The Fire Break | Innovations in Wildfire

LA County Fire Captain Ed Monroe shares his candid, powerful insight into PTSI (Post-Traumatic Stress Injury), emphasizing why mental health must be treated as a physical injury and why help must be sought proactively. Drawing on 17 years of service, he discusses the critical role of peer support, the shock of a firefighter being shot, and the unique challenges and rewards of leading wildland inmate crews.

In this episode, you'l...

Nova founder and former wildland firefighter Robert Atwood explains how his company is using machine learning to automate the detection of hotspots, turning a complex, multi-hour process into a simple, 10-minute task. Discover how this innovative platform transforms a drone's infrared imagery into a precise "treasure map" for ground crews, integrates seamlessly with the tools firefighters already use, and is changing ...

Sustainability entrepreneur Josh Dorfman, founder of the media platform Supercool, shares his mission to uncover "real-world climate solutions" that cut carbon while boosting profits and improving modern life. Drawing on his experience launching a carbon-negative building materials company with SpaceX engineers, he reveals the secrets to successful climate-tech startups and the "win-win" innovations that are alr...

IBHS Senior Director for Wildfire and 30-year CAL FIRE veteran Steve Hawks explains the hard science behind why homes burn and what you can actually do about it. Go inside the IBHS research lab where they create 135-mph ember storms to test full-size houses, and learn why a "systems-based approach"—not just one or two actions—is the only way to protect your home from a high-intensity wildfire.

In this episode, you'll l...

Fire Swarm Solutions founder David Thanh explains how his company is pioneering the use of ultra-heavy-lift drone swarms to attack wildfires, especially during the critical nighttime hours when traditional aircraft are grounded. Inspired by a devastating personal loss in a British Columbia fire, he and his team are developing a new tool for the toolbox that promises more precise, persistent, and safer aerial support for ground crew...

Microsoft's Chris Holloway brings his unique perspective as a former Air Force nuclear weapons specialist to the wildfire crisis, delivering a powerful call for proactive, community-level action. He breaks down why high-tech home suppression systems can fail, why we're too focused on reactive data instead of proactive work, and why the most effective wildfire defense starts with simple, low-tech stewardship of your own prop...

Water quality expert Cydian Kauffman explains what happens to the toxic runoff from wildfires and structure fires and how those contaminants find their way into our drinking water. Learn the crucial difference between the legal and health standards for municipal water, why your body may be the filter for dangerous chemicals, and the best ways to protect yourself from everything from heavy metals to the little-known class of chemica...

Adam specializes in comprehensive all-hazards preparedness, planning, response, mitigation, and risk management. His expertise extends to severe weather and climate change risk, the strategic use of GIS in emergency management, urban search and rescue, and homeland security. He has a strong focus on climate change, black sky consequence management, CBRNE planning, bio and agroterrorism, viral hemorrhagic fevers, maximum containment...

UC Cooperative Extension fire ecologist Barb Satink Wolfson provides a masterclass in the science and culture of "good fire," explaining why we need to empower more people to use it and how community events can build trust and acceptance. Discover the ecological impacts of high-severity re-burns, the critical importance of social science in wildfire preparedness, and why the future of safety lies in entire communities tak...

Deputy Fire Chief Matthew Wilson of Eielson Air Force Base shares his unique perspective from the far north, detailing the lessons learned from recent F-35 and F-16 aircraft mishaps and the challenges of leading a military fire department with a high turnover rate. Discover his leadership philosophy of subordinating ego and listening to your team, why resilience is a quality you build by doing "hard things," and how he...

Veteran emergency manager Todd Hutchings draws on decades of experience from the front lines of CAL FIRE to the consulting world, delivering a powerful message about getting "back to basics" with wildfire preparedness. Discover why he believes true resilience starts at the grassroots level, the importance of low-impact mitigation like goat grazing, and why communities can't afford to wait for FEMA to solve their problems.

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Ergodyne's heat stress expert Lexi Engelbart breaks down the science of staying cool in the most extreme environments, from industrial job sites to the wildland fire line. Learn about the crucial difference between ambient temperature and Wet Bulb Globe Temperature, the hierarchy of controls for heat safety, and the innovative cooling technologies—like phase change vests—that can protect you when the heat is on.

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Professor of Fire Science Guillermo Rein of Imperial College London unveils the shocking discovery of "fire waves"—a new phenomenon where urban green spaces can erupt in hundreds of wildfires. He explains the science behind the 2022 London fire wave, how a metric called Vapor Pressure Deficit (VPD) can predict this risk, and why other traditionally "wet" cities like Seattle and New York could be next.

In this episode, you'll learn a...

Video game developer Eamonn Glass, formerly of Electronic Arts (EA), introduces FIRE, a new cooperative video game where players battle apocalyptic wildfires with futuristic technology. Inspired by the tragic Lytton, B.C. fire, Eamonn's studio, Maggie's Farm, is creating a "combined arms" experience where you "win by saving," aiming to build a more fire-literate generation through engaging and entertaini...

First Street's Director of Wildfire Modeling, Phil Cunningham, explains the complex science behind creating property-level wildfire risk scores for the entire country. A meteorologist by training, he details his journey from studying the physics of fire whirls with supercomputers to running millions of statistical fire simulations to help homeowners, insurers, and lenders understand their true risk, both today and 30 years in the f...

Third-generation volunteer firefighter Krystal Caissie shares her passion for Camp Molly, a groundbreaking program in Canada that empowers and trains teenage girls for a future in the fire service. Discover how this hands-on camp is building confidence, breaking down barriers for women in a male-dominated field, and inspiring the next generation of first responders.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• What is Camp Molly? An insi...

Leading fire meteorologist Theodore Giannaros explains the terrifying new reality of extreme wildfires that couple with the atmosphere to create their own weather, defying traditional prediction models. Discover the "missing piece" in our understanding—3D meteorology—and learn why fires are no longer going to sleep at night, how remote sensing tools like radar and lidar are essential for research, and why scientists and firefighter...

Inventor Wayne Darnell shares the incredible origin story of his wildfire suppression technology—an idea sparked by blowing out a single match that led him to mount a massive airboat fan on a vehicle to control fire with pure wind. Discover the science behind how high-velocity airflow can cool, disrupt, and suppress a flame front without a single drop of water, and learn about his journey from Los Alamos National Lab to self-fundin...