Over 300 attendees representing organizations and agencies focused on wildfire came together on April 4-5th for the Southern California Regional Meeting of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force. Multiple CNNCTS partners were part of this important event and contributed to panel discussions, resource sharing, and field tours. Missed the meeting? Recordings of the panel discussions are now available—keep reading to learn more.
Photos courtesy of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force.
Over 300 attendees representing organizations and agencies focused on wildfire came together on April 4th for the Southern California Regional Meeting of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force. The event was held at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park on Kumeyaay Lands in Escondido, California.
The day started with a robust resource fair that included Tribal organizations, local environmental organizations, and federal entities. The Climate Science Alliance and San Diego State University hosted a table at the resource fair and shared opportunities to learn about and get involved in the Collaborative of Native Nations for Climate Transformation and Stewardship (CNNCTS) as well as other projects promoting the advancement of co-stewardship.
The agenda included several panel discussions featuring invited presenters and the members of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force. CNNCTS was represented by Dr. Megan Jennings, San Diego State University, in her presentation in the panel discussion, Southern California’s Unique Landscapes and Challenges. In the afternoon, the Cultural Fire and Indigenous Stewardship panel discussion opened with an extended trailer of MAATHAAW: The Fire Within Us, the Indigenous-led research documentary by Condor Visual Media that documents the cultural, emotional, and scientific relationships of Southern California Tribes with the gift of fire. The panel discussion included multiple partners leading stewardship activities as part of CNNCTS, including: Will Madrigal, Jr., Marlene’ Dusek, and Joel Arellano representing the Climate Science Alliance; Fire Chief Wesley Ruise Jr., La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians, and Kevin Soland, KRS Environmental Consulting.
The meeting continued the following day on April 5th with 10 field tours across the region giving attendees a glimpse into ongoing wildfire projects. The La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians hosted attendees on their lands for their tour, Applying Traditional Ecological Knowledge to Forest Health: “This dynamic tour featured field presentations on site history, a cultural burn site and a Lumbercycle demonstration. Discussions included Traditional Ecological Knowledge, funding and collaboration, burning on trust land, and the impact of goldspotted oak borer tree mortality in the area.”
Wanted to attend the meeting, but missed it? View the full recap—including session recordings—here.
For continued updates from the Task Force, be sure to follow them at @wildfiretaskforce
Learn more about the Collaborative for Native Nations for Climate Transformation and Stewardship (CNNCTS) at cnncts.org.