Alaska Fire Portal

The Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy (ACCAP) seeks a post-doctoral research fellow to explore the social and economic impacts of climate change in Alaska from an interdisciplinary perspective.

Possible sectors of analysis include but are not limited to:

• fisheries (including ocean acidification),
• transportation (and trans-Arctic shipping),
• infrastructure, mineral,
• oil & gas resource development,
• mixed-subsistence economies, and
• the provision of related climate services.
• We are also interested in an analysis of the economic impacts of ACCAP’s work.

This post-doctoral fellowship includes opportunities to directly engage ACCAP’s partners and stakeholders in use-inspired basic research and knowledge co-production. The person in this position will work closely in an interdisciplinary team environment that includes a spectrum of senior scientists, junior scientists, graduate students, and research professionals. Collaborating organizations include the Center for Arctic Policy Studies (CAPS) at UAF, the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, and other ACCAP partner organizations.

• Desired state date: Negotiable. As soon as possible.
• Duration: 2 year, term funded
• Location: International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska, Fairbanks
• Open until filled.  

How to apply: please submit CV, contact information for three references, and a cover letter to Sarah Trainor, ACCAP Director with “Econ Post-Doc Application” in the subject line.  The cover letter should include:

• A description of the candidate’s PhD research,
• A statement of interest outlining potential research project, including sectors of interest, and research approach, and
• A description of past experience with research in Alaska and/or the Arctic.

Climate change is occurring more rapidly in the Arctic than any region on Earth. Its impacts are being felt by Indigenous peoples as well as throughout a range of societal sectors, including wildfire management. Recent scholarship suggests that boundary spanning, translational ecology, and the process of knowledge co-production are effective in bridging the gap between science and decision-making and calls for building capacity by developing processes for effective evaluation and for training boundary spanning professionals.

We seek a post-doctoral research fellow to explore one or more of these inter-related research areas of knowledge co-production and boundary spanning assessment related to climate change in Alaska.

• Actions, processes, and mechanisms for use-inspired science.
• Metrics of success in knowledge co-production.
• Scientist and practitioner training in knowledge co-production and boundary spanning.

Requirements: experience and/or demonstrated capacity to contribute in one or more of the following topical areas:

• Indigenous evaluation, indigenous knowledge, cross-cultural communication
• Climate change science, application, communication, and knowledge co-production
• Wildfire science and boundary spanning
• Mixed-subsistence economies and community development

The post-doctoral research fellow will work closely in an interdisciplinary team environment that includes senior scientists, junior scientists, graduate students, and research professionals. Collaborating organizations include the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy (a NOAA Regional Integrated Science and Assessment team), the Alaska Fire Science Consortium (a member of the Joint Fire Science Program Fire Science Exchange Network), and the USDA Pacific Northwest Climate Hub.

• Desired start date: September 2019
• Duration: 2 year, term funded
• Location: International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska Fairbanks
• Open until filled.  

How to apply: please submit CV, contact information for three references, and a cover letter to Sarah Trainor, ACCAP Director with “Post-Doc Application” in the subject line.  The cover letter should include:

• A description of the candidate’s PhD research;
• A discussion of the candidate’s research interests and experience relevant to one or more of the numbered research areas listed above;
• A discussion of the candidate’s research interests and experience relevant to one or more of the bulleted topical areas listed above;
• A brief proposed plan for investigating one or more of the research areas listed above. This should include the data collection and analysis methods with which you are experienced and familiar as well as possible additional methods you have an interest in learning.

USGS Core Science Systems and Office of Enterprise Information leadership is excited to announce the FY20 USGS Community for Data Integration (CDI) Request for Proposals.

All interested scientists and staff are urged to consider participating in this opportunity to engage with a dynamic team that spans all mission areas and regions. With more than 1300 members, a major program goal is to support the advancement of USGS science through technical innovation and data integration. This year, CDI is encouraging proposals that produce building blocks for an Integrated Predictive Science Capacity with the following themes:

1. Projects that address one of the major components of the USGS Director’s vision to:
   a. Integrate USGS data into a comprehensive data lake;
   b. Develop, test, and apply an integrated predictive science capability (EarthMAP) that incorporates data, interpretations, and knowledge spanning discipline boundaries, geographies, and sectors;
   c. Provide actionable intelligence that can be used via dashboards and applications to enhance situational awareness, provide new operational capabilities, and inform decision making, using technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and high performance computing.
2. Tools and methods supporting wildland fire and water prediction, aligned with the EarthMAP (Earth Monitoring, Analyses, and Projections) vision (Jenni et al., 2018).
3. Producing FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data and tools for Integrated Predictive Science Capacity (see the Enabling FAIR Data site).
4. Reusing or repurposing modular tools such as those that were developed by previous CDI projects, including the CDI Risk Map

One-page statements of interest are invited for submission and are due by Friday, October 11, 2019 at 5 pm ET.

