Daily Archives: March 11, 2021

At the peak of a Virginia summer, the difference between the sun and shade is stark. High urban temperatures can be dangerous in the capital city of Richmond. Trees can provide substantial cooling, pull pollution from air and water, and beautify neighborhoods. But in Richmond and other U.S. cities, the racist housing policy of redlining has resulted in less tree canopy for many neighborhoods with predominantly Black residents, making them now hotter in the summer.

In lower-income areas where people of color live, environmental gentrification is a concern.

Southside, an urban region south of the James River and within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, contains formerly redlined tracts. Through the Greening Southside Project, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) is spearheading a multisector tree-planting initiative, hoping to cool the local climate, address longstanding inequities, and reduce water pollution.

A National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant funds CBFs two-year mission to engage locals to plant hundreds of trees at parks, schools, churches, and residences. CBF previously worked on similar initiatives in this area and now taps into a growing local environmental justice movement through community partnerships.

In the 1930s, federal officials marked Black neighborhoods as risky red investments on maps, effectively blocking potential home buyers from receiving mortgages and other kinds of credit.

Underinvestment meant fewer trees and parks were protected or established, and more roads, industrial sites, and paved surfaces were builtincluding in the economically distressed Southside of Richmond, much of which continues to be characterized by vacant buildings and asphalt.

A 2020 study by researchers from Richmond and Portland, Oregon, found formerly redlined neighborhoods are up to twelve degrees warmer in the summer. These once-redlined tracts are now more likely to be lower-income and have Black or Latinx residents, who also suffer from related health disparities.

People who are not within an acceptable distance to [green] spaces are not given the same opportunities to exercise, play, breath clean air, enjoy shade, grow food, and change their scenery, Southside ReLeaf co-founder and lifelong Southside resident Amy Wentz says.

Southside ReLeaf, which organizes community members to address local environmental inequities, is partnering with CBF for Greening Southside. Unfortunately, Southside residents in certain communities suffer greatly from heat-related illnesses at larger percentages than other areas of the city, Wentz says. They also have higher cases of asthma, diabetes, obesity, and other illnesses that lead to shorter life spans.

In 2020, Wentz ran for Richmond City Council to represent the 8th District, where she lives. Her platform aimed to tackle local high rates of health problems and evictions, and to improve food access, and youth and adult education.

Though she wasnt elected, Wentz brought renewed public attention to Southsides challenges and promise. Along with Greening Southside, she is involved with two tourism platforms that feature local Black culture: BLK RVA and the Virginia Black Restaurant Experience.

Richmonds master plan, released in 2020, strongly focuses on revitalizing Southside neighborhoods through investments in streetscapes (including new greenery), transportation, commerce, and housing improvements and expansions. The plan references redlining and proposes to increase tree cover and reduce pavement in the hottest communities.

Along with Southsides racially-motivated lack of trees, the fact that the area lies within the Chesapeake Bay's watershed was a key motivation for CBFs new plantings. Some creeks there are polluteddue, in part, to the extensive pavement and resulting stormwater runoff. These creeks feed the James River and, in turn, the Chesapeake Bay.

Trees can reduce Southsides runoff and erosion, benefiting the watersheda potential win-win for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, which strives for clean water and environmental justice.

To zero in on Southside neighborhoods, CBF used the Richmond Office of Sustainabilitys Climate Equity Index map to identify tracts lacking tree canopy, and with more pavement and heat vulnerability. Black and Latinx residents make up 86 percent of the population in the identified areas.

Along with cooling temperatures and improving air quality, trees and green spaces have been proven to reduce stress and lower blood pressure. Jeremy Hoffman, co-author of the redlining study and chief scientist at Richmonds Science Museum of Virginia, says, Planting and maintaining new trees is a long-term investment in generating natural air conditioning and other benefits for these neighborhoods.

Hoffman adds that shorter-term strategies are important, too, such as shade structures at bus stops, pedestrian-only areas and cultivating shaded public pocket parks on unused land. And, while tree plantings are not a cure-all for climate changeemissions reductions and other approaches are also essentialresearch continually upholds our tall neighbors essential role in cooling and saving the planet.

Trees are also increasingly recognized as a powerful instrument of environmental justiceAmerican Forests created a Tree Equity Score to guide localities, which also mentions redlining's harmful legacy. But, like most simple solutions to complex struggles, planting trees is not a complete remedy for environmental inequities, and advocates say some greening strategies are more just and sustainable than others.

