Wildfire resilience gathering unites agencies, researchers to boost Canadian preparedness

Oct. 25, 2025, Kamloops, B.C. – The Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada (WRCC) launched a national initiative to strengthen wildfire resilience, convening more than 200 agency staff, researchers and community leaders at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) for its inaugural Building Foundational Knowledge Gathering.

Held Oct. 7 to 9, 2025, the event was aimed at aligning efforts, research and best practices among agencies, Indigenous fire stewards, industry and communities.

The gathering, where TRU Wildfire and the BC Wildfire Service are founding partners, transitioned from initial knowledge-sharing to co-creation. Workshops targeted future priorities critical to the fire service, including:

• Training and capacity building.
• Adaptive forest management.
• The integration of Indigenous values with western fire-management technologies.

TRU President Airini emphasized the goal of supporting the “training, science and action that provide hope and safety” for wildfire-affected communities.

The WRCC also formalized an international partnership, signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Natural Hazards Research Australia (NHRA). This agreement establishes collaboration on wildfire resilience, Indigenous fire stewardship and knowledge exchange.

WRCC Executive Director Garnet Mierau stated the goal is to launch collaborations that will continue long after the event, guiding the journey toward a wildfire-resilient future by combining humility, tradition, science and community.