess 

and communicate to multiple audiences. Their 

Table 1. Definitions for categories of societal impact in relation to wildland fire management. 

Adapted and modified from Meadow and Owen (2021)1

.

CATEGORIES OF SOCIETAL IMPACT

Instrumental Exchange activities or products instrumental in changes to plans, decisions, practices, or 

policies related to wildland fire management

Conceptual Exchange activities or products that contributed to changes in people’s knowledge 

about or awareness of an issue related to wildland fire management

Capacity 

Building

Exchange activities or products that contributed to enhancing the skills, expertise, or 

resources of an organization or group of people related to wildland fire management

Connectivity

Exchange activities or products that led to new or strengthened relationships, 

partnerships, or networks related to wildland fire management that endure after the 

project ends

Socioenvironmental

Exchange activities or products that led to changes to social and/or ecological systems 

related to wildland fire management (such as improved health and wellbeing or 

ecosystem structure and function) related to wildland fire management

1 Meadow, A.M., and G. Owen. 2021. Planning and evaluating the societal impacts of climate change research projects: A 

guidebook for natural and physical scientists looking to make a difference. University of Arizona, Arizona Institutes for 

Resilience, Tucson, AZ. https://swcasc.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/2022-03/Meadow-Owen_Societal-Impacts_Guidebook.pdf 

categories of societal impact include instrumental, 

conceptual, capacity building, connectivity, and 

socioenvironmental (Table 1). The information in 

this report demonstrates the value and impact of 

FSEN investments in carrying out science delivery 

activities on the ground. These highlights illustrate 

high levels of collaboration across exchanges and 

the science and management community, emphasis 

on workforce development and trainings, working 

with underrepresented groups and Tribal entities, 

bringing nontraditional groups together via 

in-person workshops, and implementing fire 

science in digestible user-friendly ways.

25%

Federal

Agencies

29%

Regional/

State/Local

16%

Universities

2% International

17%

Private 10%

Nongovernmental

Organizations

1% Tribal
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

2

ALASKA

Supporting Decision Making and Research 

Collaboration in Fuels Management and Hazard 

Exposure

With the recent influx of funding directed at hazardous 

fuels reduction projects, agency staff are tasked with 

preparing and implementing plans for vegetation 

treatments in unique and poorly understood ecosystems, 

while working with residents to gain community 

acceptance. The Alaska Fire Science Consortium has been compiling information and resources on this 

topic since its inception. 

In fiscal year 2023, the consortium saw a major advance in direct collaboration among the National 

Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Fuels Management Committee, agency fuels managers, and 

a National Science Foundation-funded research project on the topic of fuels treatments led by 

the University of Alaska Anchorage. The consortium actively nurtured this collaboration through 

sustained engagement with managers and researchers, identifying areas of mutual interest as well as 

opportunities to advance information sharing, field logistics, and development of geospatial products. 

Highlights of this work include:

n The consortium received financial support from the Bureau of Land Management to develop and 

share geospatial decision support products requested by the NWCG Fuels Management Committee. 

A statewide wildfire exposure map to guide initial prioritization and location of fuels treatments and 

a statewide interagency fuel treatment database to document projects were developed. Plans are 

underway to incorporate these products into the Alaska Wildland Fire Information Map Series, the 

interagency common operating picture for Alaska managers, and to continue their development and 

refinement through ongoing collaboration with the research team and managers.

n The consortium participated in regional interagency meetings such as the March 7 and 8 fuels 

workshop and committee meeting, the Kenai Peninsula All Lands All Hands meeting, and the 

consortium’s seasonal workshops.

n The consortium collaborated with the research project, participating in internal planning meetings, 

summer 2023 field work, and facilitating access to agency data resources such as National Fire 

Plan Operations and Reporting System. Collaborating agencies include Tanana Chiefs Conference, 

Chugachmiut, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

National Park Service, Alaska Division of Forestry, and multiple municipalities and community groups.

n Graduate students affiliated with the project successfully obtained Graduate Research Innovation 

awards from the Joint Fire Science Program. These awards will enable students to expand their 

projects to address specific fire management issues and share the results of their work with state and 

federal agencies and Alaska residents.

The relevant societal impact categories are conceptual, capacity building, connectivity, and 

socio-environmental (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

3

APPALACHIANS

U.S. Forest Service Region 8 Women in 

Wildfire Crew

The Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers and Scientists was 

asked by regional fire leadership to mentor to a new wildland fire 

crew established in January 2022. The Region 8 Women in Wildfire 

Crew was created to recruit and retain women in the field of fire. 

