Managing landscape fire is a complex challenge because it is simultaneously necessary for, and increasingly poses a risk to, societies and ecosystems worldwide. This challenge underscores the need for transformative change in the way societies live with and manage fire. While researchers have the potential to act as agents of transformative change, in practice, the ability to affect change is often constrained by siloed and biased expertise, rigid decision-making institutions, and increasingly vulnerable social-ecological systems where urgent rather than long-term solutions are prioritized. Addressing these challenges requires more holistic and equitable approaches to fire research that promote new models of transdisciplinary thinking, collaboration, and practice.
Copes-Gerbitz, K., Sutherland, I.J., Dickson-Hoyle, S. et al. Guiding principles for transdisciplinary and transformative fire research. fire ecol 20, 12 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s42408-023-00244-w