There are a few ways that tree planting can be equitable, including ensuring that planning follows community lead from the beginning, acknowledges history, integrates tree planting with other investments, and accounts for future climate impacts, says Marissa Ramirez, a senior manager with the Natural Resource Defense Councils (NRDC) Healthy People and Thriving Communities Program, who is not involved in Greening Southside.

Wentz, of Southside ReLeaf, says her organization centers local voices, [especially] voices of the underserved and marginalized communities that often have change happen to them instead of with them. Our neighbors know what they would like to see shaping around them for their benefit, they just need organizations to listen to the already amazing ideas they have. She says CBF has sought to collaborate with community members. That effort does not go unnoticed by our neighbors, and that intentionality is so necessary, Wentz says.

For several years, CBF has worked with Southside communities to establish new trees, rain gardens, and community gardens. Second Baptist Church in the Broad Rock neighborhood now has a fruitful community garden, growing peas, okra, basil, tomatoes, and more. Previously, CBF also offered neighborhood walks and river rides to help residents better understand pollution and local waterways, designated local environmental stewards, engaged neighbors in debris removal and other restoration activities, and funded resident leadership training.

While planning Greening Southside, CBF Director of Outreach and Advocacy Ann Jurczyk reviewed resident input from the citys master plan and conferred with Southside ReLeaf, and Richmond Parks and Recreation. Another partner is Groundwork RVA, a nonprofit with experience in community greening in Southside, which will engage youth in ongoing tree maintenance. Richmond Parks and Recreation, and Richmond City Public Schools will also help care for some trees.

CBF also collaborates with local churches, the Virginia Department of Forestry, and Friends of Swansboro Park, among others. Jurczyk says this Southside Park Friends group was started by moms who live near and take their kids to the park, so as the parks primary users, their voice is a top priority.

But Jurczyk says the pandemic and related city regulations for in-person volunteering are now limiting how much face to face contact we can have with community members. The kickoff was a Zoom meeting instead of a potluck, and the first plantings will take place at a reduced place at the Swansboro Playground on March 13.

Along with Southside ReLeaf, other local groups have emerged to support green equity in Richmond, including RVA Thrives and its umbrella organization, Virginia Community Voice (VACV). VACV, Southside ReLeaf, Groundwork RVA and others have held community conversations about Southside priorities like jobs, transportation, greening and beautification, some of which CBF also attended.

Jurczyk says members of Southside ReLeaf, like its other cofounder, Sheri Shannon, ensure theres a local and known face to the grant among community members who dont know me personally.

VACV is currently drafting a Greening Master Plan for Southside which, according to its website, intends to ensure those impacted by racial inequities are at the center of plans to create a greener and more beautiful South Richmond.

CBF plans to collaborate with VACV for upcoming tree plantings. And, if Greening Southside is wildly successful and [shows] deeper community engagement, improved water quality and a healthier Southside, Jurczyk would love to see CBF apply for a second grant for 2023-2024 that is directly driven by the [VACV master plan], assuming [it] identifies potential greening projects that also improve water quality.

In lower-income areas where people of color live, environmental gentrification is a concern. Community improvements can impact the housing market, leading local residents to be priced out of their homes. The Progressive asked the city of Richmond how it will seek to avoid gentrification, which is already a local issue, and ensure affordable housing near new green spaces.

Sustainability Manager for Richmonds Office of Sustainability Alicia Zatcoff says the city partners with community-based nonprofits to facilitate meaningful engagement with residents who live near these projects, including Southside ReLeaf and VACV. She says the city follows an Equitable Affordable Housing Plan and has an interdepartmental team that coordinates the alignment of affordable housing and new green spaces in an intentional way to reduce inequities by using tools like the Climate Equity Index (CBF also used this index to plan Greening Southside).

Along with CBF, other major nonprofits have their eye on Richmonds canopy; American Forests is partnering with TAZO Tea and singer SZA to launch the TAZO Tree Corps.

This endeavor aims to grow a paid tree planting workforce to help combat climate change and create new jobs in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods and communities of color. It will launch in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and other U.S. cities in 2021, and branch into Richmond in 2022. It plans to partner with grassroots tree groups in each area, which could very well include Greening Southside partners like Southside ReLeaf, Groundwork RVA, and VACV.

Shannon of Southside ReLeaf, who previously worked with American Forests, said the Tree Corps sounds like an amazing opportunity Planting more trees is only part of the solution. We always need community buy-in, funding, and people-power to maintain those trees in the long term. Developing a skilled workforce with members from Black and brown communities is essential in this process.