This is an opportunity to continue efforts in building and diversifying 

the wildland fire workforce. This Region 8 crew consisted of three 

U.S. Forest Service team leaders and five Student Conservation 

Association members. These women included recent high school and university graduates with no 

previous wildland fire experience. The focus of the crew was to provide support throughout Region 

8 for prescribed fire operations and fuels management. The crew participated in prescribed burns on 

25,011 acres, across 8 ranger districts and on 6 national forests. 

This effort builds on the existing strong involvement with the Fire Tigers student fire crew at Clemson 

University. The consortium is dedicated to helping form the next generation of fire professionals by 

working with the Region 8 crew on prescribed fires, through discussions on the fire line and in the 

classroom setting. This work has led to a stronger understanding of why fire is an important part of 

the landscape in the Southeast United States. The fire season ended with a daylong field trip with the 

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, who have a successful burn program in the South 

Carolina mountains and have integrated science into their decision making for many years. Ending the 

season by integrating fire science and fire management in a field trip setting with partner organizations 

provided the crew with a better understanding of the successes and challenges of fire management in 

the region. After the season was over, crewmembers embarked on news careers and journeys, ranging 

from college to government or Student Conservation Association employment.

The relevant societal impact category is capacity building (Table 1).

Consortium of Appalachian

Fire Managers & Scientists
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

4

CALIFORNIA

Sonoran and Mojave Desert 

Subregion: Synthesis for 

Practitioners and Applied 

Scientists

One of the California Fire 

Science Consortium’s main 

deliverables this year was a synthesis handbook of desert habitat 

restoration techniques focusing on postfire recovery and management. 

More specifically, the synthesis discusses disturbance effects and ecological 

restoration techniques in the Mojave and Western Sonoran Deserts, 

overlapping with distributions of threatened desert tortoises and Joshua 

trees1

. The synthesis was published in 2023 in the journal Desert Plants, 

which is geared toward practitioners and applied scientists involved 

in the conservation and restoration of desert habitats. The synthesis 

represents a collaboration and joint production of the California Fire Science Consortium; University of 

Nevada, Las Vegas; Desert Conservation Program of Clark County, Nevada; and the U.S. Geological Survey.

The synthesis is set up as a manager-oriented handbook of techniques and is available to the public. 

It is organized into three restoration technique categories: (1) restoration of site environments, (2) 

revegetation, and (3) management actions to limit further disturbance and encourage recovery. 

Within these categories, the authors presented 11 major restoration techniques (and their variations) 

evaluated by at least one published study. The techniques ranged from geomorphic (e.g., reestablishing 

natural topographic patterns), to abiotic structural treatments (e.g., vertical mulching), to active 

revegetation (e.g., outplanting, seeding). For example, the synthesis summarized 16 studies of 

outplanting greenhouse-propagated seedlings assessed performance of 46 species to begin identifying 

top-performing species recommended for desert restoration projects, associated treatments (e.g., 

protection from herbivory) required to aid outplant survival, and potential for outplants to trigger 

formation of self-sustaining populations.

The synthesis also summarized costs for restoring desert habitats. Costs varied primarily with severity 

of disturbance; site factors such as the diversity of vegetation that was lost; logistical factors such as 

accessibility of sites (which influence transportation costs); and the cost-effectiveness of restoration 

techniques chosen. The authors concluded that given the likelihood of increasingly large disturbances, 

such as broad-scale wildfires and anticipated drier and more variable future climates, bet-hedging 

approaches employing multiple treatment types (or phased treatments across years) and greater 

incorporation of abiotic treatments (which are less sensitive to timing of precipitation compared with 

biotic treatments) could become increasingly important management strategies.

Building off the synthesis, the Clark County Desert Conservation Program (Clark County, Nevada, 

eastern Mojave Desert) has decided to initiate a regional field assessment of the effectiveness of 

habitat management and restoration activities in the Mojave Desert and to initiate a new restoration 

strategy across the network of Clark County preserves the county manages.

The relevant societal impact categories are conceptual, capacity building, and instrumental.

