The revival of cultural burning is of great significance to Indigenous communities, but interest in cultural burning is much wider. Significantly, this could lead to a greater willingness to use fire when and where appropriate for a range of goals, including the holistic resilience of communities and landscapes.

This research proposes to examine how non-Indigenous landowners, residents, RFS brigades, and others learn about, and act on, community resilience and preparedness through engaging with Indigenous cultural burning. We propose to identify programs and places where this engagement has occurred and document and interpret its forms, processes, consequences, and implications for policy and for resourcing of cultural burning.

In short, we ask to what extent do the outcomes of non-Indigenous engagement with cultural burning provide evidence that supports resourcing cultural burning practitioners to achieve both broader community preparedness and risk reduction goals as well as Indigenous aspirations?

(Image: Shutterstock/Karl Hofman)