More here:

A Tree Grows in Richmond: Southside Moves from Redlining to Greening - Progressive.org

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For the architects and designers at Perkins&Will, the profession is full of women who deserve to be celebrated. While gender inequity in architecture remains a serious problem, in March 2019 the firm set out to shift the narrative. For the last three years over the course of Womens History Month, they have highlighted the amazing designers, researchers, managers and professionals who are building a move inclusive world.

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This year for International Womens Day, ArchDaily is featuring a week of curated content, with exclusive interviews and thought-provoking editorials. This interview features a range of women working at Perkins&Will, including Zena Howard, Yanel de Angel, Pat Bosch, Ming Ming Ong, Gabrielle Bullock and Dahmahlee Lawrence. They each shared their thoughts and perspectives on topics shaping practice today.

Why did you choose to study design?

Gabrielle Bullock: I was drawn to architecture at the age of 12 when I recognized the distinct disparity in living conditions between middle income and lower income communities, particularly communities of color, in New York City. I chose to focus on revitalizing public housing in Harlem as my senior thesis at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Pat Bosch:Being the daughter of architects, I knew I could use my profession as a platform to tell untold stories, effect change, and be of relevance to a society that could be informed and transformed by the power of design. The ability to reflect peoples lives and culture, and provide solutions within an interconnected global platform. Leaving things better than I found them.

Yanel de Angel:I chose to study architecture because I dreamed to be the change I wanted to see in the world. Growing up in Puerto Rico I became keenly aware of the impact the built environment could have on the health of people and the Planet. It was evident that socio-economic disparities and access to education had a direct impact in the health and success of communities. Back then, I did not understand how complex and constructed the equity problem was, but I could see the differences from one neighborhood to the other.

My most concerning priority at the time was sustainability. I spent a lot of energy understanding passive design to live with less use of resources. For example, how daylight could penetrate deeper into space, how could natural ventilation be controlled to provide a pleasant environment and how material health had consequences on people and nature. Today sustainability is important in my work, but equity and access are now layered as a priority because without policies that support change, is hard to get to justice.

Zena Howard:As a child I learned how the built environment profoundly impacts ones quality of life and social well-being. I was intrigued by how design can help create shared experiences and nurture positive change.

What are some recent projects youve each been working on at Perkins&Will?

Dahmahlee Lawrence:I am currently working on a project for the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHoP). The 17-story facility is a Physician and Administration Office Building that will allow CHoP to house many of their physicians in one location while a new patient bed-tower is constructed. My primary role as one of the project architects is specific to the execution of the below-grade, faade, and roof documentation and construction. The nuances of the project allow me to work closely with various Perkins&Will colleagues and an array of consultants, fabricators, and the contractor. Together, we are bringing the design intent to reality. Challenges for me arose during the documentation phase, as this is the most complex faade and foundation I have ever worked on, stretching my limits of using Revit as a design and documentation tool.

Luckily, I had support from my Perkins&Will colleague Helen Gorina, a digital practice manager, who taught me how to use the program in novel ways. This allowed me to provide useable contract documents to our consultants for engineering, fabrication, and construction of the enclosure system. I am grateful for what I learned along the way. The process challenged me, but also taught me how to improve my communication with my internal and external team, even while working remotely because of COVID-19. We are now at a place where the building is out of the ground and we can see the fruits of our labor. While my contribution to this project is a mixture of seen and unseen elements, I am looking forward to seeing its completion.

Gabrielle Bullock:Destination Crenshaw is a free outdoor public art and cultural experience in the Crenshaw District of South Los Angeles: The open-air experience will tell the countless and too often overlooked stories of the social, cultural, and economic contributions African Americans have made to Los Angeles and the world. Unlike traditional museums, Destination Crenshaw will not be contained by walls: It will run along a 1.3-mile stretch of Crenshaw Boulevard, anchored by permanent and rotating art installations, large-scale murals, sculptures, exhibits, new streetscapes, and 10 new parks. The experience will build on the communitys long-standing reputation as a creative incubator, while dramatically transforming Crenshaw into a global destination for economic growth, education, culture, and American history.

Zena Howard:Remembrance Design, an urban and architectural design process that engages historically under-served and negatively impacted communities to redress painful issues, bridge diverse experiences, inspire resilient communities, and infuse culture into projects. This process embraces cross-disciplinary collaboration as an essential design tool to integrate a broad range of experience and specialized knowledge, such as urban design, public policy, art, history, economics, and anthropology, into the architectural process.

The Sycamore Hill Gateway Plaza was created to redress the leveling of a neighborhood targeted by urban renewal. Through a community engagement process that included a group of former church members, we designed a commemorative space that honors the history of Sycamore Hill and gives room for residents to collectively heal and reclaim a piece of that heritage. Towering stained glass walls rise from the ground on the original footprint of the church following the pattern of the original walls, windows, and bell tower.