1 Abella, S.R., K.H. Berry, and S. Ferrazzano. 2023. Techniques for restoring damaged Mojave and western Sonoran 

habitats, including those for threatened desert tortoises and Joshua trees. Desert Plants 38 (2): 4–52.
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

5

GREAT BASIN

Seed Innovations Webinar Series

In March 2023, the Great Basin Fire Science 

Exchange hosted a webinar series on the 

innovations and technologies being tested 

and utilized in rangeland restoration. The Seed 

Innovations for Great Basin Landscapes series 

featured seven presentations led by university, federal agency, and nongovernmental organization 

scientists. It also included a panel discussion among regional managers and webinar attendees. The 

series had 288 participants. Although this series focused on several concepts that are largely in the early 

stages of development and use, attendees indicated that the content was “definitely” or “probably” 

applicable to their work (> 80%). Content related to seed zones, adaptation, and manager perspectives 

was definitely or probably applicable to their work immediately (> 90%), and regardless of the novelty 

of the topic (seed modifications and delivery methods), attendees found that the webinars definitely or 

probably provided support or reasons to rethink their current approaches to restoration (> 70%).

Based on comments from webinar attendees, this series was beneficial, overall. Comments included:

Seed Zones and Adaptive Traits:

n “Terrific message and examples!”

n “Excellent helpful information! Thank you!” 

Seed Modifications:

n “Thanks. We always look forward to seeing the work coming out of your lab and from your students.”

n “Fantastic talks, thank you!” 

Seed Delivery:

n “Such fascinating work you all are doing. Thank you!”

n “I work with the wildland fire management program in our region, so if there’s an opportunity in the 

near future to collaborate, I’ll reach out.” 

Manager Perspectives:

n “A great set of panelists!”

n “I thought it was 

an excellent set of 

perspectives.”

The relevant societal 

impact categories 

are conceptual and 

instrumental (Table 1).

Applicable to work?

Applicable immediately?

Change or support approach?

Applicable to work?

Applicable immediately?

Change or support approach?

Applicable to work?

Applicable immediately?

Change or support approach?

Applicable to work?

Applicable immediately?

Change or support approach?

0%

Yes

Resonses from live webinar attendees who participated in the post-event survey (n=19–55).

Probably Probably not No Unsure

10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Seed Zones

and

Adaptations

Seed

Modifications

Seed

Delivery Perspectives
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

6

GREAT PLAINS

Colorado Wildland Fire Conference Presentation

Work on wildfire science in Colorado has focused primarily on its forested 

ecosystems. But much of the state, especially the Front Range, is made up 

of grassland ecosystems. Due to rapid growth, communities are increasingly 

extending into Great Plains rangelands, where ample fuel loads and few 

natural fire breaks exist. Often, home and business owners and community 

planners are unaware of the risks to their infrastructure. The 2021 Marshall 

Fire was a wake-up call about the risk posed to communities in wildland 

urban interface zones along the Front Range. 

The Great Plains Fire Science Exchange was invited by the Southern Rockies Fire Science Network, 

to present at the 2023 Colorado Wildland Fire Conference. The presentation, “Fire in the Grasslands: 

Science, Management, and the Inevitable,” was attended by about 70 people. The presentation 

covered grassland fire ecology, Indigenous fire practices in the Great Plains, prescribed burning, fuel 

estimates and woody encroachment, and a summary of recent large wildfires in Kansas (160,000–

750,000 acres). It also discussed mitigating the challenges to living with wildland fire in rural, wildland 

urban interface, and urban areas. 

Discussion followed the 

presentation, and many people 

expressed interest in learning 

more about grassland fires. Since 

the conference, a grassland fire 

science synthesis is being written 

and reviewed by both the Great 

Plains exchange and the Colorado 

Forest Service; a longer technical 

publication is planned to assist 

Front Range communities with 

fire management decisions. These 

publications are the result of a 

Colorado Forest Service visit in 

Spring 2023 with the exchange 

and the Southern Rockies network. By working together and utilizing the Southern Rockies network’s 

knowledge of Colorado agencies and the Great Plains exchange’s knowledge of grasslands, bigger 

impacts are happening than either group could have affected alone. 

The relevant societal impact category is conceptual (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

7

LAKE STATES

The Phenology of Fire, Growing Season Burns, and 

Opening the Burn Window

While fire history data, including knowledge of Indigenous use of fire, 

indicate that summer fires were ecologically and culturally important in this 

region, contemporary implementation of growing season burns is rare. The 

Lake States Fire Science Consortium has been instrumental in initiating and 

supporting many organizations as they progress from building awareness to 

successful implementation of growing season burns. The consortium will continue to guide this cultural 

paradigm shift to “open the phenological burn window” through organizing workshops and field trips, 

facilitating partnerships, developing new burn prescriptions, and navigating policy and rare species 

needs. 

