As the climate warms, wildfires are becoming more frequent, more intense, and more destructive, threatening communities, ecosystems, and air quality across the world.
To reduce the risk of catastrophic fires, we need smarter, more sustainable ways to manage land, and this includes learning from those who have been doing it for generations.
Cultural burning is a traditional Indigenous practice where controlled, low-intensity fires are used to safely manage landscapes like forests and grasslands.
Unlike Western prescribed burns, which are usually done using modern tools to prevent wildfires, cultural burning is guided by Indigenous values.
These burns are deeply community- and family-oriented, passed down through generations, and tailored to specific local environments.
Indigenous people use natural signs, like the size and fullness of berries, to decide when it's the right time to burn.
Over time, many governments put a ban on this practice which contributed to an increase in wildfire risks, as dead vegetation built up without regular, low-level burns.
Now, interest in cultural burning is growing again, as scientists and governments begin to recognise the value of Indigenous knowledge.
A research team led by Dr Kari Nadeau from Harvard University compared smoke from wildfires and prescribed burns.
The study found that wildfire smoke is much more toxic, while smoke from managed fires poses far fewer health risks.
In 2022, California reversed its ban on cultural burning, supporting Indigenous Tribes to reclaim and lead this practice.
This shift shows how traditional knowledge and modern science can work together to protect people, ecosystems, and the climate.
Read more at Phys.org