Nearly half of all architecture students are women, but they make up about 20 percent of licensed architects and 17 percent of partners or principals in architecture firms. What accounts for the disparity?

Gabrielle Bullock:The architecture profession has historically been male-dominated. It is also a profession that is slow to change. The gender disparity we see today is a result of maintaining this status quo over decades. While gender balance may be more easily achieved in academia, it has not fully transferred to professional practice and the board room. It will take a deliberate and intentional focus by firm leadership to recognize and address the systemic challenges women face, including gender pay inequity. It will also require a public recognition of the value of womens perspectives and talent in design and practice. Beyond firms, clients are more diverse than everin age, gender, race, and ethnicityand are expecting their hired teams to be just as diverse. Until we all challenge the status quo and are deliberate and intentional in advancing equity, the disparities will continue to be perpetuated in the profession.

Ming Ming Ong: Many women leave the profession after having children; long hours and demanding responsibilities from our profession can be challenging to balance work and needs of family. Another reason for this low number is the lack of opportunity or being pigeon-holed into limited roles that made work unrewarding. The lack of female mentors/champions also make it difficult for women to get out of their limited roles. Women need to speak up for themselves or put themselves out there and work harder than men to prove themselves in this profession.

Perkins&Wills We Are Women, We Are Here platform shared many great stories from my co-workers, about what keeps them inspired and what keeps them going in this profession. It is great and reassuring to see that a great number of us are (still) here; all of these women are an integral part of our teams, all while having different roles and responsibilities and supporting each other as we create our work together. From within the office, it is easy to forget, overlook, or even connect with the imbalance in our profession as shown in the statistics.

I would also like to share an experience during the construction of a residential tower project at 1700 Webster Street in Oakland, California. During one of the construction coordination meetings with Suffolk Construction, we realized that all the participants in the room were women! That was an empowering moment for all of us. It was also a good reminder for me that there are many women out there. in similar male-dominated professions, working alongside me, who whose efforts may not be recognized or celebrated. I wish women from all other professions could have similar platform to share their stories.

Pat Bosch:Opportunity for growth in the industry, and the acceptance of flexibility and diversity. We dont all need to deliver or grow within the same metrics or imposed structure. The industry should accept a more diverse definition of success, growth, and leadership. As an industry, we are still bound by old-school conventions and perceptions. It seems womens best course for success is often to have their own business with their own name on the door in order to control their destiny. Corporate structure and criteria for growth are still, in many firms, one size fits all.

Yanel de Angel:The gender disparity in licensed architects and partner-level leadership exists is because the female designers path is full of challenges, preserved inequities, and access control. The few that traditionally had the privilege to hold the gate keys can control access and therefore have the responsibility to open the gates.

At different points in the career path of any individual, there will be challenges. But women face some unique challenges. They must break social norms or expectations, such as being a working mom, or choosing to concentrate on a career rather than a family. Or they must break through misconceptions like women make great project managers because they can multitask. Often, they must work harder to be noticed or prove themselves more to get to the same level of recognition or salary than a male counterpart. And, while many of these norms, expectations, and misconceptions are finally changing, we must still focus on building a support system to mentor and coach with intentionality; Opportunities need to be offered, too, because it can be tiring to continually knock-on closed doors without a response. It takes a lot of energy to persevere.

So, what can be done? Listen and respond to womens unique needs with empathy. Be equitable when offering support, flextime, mothers rooms, and access to leadership programs, mentor-mentee programs, and client-facing opportunities. Identify individuals who want to progress to a leadership position and craft a plan that can be revisited year after year to keep everyone accountable. Then, when the time comes, position, elevate, and lead by exampleopen the gates.

Changes due to COVID-19 have been swift. How do you think the pandemic will shape design?

Dahmahlee Lawrence:I hope this pandemic will democratize design. Democratization is often talked about as an aspirational goal that is always limited by funding or factors. Perhaps now, we in the design industry can work with policymakers to ensure all persons in the U.S. have access to proper housing and medical facilities in their neighborhoods. We should not limit our designs to specific buildings; we should include habitable and safe outdoor spaces, toowhich means we need to work with Landscape Architects and Urban Designers/Planners. There are some firms and entities that do an outstanding job of generating holistic spaces for all users, but we have a long way to go before this kind of approach is universal. I hope that the design industry understands that it is our responsibility to build for humanity, ensuring equality for all in the spaces we create. And from a design to construction standpoint, architects need to look toward integrated design delivery methods with our partners in fabrication and construction.

