The POLIS Wildfire Resilience Project
As part of an international network, we focus on the nexus of resilience and governance, working with all levels of government, Indigenous nations, local communities, industry, experts, researchers, and civil society to offer new perspectives, innovative ideas, and practical solutions.
The goal of the Wildfire Resilience Project is to create a more secure future for communities and ecosystems by promoting a wildfire regime that lies within nature’s limits and reduces catastrophic wildfires that destroy communities and ecosystem resiliency. Fundamentally, we recognize we will have to learn to live with fire while also addressing some of the most urgent wildfire challenges now.
Our work is rooted in the principles of ecological governance and resilience with a firm goal of strengthening watershed security. Over the coming years, we will imagine and promote a new B.C. wildfire management and governance regime that helps position B.C. as a leader in wildfire resilience.
Mission & Objectives
How we prioritize landscape-level planning, management, and prevention; make collective decisions; ensure accountability; and coordinate action across society will influence how successfully we live with wildfire now and in the future.
Success in our mission of improved wildfire management and governance will be evidenced through policy and governance reforms and on-the-ground practices that advance a wildfire resilience paradigm.
What We Do
Produce cutting-edge transdisciplinary research.
Share ideas and practical solutions.
Convene and engage wildfire leaders, experts, funders, and practitioners.
Collaborate with and uplift partners and communities.
Communicate leading thinking on wildfire resilience to improve issues as they emerge in real time.
Project History
The POLIS Wildfire Resilience Project is a focused initiative of the POLIS Project on Ecological Governance, a hub for collaborative and action-oriented research, policy practice, and education, and an integral part of the Centre for Global Studies at the University of Victoria. Since being founded in 2000, the work of POLIS has encompassed a number of initiatives, each embodying the principles of ecological governance and working towards a responsible present that supports a sustainable future. Current POLIS initiatives include the POLIS Water Sustainability Project, the POLIS Wildfire Resilience Project, and the POLIS Biocultural Ethics initiative.
