Fire Forward, 4900 Shoreline Highway 1, Stinson Beach, CA (2026)

02/07/2026

Introducing some fresh faces of good fire — say hello to the Firelighter Class of 2026! 🔥

We’re thrilled to see 43 new prescribed fire practitioners who are now federally qualified as Fire Fighter Type 2 (FFT2) through the National Wildland Coordinating Group (NWCG) after completing our Basic Wildland Firefighter training at Bouverie Preserve. Their dedication to advancing their skills and qualifications benefits the entire North Bay by increasing regional capacity to steward beloved landscapes and create resilient communities with good fire.

We offer this course to the public to train new practitioners in entry-level skills that support local prescribed burning efforts weaving skills that satisfy NWCG standards and introduce them to culture and practices of the Good Fire Alliance, North Bay’s prescribed burn association. The day was geared towards providing new practitioners with the foundational skills needed to participate in burns that require a FFT2 qualification. Skills learned included ignitions, firing operations, pumps and hose lays, weather monitoring, communication and radio etiquette, local fire ecology, safety and PPE, and so much more.

Since we first offered this course in 2019, over 600 people have trained in a NWCG course and participated in hands-on burning with us. Others have brought their skills elsewhere, creating an ever-growing community of fire practitioners throughout northern California. A huge thanks to this year’s instructor cadre, Mariana Zavala (), Len Mazur (), Taj Katuna (), Alfredo Campos (), Karyn Smooth, Cal Howell, Adam Sawicky, Chase Whitener, Michael Garrett, Brian Peterson, and organizer Garrett Gradillas.

Returning fire practitioners, keep an eye on your email for details about RT-130, the annual refresher training organized by the Good Fire Alliance on March 7. We’ll see you there!

Photos by Andrea Dunlap, Erika Lutz, and Garrett Gradillas

01/29/2026

NEW WORKSHOP 🐐🔥 Grazing & Good Fire for Healthy Fire Ecosystems & Wildfire Recovery 2/22

We’re pleased to join the Community Alliance with Family Farms () for the online panel workshop, “Grazing & Good Fire for Healthy Fire Ecosystems & Wildfire Recovery” on February 22 as part of the 2026 California Small Farm Conference. Join our fire ecologist Brian Peterson and fellow panelists Devii Rao from UCCE (), Sarah Jo McDowell from Butte Fire Safe Council (), Mark Biaggi from TomKat Ranch () will discuss how bringing grazing and good fire back to landscapes have ignited a way forward for communities to be empowered with their own tools to create fire resilient landscapes and mini food systems.

The conference’s 2026 theme, “Digging In Together: Small Farms, Deep Resolve” celebrates the age-old perseverance of farmers and the collaboration we need now more than ever to ensure a just, sustainable, and abundant future for all.

Registration is now open and available on a sliding scale (link in bio).

Seen above, a small flock of sheep, goats, and alpaca graze while fire practitioners ignite a burn at the School for Inclement Weather. Photo by Erika Lutz.

01/24/2026

Say hello to our 5 new prescribed fire apprentices for the 2026 year! We’re thrilled to welcome Andrea Steig, Jackie Krisilas, Keyra Sanchez, Melissa Kenworthy, and Josh Harjes (seen left to right) as the newest members of Fire Forward’s prescribed fire module. These outstanding individuals bring a depth and breadth of lived, work, and academic experience, and demonstrated commitment to tending the land in community.

In their full-time 11-month positions, generously funded by a workforce development grant from , the apprentices will build their knowledge with hands-on training and skills development, including extensive field experience in planning, preparing, implementing, and monitoring prescribed fire and fuels reduction projects across the North Bay and beyond.

Please join us in celebrating the arrival of the 2026 class of apprentices embarking on their professional journey into prescribed fire! 🔥

Photo by Michael Garrett.

12/21/2025

Merry Solstice from our field elves! Wishing you and yours a time of full hearts and lifted spirits as we head back towards the lighter and warmer half of the year.

