Wildfires are getting worse every year, threatening lives, homes, and landscapes. As Managing Principal of Spatial Informatics Group (SIG), I lead efforts to make wildfire management more effective by bringing science, technology, and community action together. Through our leadership of the Pyregence Consortium, stewardship of the Planscape platform, and program management of the AI Collaborative: Wildfires, we are helping to build a smarter, more coordinated approach to wildfire resilience.

These efforts are connected to the Wildfire Commons, a growing community that shares data and tools to help people make better decisions about fire. By combining satellite data, artificial intelligence, and input from land managers and first responders, we are improving how quickly wildfires are detected and how effectively they are managed.

Our work makes it easier for communities, fire agencies, and policymakers to use the best available science in real time, whether to respond to a fire or plan treatments that reduce risk in the long term. This talk will share how these collaborations are already helping reduce wildfire damage and what steps we’re taking to expand these benefits to more places in need.