Confronting Wildfire: California’s Renewed Relationship with Fire

California is confronting wildfire risk head-on. Through a recent executive order, Gov. Gavin Newsom expanded the use of prescribed fire and cultural burns as essential tools for prevention — streamlining permits, boosting funding and partnering with tribal and local fire experts.

The directive recognizes something Indigenous communities have known for generations: fire, when used with care and intention, sustains life. Before 1800, tribal practitioners managed millions of acres through regular burning, maintained balanced ecosystems and reduced the threat of catastrophic wildfires. Banning these traditional practices disrupted the equilibrium, increasing both ecological and community vulnerability. 

Today, California is restoring that knowledge, partnering with tribes, local communities and collaborative agencies to bring beneficial fire back to the landscape as a tool for stewardship, resilience and renewal.

Prescribed fire in action

California State Parks has significantly expanded its use of prescribed fire thanks to historic investments under the Newsom administration. On Oct. 31, Parks California CEO Kindley Walsh Lawlor joined State Parks and partners in Sonoma County to observe prescribed burns in action as part of State Parks’ Prescribed Fire Training Exchange – TREX. 

TREX provides hands-on training where agencies, practitioners and experts work side-by-side to apply planned, controlled burns that reduce wildfire risks and improve ecosystem health. During this most recent burn, crews treated nearly 47 acres, reducing excess vegetation, improving habitats and strengthening stewardship practices.

Since 2020, State Parks has conducted prescribed burns at nearly 70 parks across more than 12,000 acres statewide. Many of these lands had not experienced beneficial fire in decades. In just the past three weeks, State Parks completed 11 prescribed burns covering 200 acres and prepared six additional parks for future treatments.

Each burn is carefully planned and monitored to ensure safety while achieving ecological goals: reducing fuel loads, supporting native species and fostering landscape resilience. Programs like TREX help fire professionals share knowledge and build advanced skills, with participants carrying knowledge back to their home communities — across California and beyond.

Fire as mentor and medicine

José González, Parks California board treasurer, Latino Outdoors founder and California Boating and Waterways Commissioner, captures the spirit of this movement in his essay, “Mentorship from Fire,” part of the “Elementals: Fire” anthology series, published by the Center for Humans & Nature.

“I did not anticipate being mentored by fire. In fact, I would say I was fairly fire-averse. Yet as I have become receptive to mentorship from the land… fire became a mentor to me as well, offering insightful answers to questions such as, What have we inherited that no longer serves us? And what must be burned to nurture a healthy landscape?”

For José, fire is more than a natural process — it’s a presence in family kitchens, a spark in ceremony or a key part of cultural identity. It is both teacher and healer, a force that heals and brings new life.

Building on this perspective, Indigenous communities across California have long used fire to care for the land, a practice now recognized and restored by State Parks in emerging partnerships with tribes. These efforts incorporate traditional knowledge with modern science, supporting ecosystem health, regeneration and succession from sequoia forests to grasslands. Some native plants are adapted to sprout only after heat or smoke from fire, and prescribed burns help these species regenerate while strengthening wildlife habitat and reducing the risk of more intense wildfires.

A new era for beneficial fire

State Parks has used prescribed fire for more than half a century, even during times when public opinion discouraged it. That commitment reflects a long-term vision — one rooted in science, partnership and care for the land. 

Recent data show that prescribed burns nearly doubled in California between 2021 and 2023, with expanded opportunities for tribal partnership and leadership. Together, these efforts signal a shift toward restoring balance: fighting fire with fire in the most intentional, life-affirming way.

Fire for the land and for people

When used wisely, fire is not an enemy but an ally. Carefully managed fire clears space for new growth, stronger ecosystems and deepens the connection between people and place.

Parks California is proud to support these initiatives that focus on healing land, restoring ancestral practices and embracing fire as a force for renewal.