Seen above, Fire Forward crew members Annie Madden, Karyn Smoot, Spencer Adams, and Marty Malate forage holiday greens while restoring coastal prairie at Martin Griffin Preserve. Photo by Cal Howell.

12/20/2025

It’s impossible to ignore the effect our graduating 2025 prescribed fire apprentices have had on us and each other.

To us, science is at its best when it sparks joy. We see the delight sparked by curiosity and scientific exploration as deeply connected. We’re thrilled that this year gave us amazing burn windows to implement prescribed fire and maximize our apprentices field training with the community. Their shared, hands-on experiences not only carried the lasting effects of experiential learning – they sparked pleasure and friendship. We look forward to staying connected for years to come and seeing them continue to blossom as fire and stewardship leaders.

We’re thrilled to have spent the last year with these incredible humans and wish all the best to graduating apprentices Chloe Wanaselja, Maxi Green, Zander Ockenden, Ben Grove, and Oli Ferron.

Please join us in congratulating our beloved 2025 prescribed fire apprentices and looking back at their last year with us:

1. 2025 Fire Forward prescribed fire module at Bouverie Preserve
2. Oli tends a night burn with
3-4. Chloe on a TNC assignment in the Titons
5. Ben and Cal Howell discuss fire ecology in Nicasio
6. Zander and Maxi ignite oak savannah at Sonoma Mountain, Chloe ignites coastal grassland at Fort Ross Historic State Park
7-8. Rare “Snodini” day at Modini Preserve
8-9. Apprentices test each other with quizlets at the Fire Forward shop
9-10. Some of the many (many!) herps found by the apprentices
11-12. Maxi, Oli, and Ben on their first apprentice burn at Sonoma Coast State Park

Photos by Erika Lutz (1, 2, 5, 6, 8), Chloe Wanaselja (3, 4), Michael Garrett (7, 11-12), Cal Howell (9), Karyn Smoot (9), and Annie Madden (10)

12/12/2025

Students of fire unite 🔥

In the practitioner world, we’re always students of fire. Over time we can get better, but there’s always more to learn. We’re always learning, never an expert.

We know every experience is an opportunity to learn from others, to build on and share that knowledge. Meaningful learning experiences for all levels equips us with the knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to thrive in a rapidly changing world. And ultimately, creating an interdisciplinary environment where everyone is a student keeps us connected, humble, and hungry for more.

That’s why we’re thrilled to unite with workforce development programs like Santa Rosa Junior College’s Wildfire Resilience Program (WRP). Seen above, our prescribed fire apprentices joined forces with wildfire resilience students at Shone Farm to share with each other as peer mentors. They spent the morning in the forest planting buckeye, acorns, and native grasses, and the afternoon in intensive chainsaw training and maintenance. They closed out their time gathered around a campfire to continue sharing stories about their experiences around the warmth of flame.
Please join us in celebrating these fire students and their continued journey with fire stewardship.

Photos by Erika Lutz.

09/19/2025

It’s with great honor we thank Hannah Lopez for the last 4 years with Fire Forward. Hannah has accepted a fabulous position at The Nature Conservancy as a prescribed fire project manager.

Over the years, Hannah has been integral in co-creating Fire Forward’s programming and team culture. Their foundational work has kept our operations and logistics smooth, safe, and effective. Some of Hannah’s most lasting memories from their time with us:

🔥 Became certified as NWCG Firing Boss (FIRB) and California state-certified Burn Boss (CA-Rx), planning, leading, and implementing prescribed burns while also growing into a trainer and mentor for the community.

✊🏽 Organized and led Spanish-speaking trainings, NWCG courses, and bilingual prescribed burns in partnership with the , , and

📚 Developed and taught curriculum for NWCG courses, fireline workshops, and our fellowship program

🗺️ Created our internal data tracking systems (GIS libraries, burn records) and trained others on their use and function.

Please join us in celebrating Hannah’s journey in our fire community. Of all that they have brought to the program, we will miss most their high level of integrity, support, and sense of humor. We look forward to staying connected for years to come.