Ming Ming Ong:The impact of COVID-19 will be long-lasting. To cater to the future (unforeseen) needs, design of built space and structures will need to be adaptable. The structural design of new buildings (column spacing, floor to floor heights, construction types, etc.) should be planned and designed for multiple uses. This is typically avoided due to inefficiencies in design and front-end hard costs. However, doing so will allow for the flexibility to repurpose a building without major demolition and be able to respond quickly to new economic and social demands. I also think there will be desire for interior infrastructure/components to become moveable and adaptable kits of parts to cater to different operational and functional needs when program is changed without requiring major rework.

COVID-19 has required us to take a hard look at the sizes of our residential units. In small apartment units, especially studios, units are unable to provide a dedicated space to support work from home. As more and more people are now working from home, these units will need to increase in size. We will likely see unit layouts with bigger footprints and a dedicated den for work/study.

Zena Howard:The pandemic has highlighted weaknesses in our communities particularly related to food, shelter, education, and healthcare. Design will need to change to better support our most vulnerable populations by strengthening affordability, physical and social accessibility, and community partnership and engagement.

In some instances, pandemic life and social upheavals have accelerated the trends already underway across many sectors of the economy. For example, Ive watched museums flex their range even further to engage audiences. They are doing invaluable work right now, connecting people through culture into networks of curiosity, creativity, and learning. During social distancing and shelter in place, these community-building efforts have necessarily relied on digital communications and virtual experiences. It is likely that these experiments will spill over into hybrid environments now that people are starting to inch their way back to trusted shared spaces. I, for one, am exploring the possibilities for evolving in step with the places we design. As the architects and designers who partner with museums to shape their spaces, we have been drawing on our firms multidisciplinary strength to expand the traditional suite of services we provide.

Why was it important to tell your story via the We Are Women, We Are Here platform?

Dahmahlee Lawrence:It was important to tell my story because my story is a reality for many women of color. Sometimes you need to be able to see someone in a role you may want to pursue so that you know it is possible. It is important that Perkins&Will did answer and challenge the NY Times piece asking where we are. Implying invisibility among women in design when we are clearly present, competent, and working does women everywhere a huge disadvantage. Our numbers may be small, but our impact is large.

The response to my story from family, friends, and peers was full of pride, support, and great discussion. It is imperative that women understand our possibilities are endless. A few years ago, I doubt I would have been so candid to write about myself, but if doing so means I can inspire both women and men to be confident, to act to make our industry better, then sharing my story is my duty. We as an industry must continue to acknowledge that representation matters; as individuals, we must carve our own yellow brick roads to break down barriers.

Pat Bosch:I need to be, for others, the person I needed when I was starting my career. I need to break the barriers and pave the road so that my daughter and those after her can be empowered and live the change. I need to inspire and influence that army of unstoppable women out there, to help them know that design is a powerful platform for change, and that our success can be of consequence. Im emboldened by adversity and propelled by what many would consider obstacles. I see only opportunities via my determination and resilience. My story is the story of many, and it needs to be told.

Yanel de Angel:To me, it was important to participate in Perkins&Wills We Are Women, We Are Here campaign because sharing our stories empowers others to see they are not alone, and to feel inspired to advocate for the changes necessary to move forward. For a long time, I thought the challenges I faced were unique to me. I believed it must be me, there is something that I am not doing right. But when you hear the commonalities that many women face in the design industry, you are reassured that it is not you, but a system that needs to be deconstructed.

Telling my story was also liberating and therapeutic. I once kept secrets in an attempt to protect others from confronting their own wrongdoing. Now, I am open to putting my vulnerabilities and experiences on display--and in doing so, I have been able to heal, advocate for others, and stand up for something that needs to change. It takes time and a concerted effort to deconstruct decades of social norms and bias. But most importantly, it takes an empowered community of women, wingmen, and a culture of openness to enact change.

Zena Howard:It is important for me to share my insight via this We Are Women, We Are Here platform so that the next generation can visualize architecture as an accessible and successful career for women, particularly African American women.

As you look to the future, are there any ideas you think should be front and center in the minds of architects and designers?

