Introduction: FIRElinks, a Community for Society and Science

Abstract

FIRElinks (CA18135) originated from many efforts by a group of researchers after submitting a proposal for a COST Action. During four years, the main aim has been to develop an EU-spanning network of scientists and practitioners involved in forest fire research and land management with backgrounds such as fire dynamics, fire risk management, fire effects on vegetation, fauna, soil and water, and socioeconomic, historical, geographical, political perception, and land management approaches. Communities from different scientific and geographic backgrounds allowing the discussion of different experiences and the emergence of new approaches to fire research were connected. Working group number 5 was developed to power synergistic collaborations between European research groups and stakeholders to synthesize the existing knowledge and expertise and to define a concerted research agenda which promotes an integrated approach to create fire-resilient landscapes from a regional and socioeconomic point of view, taking into account how to teach the population, stakeholders, and policymakers considering the biological, biochemical, and physical, but also socioeconomic, historical, geographical, sociological, perception, and policy constraints. In this edited book, the main conclusion of working group 5 was addressed considering different study cases and methods developed by recognized experts over Europe: there is an urgent societal need to manage wildfires due to the expected further intensification and geographical spreading of its regimes under global change.