In 2023, many of the growing season burns conducted are now part of the routine burn window and 

priority planning for organizations that the consortium has helped to overcome internal and external 

barriers. These organizations include but are not limited to Michigan’s and Wisconsin’s Department 

of Natural Resources, Metroparks Toledo (Ohio), the Edward Lowe Foundation, and University of 

Minnesota’s Cloquet Forestry Center. Of special note, the University of Minnesota recognizes that 

the Cloquet Forestry Center is part of the Fond du Lac treaty lands, and cultural burns are led and 

conducted by mixed crews of Tribal and other western fire management organizations. 

In 2023, the consortium developed the idea with the University of Minnesota’s Sustainable Forests 

Education Cooperative to incorporate a “Prescribed Fire Library and Interactive Mapping Section” into 

their existing Great Lakes Silviculture Library. The consortium will populate the fire library and mapping 

section with case studies on growing season burns in the region, highlighting objectives, prescription 

parameters, weather, photos/videos showing actual fire behavior, and monitoring results of fire effects.

The relevant societal impact 

categories are connectivity, 

conceptual, capacity-building, 

instrumental, and socioenvironmental (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

8

NORTH ATLANTIC

Fire in Oak at The Dome

New England’s fire-dependent 

oak forests have been 

undergoing the removal of fire 

since the arrival of European 

settlers over 400 years ago. 

Today, prescribed fire is 

underutilized as a management 

tool in New England’s oak ecosystems. In spring 2019, 

land managers at the Green Mountain National Forest 

held a prescribed burn at a mountaintop oak forest called The Dome in Vermont. At the time, the North 

Atlantic Fire Science Exchange brought together fire scientists and managers to share knowledge 

about fire ecology, operations, and first- and second-order fire effects in oak ecosystems. In fall 2022, 

a second prescribed burn was conducted at the same site. Once again, the exchange convened fire 

managers and scientists to share learning around the burn and associated research.

To reach a wider audience, in fiscal year 2023 the exchange offered a variety of formats for information 

sharing and knowledge exchange: 

n Creation of a StoryMap video. The Green Mountain National Forest collaborated with the exchange 

to create a StoryMap about management at The Dome. The exchange came up with a creative 

alternative that allowed the StoryMap to be made publicly available, using a close-captioned YouTube 

video as a coordinated walk-through of the material. The pace and delivery of the video engaged 

viewers, as the topic unfolded logically from one speaker to the next. To date, this video has had over 

350 views.

n Presentation of an interactive webinar. The exchange hosted a webinar with a unique format: 

“popcorn” video viewing and live Q&A. For each section, the exchange shared 3- to 9-minute clips of 

the StoryMap YouTube video and followed each with a live Q&A session with webinar participants. 

In this way, participants learned about the history of The Dome, LANDFIRE data, silviculture and 

monitoring, prescribed fire and smoke, fire effects monitoring, and collaborations with a nonprofit 

studying the ecosystem. The Q&A rounds were followed by facilitated, cross-cutting discussion. The 

webinar had 115 participants.

n Hosted a field trip. Due to the mountainous topography, the exchange limited the field trip to 30 

participants. The perspectives of U.S. Forest Service staff, state agencies, landscape historians, 

conservation nonprofits, and others contributed to rich discussions as participants hiked up and down 

the mountain. The participants connected with each other as the group spread out. At each pause 

in the hike, the exchange facilitated conversations about the landscape’s evolution, historical fire 

regimes, interactions between climate change and fire, prescribed burn operations, and vegetation 

and wildlife responses.

These innovative communication formats led by the exchange engaged a diverse group of land 

managers and scientists from multiple disciplines, allowing a deep-dive examination of fire in 

northeastern oak ecosystems. 

The relevant societal impact categories are connectivity and conceptual (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

9

NORTHERN ROCKIES

Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness and Frank-Church 

River of No Return Wilderness Fire Science 

Workshop

In June 2023, the Northern Rockies Fire Science 

network held a two-day, Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness 

and Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Fire 

Science Workshop. It addressed themes including post-fire effects, prescribed fire, aquatic systems, fire 

messaging, and the social issues around fire in wilderness.

Day one of the workshop consisted of speaker presentations, breakout group discussions, and 

prioritization of research needs. Afterwards, participants traveled to the historical Magruder Ranger 

Station for a soggy cookout and night of camping. Day two of the workshop featured a field trip, 

allowing participants to explore recent wilderness burns; it included lively discussions about fire 

effects and the barriers and opportunities for wilderness fire management. In addition to the Northern 

Rockies Fire Science Network, the planning team for this event included the U.S. Forest Service Pacific 

Northwest Research Station, U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station and Missoula Fire 

Science Lab, the University of Montana Wilderness Institute, the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research 

Institute, and the West Fork Ranger District of the Bitterroot National Forest.