Gabrielle Bullock: Yes! Designing for and with the communities we servewithout preconceived assumptions about what is best for them. Recently, I co-authored an AIA white paper with my colleague Bill Schmalz, FAIA, about creating and implementing justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion programs within architecture firms. Its essentially a best practices guidea how-to to help firms get started. Id like to share an excerpt of that paper here, as it pertains to your question:

Diversity has become a buzzword in the profession, but its more than just the latest business fad. Its a new way of thinking about who we are, who we work with, how we design, and for whom we design. It means moving beyond barriers and stereotypes about culture, ethnicity, skin color, race, religion, age, sexuality, physical abilities, political opinions, and economic settings to form diverse teams of talented professionals to create excellent and culturally competent work. It means matching the diverse clients, users, and public we serve with equally diverse design teams. It means understanding how diversity affects architectural design. And it means making the kind of workplace that attracts a diverse talent pool. Understanding diversity will give firms the edge they need to thrive in future economies. In short, diversity helps make architectural firms competitive in todays global marketplace. It gives architects the opportunity to practice with integrity and to raise the standards of their profession.

Pat Bosch:We should focus on being futurists, on understanding the challenges ahead of us and responding to them now. Its about inspiring and influencing and creating the opportunities to better our communities and educate the next generation. Its about permanence. Not the short-term goals, but the more global long-term drivers and principles, too. Most important, we are a diverse global society; it is in embracing this fact that the solution lies. When we work together and understand the synergies between cultures and traditions, race and religion, we enrich our dialogue and thus facilitate a more integrated and equal society. Designers are great synthesizers, critical thinkers, and problem solvers; we have the key to lead by example.

Zena Howard:Collectively, Perkins&Will has recognized the importance of having robust community engagement at the core of our design process and have done so for quite some time. Every year we have committed to strengthening this and believe that this should be front and center for all architects and designers.

For me personally, a key factor in my work is telling stories through the built expression. Every site has a story - that unique blend of physical, cultural, and historic character that differentiates one place from any other. Leveraging this narrative involves this substantive engagement with the people and communities that the design serves; often people who have historically been denied a voice in the design of their own environments. This is critical in creating designs that are meaningful, relevant, and enduring.

Read the rest here:

The Women of Perkins&Will Designing the Architecture of Tomorrow - ArchDaily

This story is co-published with The GroundTruth Project.

MARIPOSA, Calif. Rain falls on the 300-year-old oaks on a cold midwinter morning as a group of nearly 60 gathers here on what was once southern Sierra Miwok land.

Some have returned year after year. Others are here for the first time, eager to learn what Californias oldest residents have long known about land management after the most destructive fire season in the states recorded history.

We are here to make an offering to the land, said Ron Goode, the North Fork Monos tribal chairman, who organized the event. Mother Earth supports us. By putting fire on the ground, we support her.

Rakes, clippers, shovels and chainsaws in hand, the group heads out to assemble the dead vegetation into burn piles. Using drip torches red tin canisters with mixtures of diesel and gasoline they delicately light the piles on fire in slow, deliberate motions, painting the land in strokes of orange and red.

It is the years first cultural burn for the North Fork Mono. For more than 10,000 years, tribes used small, controlled fires to open pasture lands and clear out underbrush, promoting new plant growth and reducing the risk of large, dangerous fires.

But when Western settlers took over Native American lands in the 18th and 19th centuries, they began barring many traditional practices, including cultural burning. In 1850, the U.S. government passed the Act for the Government and Protection of Indians, which prohibited intentional burning. After over a century of this strategy left the nations forests choked with dry underbrush, Californias fire officials are now beginning to reimagine fire and land management, drawing upon Native American tradition and perspective.

North Fork Mono tribal members are teaching the group of university students, ecologists, journalists and, notably, officials from the U.S. Forest Service and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) how it might help curb the states fire crisis by clearing out highly flammable vegetation before the dry, hot summer.

Ed Kashi/VIIOfficials from Cal Fire and the Forest Service were present at the burn, marking a shift in the way the states land managers are imagining fire fighting.

Goode, a state-certified burn boss, runs several burns a year to rehabilitate meadows across California. This 369-acre property became an unofficial educational site when he opened it up to university students nearly two decades ago, and for the past six years hes invited the greater public. Interest surged within the past three years, he said, attracting hundreds of participants at each burn, including a growing number of officials from Cal Fire and the Forest Service. (Due to the pandemic, those numbers are currently limited.)

People are interested in whats happening, Goode said. But it takes disasters for people to start waking up.

In 2020, wildfires ravaged 4.2 million acres of California, including Big Basin in Santa Cruz, the oldest and one of the most beloved state parks in California. Over the past decade, the state known for its lush forests and rich natural resources has seen hundreds of lives lost and tens of thousands of structures destroyed, entering, as fire historian Stephen Pyne put it, the fire equivalent of an ice age.

The disaster has awakened Californias land managers, who, after a century of promoting fire suppression and rejecting Native American controlled burn techniques, are now trying to figure out what to do with the abundance of dried shrub and brush that, along with a warming climate, fueled the current fire emergency.

