The “PyroLife 2023 Conference: The four axes of diversity of wildfire” (interdisciplinarity, intersectorality, geography, and gender) took place from the 14th to the 16th of March at Can Jaumandreu, at the premises of the Open University of Catalonia (UOC) in Barcelona, Spain. The Pau Costa Foundation (PCF), the UOC, and the Wageningen University & Research (WUR) organised this event aiming to present the results obtained by the PyroLife Early Stage Researchers (ESRs), discuss the present and future of Integrated Fire Management (IFM), and give opportunities to the participants to expand their professional network.
The program included a first day field trip to an area affected by the Pont de Vilomara fire (Barcelona) in 2022 and to a property where forest management was carried out using prescribed fire. The rest of the conference was devoted to presentations, panel discussions, workshops, poster session and exhibition of objects with special significance for the participants. The program was designed to reflect the core elements of the Marie Skłodowska–Curie ITNs: bringing people and education together, and putting the ESRs at the center.
The results presented by the PyroLife ESRs gave insight into how to understand and achieve Integrated Fire Management. Furthermore, they contributed to the understanding of wildfires in Northern and Southern Europe, their economic impact, the nature and needs of wildland-urban interfaces worldwide, building design, resilience, the role of local communities, the lessons that can be drawn from flood management, governance and inter-institutional exchange.
“The research that ESRs are carrying out in their projects was shared and discussed for the first time at this conference. It was a fantastic opportunity to see novel fire research on different topics that interconnect with each other and are so cross-sectoral,” said Dr. Núria Prat-Guitart of the Executive Board.
Read full article here.
