01/06/2026
🔥 Forest fires are no longer just an environmental challenge — they are one of Europe's biggest resilience challenges.
In the discussion on the upcoming European Committee of the Regions opinion on Integrated Wildfire Risk Management, Dimitrios Kafantaris, Municipal Councillor of Pylos–Nestoros, called for a shift from emergency response to strategic resilience.
📌 Key proposals:
• Strengthen the role of municipalities and regions in wildfire risk management, as they know local vulnerabilities and realities best.
• Invest in landscape resilience through active land management, sustainable forestry, and support for farmers, livestock breeders and foresters.
• Improve technological and administrative preparedness, ensuring all regions can access tools such as EFFIS, Destination Earth and advanced risk modelling systems.
• Put prevention, knowledge, technology, funding and citizen participation at the heart of wildfire policies.
💬 "The fires of the future will not be confronted merely with more suppression resources, but with better-prepared communities and more resilient landscapes." — Dimitris Kafantaris