Recordings of speaker presentations from the first day of the workshop are available on the exchange’s 

past events page. In addition, the network created a Workshop Summary, recap of research priorities, 

and a video of field day discussions.

There were 49 attendees at the event, with the majority of participants attending both the workshop 

and the field trip. The majority of participants were from the U.S. Forest Service but attendees also 

included a mix of researchers.

Workshop participants surveyed 

said they made new relationships or 

strengthened existing relationships at 

the event that will help them in their 

job. Most participants surveyed (94%) 

agreed that the workshop helped 

them understand the challenges and 

opportunities related to wilderness 

fire management. 

The relevant societal impact 

categories are conceptual, capacity 

building, and connectivity (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

10

NORTHWEST

Fire and Fuels Monitoring Workshop for Northwest Tribes

In the spring of 2023, the Northwest Fire Science Consortium collaborated 

with the Northern Rockies Fire Science Exchange Network, the Lake 

States Fire Science Consortium, the Northwest Region of Bureau of Indian 

Affairs (BIA-NW), and U.S. Forest Service Region 6 to design and host a 

fire and fuels monitoring workshop for Bureau of Indian Affairs forestry 

employees. 

The workshop originated from a need expressed by BIA-NW for entry-level training in fire and fuels 

monitoring for their forestry personnel. The workshop applied a hybrid approach by (1) adapting 

a digital fire and fuels monitoring curriculum designed by the Lake States Fire Science Consortium 

conducted live via Zoom, and (2) offering in-person field days to practice and expand on skills. Inperson events were held at two locations to accommodate participants across the region: Warm 

Springs Reservation in central Oregon and Spokane Tribal Food Sovereignty Garden in northeast 

Washington. 

During a group-sharing exercise on the final day, participants expressed a variety of benefits from 

the workshop, from increased knowledge of and practice with basic monitoring protocols, to greater 

awareness of how established monitoring protocols can be adapted to enhance Tribal objectives (such 

as improved opportunities for traditional food and materials gathering).

The relevant societal impact categories are conceptual, connectivity, and capacity-building (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

11

OAK WOODLANDS

7th Fire in Eastern Oak 

Conference

This 3-day conference in Tyler, 

Texas in May 2023 was organized 

by the Oak Woodlands and 

Forests Fire Consortium, the Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers and Scientists, and Texas Parks 

and Wildlife. The conference emphasized topics relevant to management of oak-dominated forests, 

woodlands, and savannas and was attended by managers, scientists, landowners, consultants, and 

students. It included an all-day field tour (picture below) and provided significant information and 

opportunities for discussion relating to key regional fire science topics, including wildlife, soil, watershed 

processes, fire regimes, fuels management, Indigenous knowledge, social science/human dimensions, 

and prescribed fire.

When conference attendees were asked via survey if they “planned to apply what they learned at the 

conference” to their work, 52.5% strongly agreed, and 39% agreed. This means more fire management 

decisions will be made in an improved science-informed condition/status, leading to improved 

environmental conditions.

During the planning stages of the conference, the organizing team became aware of deep fissures 

within the Texas fire management community between groups including universities, national forests, 

state forestry and wildlife agencies, and nongovernmental organizations. Though it is hard to provide 

hard evidence to this, the consortium and conference organizers were informed multiple times during 

and after the event that having a group from outside of Texas facilitate the event provided the 

opportunity for these groups to mix, provided neutral territory, and was incredibly valuable to improved 

communication between and within agencies.

The relevant societal impact categories are environmental, connectivity, and social. 
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

12

PACIFIC

2023 Maui Fires

On Hawai’i Island, the 2022 Leilani Fire (~20,000 acres) and 

the 2021 Mana Road Fire (~40,000 acres, the second largest in 

Hawaiian history) prompted the Pacific Fire Science Exchange 

to shed light on the negative impacts of wildfire on rare and 

endangered Hawaiian species. The exchange also recognized the 

need to provide a tool to identify and reduce nonnative grasses (a predominant fuel type). 

The team drew from an analysis by two researchers from Hawai‘i Department of Land & Natural 

Resources and University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. The co-principal investigators analyzed fire incidents 

occurring between 1999 and 2021 that intersected with known Hawaiian rare or endangered plants. 

