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Cultural Fire Management Council

Indigenous firefighters gathered around a tree in prayer.
AP Photo/David, courtesy of Phys.org
AP Photo/David, courtesy of Phys.org

The Cultural Fire Management Council (CFMC) is reclaiming the traditional use of fire on the Yurok Reservation and ancestral lands, to support a healthier ecosystem for all plants and animals while also supporting traditional hunting and gathering activities and long-term fire protection for residents. The CFMC offers training for wildland fire professionals across communities to build local capacity for returning fire to landscapes in a way that is managed, safe, and operates within the current legal framework. CMFC also offers community classes on safe burn practices along with opportunities for intergenerational transfer of knowledge, encouraging families to reclaim their right to use fire in a good way.

“Back then we just called it taking care of the land, now we call it cultural burn but really, it is managing the land for living culture.”

— Margo Robbins, Executive Director of the Cultural Fire Management Council

Featured Media

Native firefighter kneeling down amongst grasses growing on the forest floor.
The Nature Conservancy

Quiet Fire

Indigenous tribes in California and other parts of the U.S. have been rekindling the ancient art of controlled burning.
Close up of Native hands outlining a red line on a map.
The Guardian

'Fire is medicine': the tribes burning California forests to save them

For millennia, native people have used flames to protect the land. The US government outlawed the process for a century before recognizing its value.
Woman tribal firefighter in prayer.
Science X

For tribes, 'good fire' a key to restoring nature and people
Native firefighters in a forest reading from a paper pamphlet.
Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center

Traditional Learnings: Into the Field with Yurok and U.S. Forest Service Experts on Cultural Burning of Forested Lands