On this February morning, Goodes 11-year-old nephew, Harlon, uses a chainsaw for the first time to take down a dying white oak. He watched it fall in awe.

One day, Im going to take over for my uncle and be the burn boss, Harlon said.

The event took months of meticulous planning, including permits, funding and accommodating the pandemic restrictions. But they could not plan for the weather, and the forecast was for near-constant rain.

Whether we get much burning done or not, I am fulfilled, said Goode, gesturing toward the group huddled under tents to keep dry. Look at all of you.

So is Jonathan Long, a research ecologist for the U.S. Forest Service who attended the burn.

Theres some really bad history of labeling Native people as ignorant or superstitious, of actively arresting people and putting them in jail if they were trying to carry out traditional practices like cultural burning, Long said. Most people would now say: Yes, if we kept burning in the frequency, in the ways Native Americans burned, we wouldnt have the fires we are having now.

Corbis via Getty ImagesA park ranger in an office with a plethora of posters about preventing forest fires, most of which feature Smokey the Bear.

History Of Suppression

For most of the last century, the Forest Service pushed a vigorous campaign of fire suppression, rooted in the belief that fire threatened commercial timber. In 1910, five years after the Forest Service was established, a series of fires known as the Big Blowup burned 3 million acres across Montana, Idaho and Washington, convincing lawmakers, Forest Service administrators and the general public that the solution to fires was more staff and equipment to prevent and suppress them.

Through the Weeks Act of 1911, the Forest Service offered financial incentives to states to fight fires, which dominated the national strategy. In 1935, it implemented its10 a.m. policy the notion that every fire should be suppressed by 10 a.m. the next day following its initial report. The Forest Service then created its iconic Smokey the Bear campaign, the longest-running public service announcement campaign in the country, further cementing the nations fire fear.

This strategy, though, only made California more prone to fast-moving mega-fires.

Tribes such as the North Fork Mono had long taken a different approach to managing land. Regular, light burning, mostly in the fall and winter before the springs bloom and the summers dry heat made the risk of spread too high, would clear dead undergrowth and invasive plants. It was also key to maintaining wildlife habitat, pruning native plants to grow back stronger and healthier. By burning grasslands and opening up pastures, tribes drew herds of deer and elk to the protein-rich new growth each spring. They would then burn the woods each spring to push the cattle back to the prairie. The thinned-out forests lend more visibility for precise hunting and allow spring water to more freely flow to the river, in turn making the land more tolerant to drought.

Its part of a larger system of traditional ecological knowledge that seeks a holistic understanding of the land and has been passed down through generations but was largely ignored in Western science.

The government wants us to prove everything were doing with scientific studies. Weve been here for minimally 8,000 years, Goode said. We know how the land works.

Recent decades have brought about more efforts to address the systemic oppression of Indigenous communities, beginning with the American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978, which protects Native Americans rights to exercise religious freedom, including ceremonies like cultural burning. But how it has shaped environmental practices and contributed to the fire ice age is only beginning to be understood.

It wasnt until the late 1970s that the U.S. Forest Service began to change its tune. After research surfaced showing the positive role fire plays in forest ecology and preventing mega-fires small and low-risk fires are integral to the evolution of flora and fauna, promote the sustainability of natural ecosystems and can prevent larger wildfires the Forest Service implemented a policy to let natural fires burn when and where appropriate. This began by allowing fires that start from natural causes, such as lightning strikes, to burn in designated areas. From this evolved the let-burn policy, and since around 1990, efforts and policy related to fire suppression have considered exurban sprawl.

William Ryerson/The Boston Globe via Getty ImagesSmokey the Bear, the symbol of the nation's fire prevention efforts, stands watch at Togue Pond headquarters behind new crew awaiting transportation to fire lines of a forest fire in Millnocket, Maine, in 1977.

Some state agencies have since made prescribed burning a more regular part of their land and fire management plan. In Florida, where officials have pushed to return to prescribed burning since the 1970s, landowners now intentionally burn more than 2 million acres annually, maintaining the health of its abundant wetlands.

Yet fire fear still drives much of the decision-making in California. The state only intentionally burns a fraction of what the Southeast does each year, and state and federal land managers, who control 57% of Californias forests, are bound by tight environmental and air quality regulations, as well as competing management rules and oversight.

But the recent increase in destructive wildfires, along with growing research that supports Native practices as a form of land management, is changing things. Long and other forest ecologists are working to fill the hefty gap between traditional Native knowledge and published science.

Theres a growing recognition from agencies and desire from the tribes to see their values promoted as part of land management, Long said. They want to understand from the tribal perspective what they wanted to do and why.