They highlighted the impacts of fire on one of the most endangered ecosystems (Hawaiian dryland 

forests), summarized fire impacts on rare plants on five islands, and recommended mitigation methods 

to improve their survival. 

As for fire-prone introduced grasses, 

the exchange drew inspiration from 

a University of Wyoming grass 

identification pamphlet and created 

one for the Hawaiian Islands. The 

purpose of the quick reference 

guide is to aid land managers and 

property owners trying to identify 

and/or control invasive grasses 

with a variety of methods. Since its 

publication after the August 8, 2023, 

Maui fires, the invasive grass quick 

reference guide is the most viewed 

resource on the exchange’s website. 

With all the inquiries that followed 

the large fires (such as concerns 

about what type of vegetation 

to plant in the aftermath of fire), 

members of the exchange pivoted 

and provided practical on-the-ground guidance. The team published the fact sheet “After Fire, First 

Things First: Stabilize Health, Safety, Property, Infrastructure.” This fact sheet serves as a starting point, 

emphasizing human needs and soil stabilization as the first steps. 

The relevant societal impact category is conceptual (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

13

SOUTHERN ROCKIES

Western Wildfires StoryMap

After years of coordination and work across 5 western fire science exchange 

networks (California, Northwest, Great Basin, and Southern Rockies), a 

StoryMap titled “Fire in the Western U.S.: Big fires. Big challenges. Big need 

for regional learning and action” was introduced in 2023. The StoryMap takes 

a close look at the wildfire problem by touring 5 recent large fires in the 

Western United States including the Woolsey Fire, Martin Fire, Beachie Creek 

Fire, Cameron Peak-East Troublesome Fires, and Medio Fire. Through the tour, 

viewers discover the lessons learned from fire’s aftermath, including the consequences of shifting fire 

regimes, the importance of fire science in defining problems and finding practical solutions, and steps 

needed to address regional fire problems.

The exchanges worked closely with 2 contractors and the LANDFIRE Program to design cohesive 

images, graphics, and content throughout the StoryMap. The consortium also worked with LANDFIRE 

to present and discuss the StoryMap over a LANDFIRE Office Hour webinar. The Story Map was viewed 

and/or referenced 3,085 times in fiscal year 2023.

The relevant societal impact categories are instrumental, conceptual, and socio-environmental (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

14

SOUTHERN

The 2023 Flatwoods 

Fire and Nature Festival

The Southern Fire 

Exchange was part of the 

planning, coordination, 

and leadership team 

for the 2019 and 2023 

Flatwoods Fire and Nature 

Festivals, held in Waldo, 

Florida. These public events, which were inspired by other 

regional fire festivals, were developed to increase public 

awareness, knowledge, and acceptance of prescribed fire 

as a land management practice. Both the 2109 and 2023 

events featured activities, demonstrations, and information 

booths hosted by federal, state, local, and nonprofit 

organizations involved in fire, forest management, and 

ecosystem restoration in the region.

The highlight of the festival was the live prescribed fire 

demonstrations hosted by the Florida Forest Service. Each 

prescribed fire demonstration was narrated by a fire professional and located so that members of the 

public could easily view the ignition, holding, and mop-up operations. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

even brought their mobile Unmanned Aircraft System (i.e., drones) so that attendees could observe 

real-time, true color and thermal aerial images of the fire. The Southern Fire Exchange activity booth 

was busy the entire day with members of the public and representatives from partner organizations 

stopping by to learn from the matchstick forest demonstrations, pick up some fire science fact sheets, 

and ask questions.

The Southern Fire Exchange’s matchstick forest demonstrations were patterned after the U.S. Forest 

Service’s FireWorks Curriculum, with customizations for Southeastern United States ecosystems 

and fuels. To the delight of onlookers, exchange staff burned over 300 matches throughout the day. 

The exchange’s booth also featured a model do-it-yourself air cleaner, along with related research 

publications, research syntheses, and plans for constructing similar air cleaners. These air cleaners are 

not on the radar of many southeastern prescribed burner managers. As a research-proven and costeffective method for improving indoor air quality, they may help communities cope with the effects of 

prescribed fire smoke.

Overall, the 2023 Flatwoods Fire and Nature Festival attracted over 690 people from across the northcentral Florida region. Exit evaluations found that 98.5% of the respondents rated their experience as 

good (11.9%) or very good (86.8%).