1. Hannah Lopez. 📷 Spencer Adam
2. Spanish TREX, 2023. 📷 .mora
3. Final firing boss trainee assignment. 📷 Erika Lutz.
4. On the fireline. 📷 Len Mazur
5. Hannah with Jobs with Justice crew, 2025. 📷 Erika Lutz
6. Spanish squad at a community burn, 2025. 📷 Erika Lutz
7. Spanish squad lead at a night burn, 2025. 📷 Paul Sokoski
8. Hannah with Jose Luis Dulce at a TERA burn, 2023. 📷 Erika Lutz
9. Fire Forward team portrait, 2024. 📷 Erika Lutz
10. Hannah’s final CA-Rx trainee assignment, 2025. 📷 Andrea Bustos & Erika Lutz
11. Hannah’s first CA-Rx trainee assignment in 2022. Credit: Sasha Berleman
12. Fire Forward team in 2022. 📷 Kate Ramsden.
13. Hannah with mentor Sasha Berleman in The Fire Poppy. 🎥 (full film linked in bio)

09/04/2025

SPOTLIGHT 🔥 Say hello to prescribed fire apprentice Ben Grove! Raised in the Sierra Nevada foothills, Ben Grove learned at a young age about stewardship and wildfire protection in a highly fire-prone area. Taking care of the land was a practice engrained every summer, and the alarming acceleration of climate events made it clear how he should direct his energy. Ben sees fire tending, community building, and folk music as inseparable relational experiences.

“For a long time I was going through the motions. But it changed the moment I arrived at my first burn and saw all these people who were so skilled and clearly fond of each other. That was great seeing it as a community experience, especially the apprentices and practitioners at the start of their burn season be absolutely exhausted but happy. I haven’t ever been part of something so meaningful like that.

Fire came to me in such a short time and is now one of the most important parts of my life. We’re living in a time where it’s harder and harder for people to grow up with purpose, so people shouldn’t feel fear about approaching something without prior experience. You can be just as dedicated and you’ll be accepted graciously into this community of people – the good fire people, land stewards, and the people who care to try.

Music is the other major community builder in my life. I spend much of my time playing American Old-time and Celtic music, which connect me to a lot of old lifeways. They are traditional styles best suited for group experience and expression, tied to an idea of land and community that can be harder to find these days. I find music and land stewardship go hand in hand for me as ways to preserve these bonds.”

📷/🎥: Erika Lutz and Michael Garrett

09/04/2025

SPOTLIGHT 🔥 Meet prescribed fire apprentice Chloe Wanaselja! Chloe weaves her sensibilities as a visual artist, background in biology, and commitment to environmental justice in her work with good fire.

“This apprenticeship has given me so many more ways to be in reciprocity with the land. I’ve gotten to experience a remarkable type of intimacy with the places we’ve burned. Like, climbing inside of a hollow trunk of a bay tree using a hose to cool down the glowing embers above my head and being soaked in warm water in the dark. Or putting my hands into the duff and fine lateral roots around a redwood to feel for warm spots. Or collecting purple needlegrass seed on the hillsides at Martin Griffin Preserve and thinking about how many generations of people have tended these grasslands looking out over these same waters.

Good fire is not currently being practiced at nearly the traditional scale because of its suppression through historical and ongoing colonization. But the land and trees still hold that memory of and experience with fire. A lot of trees I work with are old enough that they have experienced traditional fire regimes and management practices. They hold the history of their lives, of the land, in their bodies. Working with these trees, actively tending them, is a huge part of my art practice, which documents my journey towards belonging to land as a white person, as a settler or guest.

Fire is really exciting because of its capacity to promote environmental justice and community resiliency in this landscape. The good fire community is one of few spaces in western society where Indigenous knowledge is being valued. Moving forward, I want to use this work to support Indigenous sovereignty and to promote a fundamental shift in how we relate to land.”

Photos by Erika Lutz and Annie Madden. Video by Chloe Wanaselja describing her piece “Holding Fire”.

08/14/2025

What happens when 6 prescribed fire apprentices hit the ground running? We publicly swoon on the internet.

