Wildfires in 2020: What set the stage for this historic event and what can we expect in the future?

The fires that broke out and spread across nearly 1 million acres of western Oregon this month are terrifying and devastating. We know from forest research and history that western Oregon’s forest ecosystems naturally burn. But a century of fire suppression, logging, development, and climate change, combined with weather conditions that drove the fires into rural and suburban communities, led to this seemingly unprecedented event. As the smoke (hopefully) clears and we all take stock of these fires’ impacts to our communities and land, join Oregon Wild for a discussion with fire experts about these contributing factors and how we might prepare for a more fire-prone future.

Featuring panelists Timothy Ingalsbee, PhD, Executive Director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology; Erica Fleishman, PhD, Director of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute at Oregon State University; and Ken Carloni, PhD, Botanist/Forest Ecologist.