Refer to the Related Event link to the right (or below) regarding a webinar that will provide more information about the proposal process.
 

The USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station (PNW) invites applications for a permanent full-time Research Meteorologist (series 1401) / Research Air Quality Engineer (series 0819) positionat the rank of GS-12, GS-13, or GS-14. The position is located at the Pacific Wildland Fire Sciences Laboratory in Seattle, Washington and is part of the AirFire Team of the Threat Characterization and Management Program. Applications can be submitted via the USAJOBS website:https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/544454700
 
The PNW Research Station is one of seven research units in the USDA Forest Service. The Forest Service conducts the most extensive and productive program of integrated forestry research in the world. Scientific information produced by the USDA Forest Service AirFire Team focuses on understanding fire-atmosphere interactions, air quality, and climate with respect to wildland fire. AirFire’s research has application the across United States and in other parts of the world. The Station’s programs reflect the changing character of the questions that science is being asked to help answer.
 
The scientist will provide expertise to generate knowledge about fire, atmosphere, and chemistry interactions that can lead to better modeling of wildland fire emissions, plumes, and smoke. The knowledge is used to develop and deliver innovative and effective strategies, methods, and tools so people can plan, manage, or mitigate the changes, causes, and consequences associated with fire emissions and smoke.
 
Personal research assignment: The scientist serves as a fire/meteorology/air quality modeler and as one of four permanent, principal staff scientists with the AirFire Team. The AirFire team works closely together and the scientist is expected to collaborate on team projects within their area of expertise. The scientist is further expected to become the AirFire lead for one or more of the following critical areas of knowledge and research for the team, and participate in advancing the others: fire smoke modeling frameworks and real-time tools; coupled fire/atmosphere/smoke modeling; field work; and remote sensing. In this role the scientist is expected to serve both leadership roles within the team and also to be a national and international resource for the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, and broader air quality community.
 
The scientist has roles across all three of AirFire’s problem areas: air quality, meteorology, and climate. Air Quality: The scientist helps lead advancements in atmospheric/air quality modeling, including acquisition and implementation of remotely-sensed data into models. The scientist has a primary role in assessing new satellite products for their utility towards the smoke modeling frameworks. The scientist is expected to participate in and potentially lead field campaigns focused on wildland fire smoke. Meteorology: The scientist works to understand the coupled dynamics of fire-atmosphere and fire-atmosphere-smoke interactions including how these dynamics affect fire behavior and consumption and lead to the development of fire plumes that loft emissions into the atmosphere. Additionally, the scientist works to understand how advances in meteorological ensemble modeling can be applied to fire and smoke and how to codify this knowledge within numeric models and tools. Climate: The scientist, as one of the lead modelers, will assist with development of improved modeling strategies to quantify the above issues and the uncertainty surrounding them in future climate projections.
 
The scientist is expected to work nationally and to collaborate with the broader scientific community to create specific projects that can advance these goals. The scientist is also expected to engage directly with the management community including land managers, fire managers, and air quality regulators, and to support training of managers in areas related to their individual areas of expertise.
 
Location: Seattle and its surrounding areas are the major population center for Washington State. It is home to a number of research institutions and universities including the University of Washington, and numerous technical and environmental companies and non-profits. It is an innovative, highly-educated city featuring outstanding schools, diverse cultural centers, many outdoor activities, a thriving arts community, acclaimed restaurants, and a temperate climate. Seattle is served by both the SeaTac International Airport and the Paine Field Regional Airport as well as by train, bus, and ferry services.

The Forest Steward's Guild is looking to survey organizations that either currently practice prescribed fire or would like to in the future. This will help better understand the insurance market across the country and work with brokers and underwriters to produce a better product. They would like as broad of a sample as possible, spanning all types of fire practitioner backgrounds in order to best understand what is needed!

How you can help: take the survey and forward it to practitioners who might want insurance to implement prescribed burns or better prescribed fire insurance coverage than they currently have.

Prescribed fire is vital to ecosystems and is becoming widely regarded as a cost-effective management tool with major benefit. However, even the most carefully planned burn comes with some risk. This is an incredibly large barrier to implementation due to the lack of high-quality liability insurance available. This problem continues to grow as more agencies pull their prescribed fire insurance plans from the market.

The Forest Steward’s Guild has struggled with this exact barrier and has uncovered some currently available options and potential long-term solutions. For more information on the background of this project and FAQs, please visit https://foreststewardsguild.org/prescribed-fire-insurance

In August the Environmental Protection Agency released guidance on documenting particulate matter or ozone events influenced by prescribed fire or wildland fire. 

Nominations are now open for new members of the International Association of Wildland Fires' (IAWF) Board of Directors. Nominations will be accepted through September 30, 2019 and successful candidates will begin their 3-year term on January 1, 2020. Individuals meeting the requirements may self-nominate.