In just half a year, check out what our crew was able to do:

️‍🔥 Burn 51 days in 17 separate operations
🌱 Tend 269 acres with good fire
🪵 Ignite 1,300 piles for fuels reduction

Our mighty apprentices spent the first 6 months diving in to fireline operations and leadership, learning firing patterns, pumps, and engines. They’re now settling into burn planning, mapping, and unit prep for the fall. Their active hands-on experience with prescribed fire and stewardship not only supports their own professional development, but their contributions also benefit shared fire resilience and ecological health goals in North Bay and well beyond.

We’re looking forward to introducing each of these fire bugs this month. Let’s hear it for our outstanding prescribed fire apprentices, Ben, Oli, Maxi, Zander, Cohen, and Chloe!

Photos by Erika Lutz, Michael Garrett, and Annie Madden

05/08/2025

FEDERAL BURN BOSS ALERT! 🔥 Please join us in congratulating Paul Sokoloski, ’s prescribed fire module lead, for becoming a federally qualified Prescribed Fire Burn Boss (RXB2)!

Just one year ago, we celebrated Paul’s CA-Rx certification as a state-certified California Prescribed Fire Burn Boss. With an additional RXB2 certification, Paul now meets the federal standards for leading moderate-complexity prescribed burns across the nation. After years of pre-requisite training, Paul reflected “I’m excited to have completed this qualification so that Fire Forward is able to expand the lands we work on and the partners we work with, and to continue working with our community of fire practitioners to bring the whole experience home.”

Paul was born and raised in Sonoma County and received a bachelor’s degree in Forest Operations from Humboldt State University. Previously a wildland firefighter for the U.S. Forest Service, Paul has held various positions over the past ten years including smokejumper in Grangeville, Idaho and squad leader with the Truckee Hotshots. His early years provided a foundation of experience with fire suppression and prescribed fire, where he earned qualifications as Crew Boss, Firing Boss, Heavy Equipment Boss, Incident Commander Type 4, and Emergency Medical Technician. Paul’s teaching experience has extended from training entry level firefighters with the forest service to serving as a local prescribed fire instructor and mentor with Fire Forward.

We’re grateful for Paul’s dedication to our community and sharing his experience on a local and national level. Seen above are moments with Paul over the last year with Fire Forward, partners, and members of the . Photos by Erika Lutz.

03/13/2025

“HIGH ALERT! POOL HALL WOODS IS GOING OFF!” squad lead Michael Garrett notified the Fire Forward team on Sunday evening. 9 months after a prescribed burn, a bloom of new life burst forth.

The next morning, squad boss Annie Madden led the crew in a sit spot practice, a training in deep listening and observation to cultivate awareness and study patterns of plants, birds, trees, and animals in a specific place. In this case, the place was Pool Hall Woods, a hilly grassland area of ’s Bouverie Preserve known well by the crew. A prescribed burn in June 2024 was the first time this area of the preserve experienced fire since it burned in Nuns Fire.

“The air was buzzing, I could hear pollinators all around me. The white landing strips on the Lupine were turning purple, indicating they’ve been pollinated. My ears told me just as much as my eyes did,” reflected practitioner Marty Malate. Fall burns are commonly understood as better for wildflower response. “It’s amazing it turned into wildflower wonderland the year after a spring burn. It shows we’re all learning so much.”

“We’re seeing a post-burn wildflower flush,” continued Michael, who led firing operations. The collaborative burn shared a border with land managed by was intended to support ecosystem health by improving biodiversity and increasing pollinators on both properties. “Fire removed the grass thatch so the flowers have more room to grow. We really didn’t do anything special, we just listened and offered what they needed.”

Slide 1: Lupine (Lupinus nanus), popcorn flowers (Plagiobothrys nothofulvus ), California poppies (Eschscholzia californica), and fiddlenecks (Amsinckia sp.) emerge in March 2025.

Slide 2: Fresh char in the Pool Hall Woods unit following a prescribed burn in June 2024.

Photos by Michael Garrett

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