Goode warns that although the idea of prescribed burning might be taking root among government agencies, Native cultural burning is different. The process is not just about burning up flammable material but also fortifying the land in more holistic ways, which is a hard concept for the Western mind, he said.

We are in a relationship out here in the land. These plants are related to the animals. The animals are related to us. We are also related to the plants. When we burn, all of a sudden well have medicine plants come up, Goode said. These medicine plants treat the animals. If these medicines arent there, thats when we begin to have ill wildlife. Thats when we see species depletion. Its all a cycle, and its not just about preventing fire.

More than anything, cultural burning is a spiritual practice: a ceremony beginning with a blessing of the land and a prayer. Fire holds great meaning in Native American culture. Around the fire, they share stories, memories and sacred rituals.

Goode and other tribal partners fear that the agencies are missing this wider range of objectives.

Fire without any other tending or gathering or hunting wont solve the health crisis of our overgrown forests, said Helen Fillmore, a hydrologist and member of the Washoe tribe in Northern California. But ensuring that Indigenous people have proper access is a huge first step in beginning the process of mending the broken pieces of our ecosystems.

Illustrating the interconnectedness of the practice, Goode cites the southern Sierra Pacific fisher, which was deemed endangered in 2020. The fisher eats gray squirrels. Gray squirrels eat acorns. Millions of white oak trees are not producing acorns because they havent seen fire in hundreds of years due to the suppression of intentional burning. And so the gray squirrels suffer, too, he explains.

Thats the cycle, and thats the circle that we are a part of, Goode said. We have to come to understand that. We are only a part of that.

Ed Kashi/VIIStephanie Beard, the communication specialist for the conservation nonprofit Pepperwood, throws more dried brush on a flaming burn pile.

Fighting Fire With Fire

Last August, the state of California and the Forest Service signed an agreement to thin or intentionally burn 1 million acres of woodland per year by 2025. That is still significantly less than what Native Americans historically burned but double the amount of land intentionally burned in previous years.

And on Jan. 8, California Gov. Gavin Newsoms Forest Management Task Force issued an action plan and a billion-dollar budget to mitigate wildfire risk, which will largely go toward fuel reduction, including prescribed burns.

After the Creek Fire burned nearly 400,000 acres and destroyed more than 850 structures between September and December in Fresno County the fourth-largest wildfire in the states history the Forest Service increased its efforts and funding for the initiative.

Weve been talking about cultural burning for years, said Jeff Erwin, a forest archeologist at the U.S. Forest Service who attended the burn. Im here to learn, to take this knowledge back, use it and apply it.

Cal Fires main focus is now on education getting more people to understand the significance of prescribed fire and precisely how it works. This requires heightened collaboration with Native tribes, according to Len Nielsen, the prescribed fire staff chief and tribal liaison for Cal Fire.

Ed Kashi/VIISmoke lingers among the oak trees after two large brush piles were burned. Fire smoke also has a purpose in traditional Native land management: By reflecting sunlight, it cools nearby streams and rivers and promotes aquatic life.

Its a science and an art, Nielsen said. Tribes have that. They dont do the science so much because its a handed-down tradition. But the science is inherently there. They know the conditions in which it will be successful to accomplish their goals and objectives. Thats something we need to get into the hands of more people.

And promising policy developments are in the works: On Feb. 8, the state Senate introduced legislation to allow highly trained prescribed fire practitioners outside of Cal Fire to put good fire on the ground. And a novel California state-certified burn boss program was approved in January, a 40-hour course for experienced prescribed fire practitioners, greatly increasing the pool of those legally able to run prescribed burns. The Prescribed Fire Council plans to begin courses this year.

Ed Kashi/VIIOnce the rain stops, a rainbow forms over the property in Mariposa, California, as volunteers finish up the first day of work.

California needs some radical changes in its fire policy. This bill would be a total game-changer if its passed, said Lenya Quinn-Davidson, the director of the Northern California Prescribed Fire Council. While there could still be more incentives to increase participation, she said the interest in prescribed fire is unprecedented.

Though Goode is hesitant about the governments ability to adopt truly Native land practices, he finds the recent increase in interest heartening.

I am elated, he said. People have come here to learn, to understand our traditions and rituals.

The rain curbed their burn that weekend, with much of the brush too damp to ignite. But fire, Goode emphasized, is just a small piece of this work.

Mother Earth knows what were doing to help her, Goode said. What we do to Mother Earth, we do to ourselves.

Michael Karam contributed to this report.

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Living With Fire: What California Can Learn From Native Burns - HuffPost