Wildfire Research Center

We are a nonprofit organization that works with wildfire practitioners to seek locally-tailored pathways to create fire adapted communities.

Our Mission

We support evidence-based community wildfire education efforts so that communities can live with wildfire.

Specifically, the WiRē Center provides personalized expertise and support to collect, interpret, and use paired parcel-level wildfire risk and social data. The WiRē Approach enables partners to effectively allocate resources and engage with residents. Leveraging lessons learned across projects, the WiRē Center pursues scientific approaches to inform conversations and decisions about wildfire adaptation.

Our Approach

In our team, researchers work alongside wildfire practitioners to contribute to the WiRē Center’s goals. These embedded researchers also develop and conduct research projects based on insights gathered through regular and meaningful interaction with wildfire practitioners.

Our Methods

Our systematic, collaborative process starts with two data collection efforts.

Risk Assessment

A rapid wildfire risk assessment based on attributes related to building materials, vegetation near the home, background fuels and topography, as well as access for the fire department to the parcel.

Household Surveys

Household surveys of the residents of the assessed parcels to investigate homeowners’ perceptions of wildfire risk, risk mitigation behaviors, and responses to incentives to mitigate risk.

Our Partners

We work with wildfire organizations across the U.S. to develop local, evidence-based wildfire programs.

We engage with our project partners throughout the research process, from project development to data collection to analyzing and sharing results. Furthermore, our partnerships extend beyond individual projects, with partners joining our community of practice and returning for additional projects.