What the Heck is Fire Twitter

An incredible resource and an example of the beauty of social media.

Wildland fire is niche. I remember long ago, when I was a lil twenty-one year-old living in New York after two years working on contract crews in the west. I’d tell people I worked as a wildland firefighter and they’d cock their head. Huh? A what firefighter?

Many people, when they think firefighter or firefighting, immediately picture city fire. The red truck, the ladders, the burning buildings. Ironically, much of wildland fire has come to intersect with structural fire, as the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI). While fires have always happened at this intersection, the prevalence of communities in wild spaces, along with the centuries of fuel buildup from fire suppression has created a catastrophic collision between wildfire and structure fires. It can sometimes be hard to separate the two.

That said, I’ll repeat myself. Wildland fire is niche. It’s a subject many people don’t know much about. Luckily, there are lots of people on Twitter helping to demystify fire for the layperson. Whether they’re helping folks who are in the middle of a fire crisis, looking to save their animals, homes, and selves, or whether they’re helping to educate others about the myriad complexities of wildland fire, I thought I’d do a little series highlighting these amazing folks.

I’m starting with about five people, and will continue to highlight the work of Fire Twitter for the next week or so, before releasing my recent interview with Lenya Quinn-Davidson. I may as well start with her, actually!

Lenya’s twitter profile reads: “Area Fire Advisor with UC Cooperative Extension in Humboldt County, CA, and Director of the Northern California Prescribed Fire Council.” She’s been doing amazing work in California for a very long time, and shares a lot of her knowledge and activity on Twitter, specifically the thrill of being able to burn throughout the winter.

Lenya Quinn-Davidson @lenyaqd

My new blog for the @fireadaptednet talks about the challenges facing the CA state-certified burn boss program. It’s been 8 months since I hosted the inaugural class and still no one’s been certified. Time for the state to take action and make this happen!

fireadaptednetwork.orgCalifornia Burn Boss Program: New Path Forward or Dead-End Street? - Fire Adapted Communities Learning NetworkHe was curious about the state-certified burn boss program—was this a way for him to put his fire skills to use, but in a way that could help communities, restore fire to the landscape, and let him live a normal life?

Second up is Emily Dolhansky, who works in the field and whose tweets do a lot to find nuance between forestry and conservation, at the intersection of wildfire. Emily isn’t afraid to express her opinions, yet is always looking for the complexity of her subjects, which is just right for Twitter. She’s also funny; a plus.

Emily Dolhansky @emilydolhansky

Here’s an example of a past management activity that has had long-lasting (negative) consequences in this coastal redwood stand…1/

Next up: Bill Tripp, a Karuk tribal member who tweets under the handle @culturalfire. He shares about cultural fire, news and updates regarding Indigenous fire, and also beautiful pictures and details about local burning practices in Northern California. His Twitter vibe is just…good.

Bill Tripp @CulturalFire

The differences between federal, state, and tribal knowledge, practice and belief systems are staggering. They are not easy to navigate, but positive change is slowly occurring. I am looking forward to demonstrating cultural burns in the coming years…

nativenewsonline.netIn California, Tribal Members and More Protected from Liability for Cultural, Controlled BurnsCalifornia’s more than half a million Native people are now backed by a law that allows them more protection to do what they’ve always done: fight fire with fire.

Next: Amy Christianson, who also has a podcast called Good Fire and was on the huge podcast Ologies with Alie Ward! Amy lives in Canada and tweets a lot about Indigenous fire. Her account is an amalgamation of fire and ecological activism mixed with other types of land activism.

Amy Christianson @ChristiansonAmy

Good Fire Season 2 is happening! We’re recording new episodes and super excited to share them with you - check out this short teaser episode for details! @yourforestpdcst @CanadaWildfire #goodfire #podcast #wildfire #NativeTwitter yourforestpodcast.com/good-fire-podc…

And finally: Clay Trauernicht, who tweets on fire in Hawai’i and micronesia and whose account is worth following for the retweets alone.

Clay Trauernicht @claytrau

I wrote an op-ed for @thehill on Pacific Island wildfires & climate change. TLDR: resilient landscapes require building resilient communities, and we need to do better - esp. for Indigenous Pacific Islanders on the front lines of fires and other impacts

thehill.comPacific Islands wildfires highlight vulnerability to climate change and how to address itHawaii just experienced one of its largest wildfires at 40,000 acres on the northwest slope of Mauna Kea.

I’ll be doing more of these soon! In the meantime, leave your own suggestions in the comments and, you know, share this post on Twitter!