These days, there are few communities in fire-prone areas in the region that believe they are successfully managing their forests and woodlands, and the inherent fire threat associated with them. Changes in philosophical and organizational approaches to wildland areas over the last forty years, the expansion of urban populations into the hinterland, and more recently the uncertainties associated with global warming present decision-makers with considerable dilemmas. Through much of the region appropriate fire regimes are critical to the survival of the rich biodiversity, and indeed, in a number of ways to the very character of many landscapes. In several Asian nations, and on many Pacific Islands, the use of fire in large-scale forest conversion and the lack of appropriate measures to prevent the spread of land-use fires into protected vegetation have led to unprecedented ecological and environmental problems and, in a number of situations, to smoke-related health crises.