The relevant societal impact category is conceptual (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

15

SOUTHWEST

Tribal Fire and Climate 

Resilience Workshops 

In Spring 2023, an 

Indigenous-led workshop 

series shared diverse 

Tribal perspectives on fire and participants identified topics for future 

work together. Future work is designed to support Tribal and Pueblo 

natural resource and fire programs in New Mexico and Arizona, including 

efforts both on and off reservations and ancestral homelands. The 

workshop is part of an ongoing effort to respect Tribal sovereignty and 

treaty rights, support Tribal use of fire as part of cultural and ecological 

resilience, and increase Tribal capacity to address wildland fire as it 

relates to climate change impacts.

The workshop series was co-convened by the Intertribal Council of Arizona, Southwest Fire Science 

Consortium, Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals, and Forest Stewards Guild, with workshop 

design and facilitation support provided by Southwest Decision Resources. Conference funding was 

provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Planning Committee represented Tribal expertise and 

interests in Arizona, New Mexico, and beyond. The workshop was attended by 104 total people, 

with participants representing 31 different Tribal affiliations, 7 state and federal agencies, 1 county 

government, 5 universities or other higher education programs, and 7 non-governmental organizations 

and entities.

At the workshop, attendees shared these Indigenous perspectives on fire: 

n Both fire and connections to the land know no boundaries.

n Fire is the greatest gift given to native communities, and now people treat it like a liability.

n Fire is a tool to restore healthy forests and watersheds, which can combat climate change.

n Fire is a natural part of the ecosystem, and when not allowed to fill its role in the natural system, there 

are ecological and cultural consequences.

n For many tribes and pueblos, fire is an integral part of cultural and spiritual practices; it is also part of 

the healing process.

n Indigenous people hold the most knowledge of fire on their lands, and managing fire is an exercise of 

Tribal sovereignty.

The Southwest Fire Science Consortium will build off these conversations by continuing support of 

the Tribal Fire and Climate Resilience Working Group. Next steps include (1) building Tribal capacity 

and training programs for using fire, (2) deciphering and empowering tribes on partnerships and 

agreements that authorize work on and off reservation lands, and (3) continuing sharing of stories, 

lessons learned, research needs, examples, and case studies. The exchange of professional and 

traditional knowledge, along with creative solutions, is necessary to improve and inform a collective 

approach to managing landscape resiliency in this changing environment.

The relevant societal impact categories are conceptual, connectivity, and capacity building (Table 1).
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

16

TALLGRASS PRAIRIE AND OAK SAVANNA

The Hands-On Fire Science 

Workshop Expands 

Following 2022 Pilot

The Tallgrass Prairie and 

Oak Savanna Fire Science 

consortium’s Hands-On 

Fire Science Workshop 

is designed to introduce 

graduate students, post-docs, 

and early career professionals to fire ecology research 

and quantitative fire ecology methods of the region, 

while simultaneously modeling research-management 

collaboration. 

To facilitate this collaboration, workshop participants are required to hold at least the entry-level 

certification in the National Wildland Fire Coordinating Group system. During the 2022 and 2023 

workshops, several participants obtained their Firefighter Type 2 credential by completing the online 

course and field instruction during the first part of the on-site workshop.

Workshop lessons and field exercises presented methods to quantify fuels (i.e., fuel moisture and fuel 

load), environmental conditions (i.e., fire weather), and fire behavior and intensity (e.g., rate of spread 

and temperature). Post-workshop, participants responded that they gained an understanding of fire 

ecology methods and valued the interaction between the cadre of fire ecology professionals and 

students.

On two separate occasions during the workshop, the consortium prepared for hands-on fire operations. 

However, final review of burn conditions resulted in “no-go” decisions, as actual weather conditions 

were more extreme than the forecast and the planned burns were out of “prescription.” The cadre 

of fire professionals were able to leverage these events for experiential learning, which also had an 

influence on participants. By requiring Firefighter Type 2 certification, providing opportunities for fire 

operations, and sharing the pre-burn decision process on potential burn days, this workshop led to 

capacity-building as well as increasing conceptual understanding.

More information about both years of the workshop was presented as a poster at the 2023 NortheastMidwest Prescribed Fire Science and Management Workshop in Madison, Wisconsin. The poster was 

developed to share information and recruit participants for the 2024 workshop, scheduled for April 

7–12, 2024.

See also the open access article1

 “The Dunn Ranch Academy: Developing Wildland Fire Literacy 

through Hands-on Experience with Prescribed Fire Science and Management,” which discusses the 

results of the 2022 workshop.

The relevant societal impact categories are conceptual and capacity building (Table 1).

