Southern Fire Exchange

JFSP FSEN Webinar - Fire and Fire Surrogate Studies and SageSTEP: The Benefits of Long-Term Fire Research
2026-04-02 13:00 - 14:30 (America/New_York)
Fire and Fire Surrogate Studies and SageSTEP: The Benefits of Long-Term Fire Research Webinar
When: April 2nd, 1:00 – 2:30 PM ET
Collaboratively hosted by:
Great Basin Fire Science Exchange
Southern Fire Exchange
California Fire Science Consortium
Joint Fire Science Program
Northern Rockies Fire Science Network
North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange
Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers and Scientists
Description: The goal of this webinar is to take an in‑depth look at two of the most influential long‑term fire research efforts supported by the Joint Fire Science Program: the Fire and Fire Surrogate (FFS) Study and the Sagebrush Steppe Treatment Evaluation Project (SageSTEP). These landmark studies provide rare, decades‑long insights into how different fuel treatments and fire management strategies shape ecosystem resilience, fuel dynamics, vegetation structure, and wildlife habitat.
In this webinar, we​ will highlight why long-term research sites are ​integral in understanding ecosystem response and for informing ​management decisions today. ​
We will explore key findings from several FFS locations—including Blodgett Forest Research Station (CA), Lubrecht Experimental Forest (MT), Green River Game Land (NC), and Ohio Hills (OH)—as well as the network of SageSTEP sites across the sagebrush biome.
Guest speakers:

Molly Hunter, Joint Fire Science Program
Don Hagan, Clemson University
Sharon Hood, Rocky Mountain Research Station, USDA Forest Service
Scott Stephens, University of California – Berkeley
Lisa Ellsworth, Oregon State University and Beth Newingham, Agricultural Research Service
Alexis Bernal, University of California – Berkeley

More information and webinar registration: North Atlantic Fire Science Exchange website

SFE Webinar: Burning For Birds - A Manual for the Application of Prescribed Fire in High Marshes on the Northern Gulf Coast
2026-04-10 13:00 - 14:00
“SFE Webinar: Burning For Birds – A Manual for the Application of Prescribed Fire in High Marshes on the Northern Gulf Coast”

When: April 10th, 2026, 1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Hosted by:University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Tall Timbers, the Southern Fire Exchange, and the University of Florida IFAS.
Presenters:Auriel Fournier, PhD, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Description: The NOAA Firebird project (https://noaworkingrd.home.blogtogether) has been working together since 2019 to study the impacts of prescribed fire in gulf coastal high marshes on three birds, the mottled duck, eastern black rail and yellow rail. This webinar will focus on our newly published prescribed fire manual, which contains our results to date on the application of fire, as well as several case studies.
Register for and learn more about the webinar.

SFE Webinar: "The Integrated Research Management Team: A Novel Framework for Integrating Wildland Fire Research & Management"
2026-05-19 13:00 - 14:00
“The Integrated Research Management Team: A Novel Framework for Integrating Wildland Fire Research & Management”

When: May 19th, 2026, 1:00-2:00 p.m. ET
Hosted by: Southern Fire Exchange, US Forest Service, The Ember Alliance
Presenters: James Furman, US Forest Service; Dan Gualtieri, The Ember Alliance
Description: Our landscapes face increasingly complex fire management challenges including fire exclusion, changing fire seasons, invasive species, and growing wildland-urban interface. To better address these challenges, timely and relevant fire science is needed to develop new knowledge, tools, and practices. Research has demonstrated that knowledge attained through coproduction is more readily applied by practitioners and research co-production is a pathway towards tackling ‘wicked problems.’ In wildland fire contexts, accomplishing co-produced science is often difficult, as hosting research on active incidents and operations presents many safety and logistical challenges. The Integrated Research Management Team (IRMT) is a framework modeled after the Incident Command System and developed collaboratively among the USDA Forest Service, US Department of War, and others. The IRMT bridges the gap between fire science researchers and wildland fire managers and practitioners, facilitating research campaigns on active, operational, prescribed fires. This webinar features James Furman, USFS Fire Management Specialist, exploring the IRMT’s origin, solving real challenges faced by wildland fire researchers and managers. Dan Gualtieri, Wildland Fire Science Coordinator for The Ember Alliance, dives deeper into the framework’s current IRMT structure.
Register for and learn more about the webinar.
