Fire Expert Dr. Amy Cardinal Christianson Joins the Indigenous Leadership Initiative
May 15, 2024
Ottawa: May 15, 2024: The Indigenous Leadership Initiative (ILI) welcomes Dr. Amy Cardinal Christianson as Policy Advisor. Christianson is a Métis woman from Treaty 8 territory and a research scientist with expertise in Indigenous fire stewardship, Indigenous wildland firefighters, wildlife evacuations, and Indigenous research methodology.
“I am honoured to join the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and help support Indigenous decision-making around fire management and stewardship,” said Christianson. “Indigenous Nations are disproportionately impacted by wildfire, but they also have knowledge and experience that can help all people navigate a new era of wildfire. Restoring a healthier relationship with fire will help us adapt to climate change impacts and lead to healthier lands, communities, and cultures.”
Before joining the ILI, Christianson served as Fire Research Scientist for the Canadian Forest Service, Natural Resources Canada and an Indigenous Fire Specialist with the National Fire Management Division at Parks Canada. She combines community-led research projects with on-the-ground work as a liaison with First Nations facing extreme fire threats.
In light of the fact that 42 per cent of people evacuated for wildfire are Indigenous, Christianson co-authored the book First Nations Wildfire Evacuations: A Guide for Communities and External Agencies with Dr. Tara K. McGee, to provide a resource for First Nations grappling with the economic, cultural, and social challenges of leaving communities and traditional territories for often extended time periods. She also co-authored Blazing the Trail: Celebrating Indigenous Fire Stewardship with Indigenous colleagues to shine a spotlight on the depth of Indigenous knowledge—developed over generations—of fire management on Indigenous territories.
Christianson is also the cohost of the influential podcast, Good Fire: Stories of Indigenous Fire Stewardship. Over the course of three seasons, the podcast explores the ways in which Indigenous Peoples around the world use fire to build community through cultural empowerment, reduce wildfire risk, and support biodiversity.
“We are thrilled to welcome Amy to the ILI team,” said Valérie Courtois, the Executive Director of the ILI. “ILI is dedicated to advancing Indigenous Nationhood, and we know Amy’s expertise will help create more space for Indigenous Nations to reassert their leadership on the issue of wildfire on their territories.”
In her new role with the ILI, Christianson will help expand the scope and scale of work that the ILI can support in partnerships with First Nations that support capacity building around cultural burning, fire management planning, and emergency fire response. And she will continue sharing her research on evacuations of Indigenous communities in the face of wildfires.
Christianson received her BSc degree in geology from the University of Alberta, her MSc in hazard management from the University of Canterbury, and her PhD in human geography from the University of Alberta. She serves on the steering committee of the Thunderbird Collective, the board of the International Association of Wildland Fire and the international research advisory panel with Natural Hazards Research Australia. She currently lives in Treaty 6 territory in central Alberta with her family.
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