1 McGranahan, D.A., C. Maier, R. Gauger, C. Woodson, and C.L. Wonkka. 2022. The Dunn Ranch Academy: Developing 

Wildland Fire Literacy through Hands-on Experience with Prescribed Fire Science and Management. Fire 5 (4): 121.
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

17

Appendix 1

Table 1. The following table highlights the delivery of 16 key fire topics for each exchange during fiscal year 2023. 

The exchanges share information on a wide array of wildland fire science topics, ranging from physical sciences to 

social dimensions. This diversity of science delivery illustrates how quickly each exchange responds to current and 

emerging issues within their region, developing products to respond to its end users. Wildlife Invasive plant species Vegetation Soil Watershed processes Postfire recovery and management Fire behavior Fire regimes Fuels management Prescribed fire Smoke, air quality, and health Wildland urban interface and infrastructure

Firefighter safety and incident managementSocial science and human dimensionsIndigenous knowledgeEconomic impacts

AK X X X X X X X X X X X

CAFMS X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

CA X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

GB X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

GP X X X X X X X X X

LS X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

NA X X X X X X X X

NR X X X X X X X X X

NW X X X X X X X X X X X

OW X X X X X X X X X X X

PA X X X X X X X X

SR X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

SO X X X X X X X X X X X

SW X X X X X X X X X X X X X

TP X X X X X X X X X

AK – Alaska Fire Science Consortium

CAFMS – Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers and Scientists

CA – California Fire Science Consortium

GB – Great Basin Fire Science Exchange

GP – Great Plains Fire Science Exchange

LS – Lake States Fire Science Consortium

NA – North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange

NR – Northern Rockies Fire Science Network

NW – Northwest Fire Science Consortium

OW – Oak Woodlands and Forests Fire Consortium

PA – Pacific Fire Exchange

SR – Southern Rockies Fire Science Network

SO – Southern Fire Exchange

SW – Southwest Fire Science Consortium

TP – Tallgrass Prairie and Oak Savanna Fire Science Consortium
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

18

Table 2. The number of fiscal year 2023 Fire Science Exhange Network activities and participants, by delivery 

category.

Activity Category Total Completed Activities Total Number of Participants

Academic Credit Courses 25 919

Bibliography or Annotated Bibliography 4 320

Blog Posts 93 26,354

Conference or Symposia Presentations1 88 7,474

Conferences/Workshops 107 8,087

Databases 157 31,346

Encyclopedias 0 0

Facebook Postings 1,212 56,148

Fact Sheets and Handouts Produced 77 13,521

Field Consultations and Expert Cadres 79 802

Field Trips, Tours, Demonstrations, or 

Roadshows 59 2,547

Guidelines or Guidebooks 12 1,101

Leadership Briefings 186 3,258

Newsletters Produced 257 105,098

Other Social Media Activities 400 3,748

Podcasts 4 39,440

Poster Presentation2 12 772

Requests for Information, Assistance, or 

Referrals 1,635 2,983

Short Courses and Continuing Education 

Units 44 1,152

Syntheses 26 2,819

Talks and Personal Briefings about the 

Exchange 168 4,143

Training Sessions 47 1,073

Tweets 1,784 143,033

Video Productions 104 10,628

Webinars 94 13,827

1 Total participants are tallied for each individual presentation and not the entire conference attendance. 2 Total participants engaged at poster session, doesn’t include entire conference attendance.
Fire Science Exchange Network Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Summary

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Table 3. Number of participants by organization in fiscal year 2023 Fire Science Exhange Network activities.

Participation by Organization Total Number of Participants

Agricultural Research Service 38

Bureau of Indian Affairs 119

Bureau of Land Management 609

Bureau of Reclamation 5

Cities and Local Communities 1,101

Companies 1,588

Consultants 553

Counties/Burroughs/Parishes 1,033

Department of Defense, including United States Coast Guard 179

Fire Learning Network, and The Nature Conservancy 519

Foreign Organizations and Individuals 593

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 26

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and 

National Weather Service 131

National Park Service 426

Natural Resources Conservation Service 325

Nongovernmental Organizations, not otherwise listed 1,748

Prescribed Fire Councils 100

Private Associations 190

Private Landowners 1,626

Regional Authorities 145

State Governments 4,510

Tribal Nations 244

U.S. Fire Administration 5

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 553

U.S. Forest Service (including National Forests, Grasslands, State 

and Private Forestry) 2,701

U.S. Forest Service Research and Development 541

U.S. Geological Survey 130

University and College Faculty or Researchers 2,358

University and College Students 1,298