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Global Fire Management Hub

A farmer burning straw to fertilize the earth for the next planting season, Maradi, Niger

©FAO/Luis Tato

Introduction The Global Fire Management Hub promotes integrated landscape fire management, fostering global cooperation to mitigate wildfire risks and protect ecosystems. By empowering local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and governments, it ensures sustainable fire management practices for a resilient future.
Country Italy
Start date 19/05/2023
Status Active
Project Code GCP /GLO/1181/GER-F
Objective / Goal The Global Fire Management Hub (the "Fire Hub") aims to strengthen global capacity for integrated landscape fire management by supporting governments, communities, and stakeholders in developing policies, sharing knowledge, and enhancing cooperation. Landscape fire issues are complex with many inter-related socio-economic and environmental factors. Humans have used fire for millennia – a traditional tool of smallholders and Indigenous communities to manage lands. Today, fire is a widely-used tool by those in poverty to sustain food security. Natural and cultural fires are important to maintain the composition and functioning of fire-dependent or fire-adapted ecosystems, such as tropical and subtropical savannas or boreal forests. However, as a consequence of land-use change and climate change, natural and cultural fire regimes are changing rapidly. Extreme wildfires are on the rise, negatively affecting key ecosystems and sustainable development, and threatening communities’ livelihoods and human security. Landscape fire emissions constitute a threat to human health and affect the atmosphere and climate.
Partners The Fire Hub is an FAO/UNEP partnership. AGIF, EUR-OPA, JRC, GFMC, Pau Costa Foundation, OSCE, UNDRR, USAID, and USDA/FS, among others, joined the inception workshop in November 2023. Other stakeholders and governments will be involved in the next workshops and COFO 27 where fire is a main agenda item. Indigenous Peoples, communities and women networks on fire management will provide input and benefit from the Fire Hub.
Beneficiaries All stakeholders dealing with fire management issues from local communities and Indigenous Peoples to policy- and decision-makers.
Activities

The Fire Hub is a UN mechanism to promote the implementation of a global program that: 

  • Supports governments to develop policies that promote integrated landscape fire management and address multiple/secondary risks (e.g. fire and subsequent damages to forest ecosystems) in a holistic way. 
  • Provides access to and application of the accumulated knowledge and expertise on integrated landscape fire management. 
  • Bolsters international cooperation on integrated landscape fire management and strengthen networks and thematic resource centres at the global level, where the state-of-the-art, future work and innovation can be shared among policy and decision-makers and with the broader community of practitioners. 
  • Develops instruments to fund the implementation of integrated fire management actions at multiple scales.  
Impact

The Fire Hub aims to strengthen countries’ capacities to implement integrated fire management with the major outcome of reducing the many negative effects of wildfires on people, landscapes, and global climate.  It consists of five initial pillars: 

  • Knowledge and data sharing: definition of major fire concepts; publications; technical advice on integrated fire management; workshops and events, and easy access to datasets. 
  • Capacity building: training with national actors; mentoring programme for young fire experts. 
  • Fire risk assessment and early warning: wildfire risk assessment methods and tools, including post-fire loss and damage; early warning systems.  4) Wildfire resilient communities: Indigenous and traditional knowledge; community-based fire management; gender, equity, diversity and inclusion. 
  • Policy support: integration of incorporating integrated fire management into national and subnational policies; support for regional fire networks.
Contact [email protected]
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