| Type | Non-Profit 501(c)3 |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1990 |
| Headquarters | Missoula, Montana, United States of America |
| Key people |
Jason Greenlee, Founder |
| Website | iawfonline.org |
The International Association of Wildland Fire (IAWF), a non-profit organization, is professional association of the wildland fire community. IAWF is an independent organization, not affiliated with any private or public agencies. It purpose is to offer a common and neutral ground for the discussion of important and often controversial wildland fire issues. The organization has a 15-member board of directors. It aims to include members in the areas of wildland fire management, research, suppression, and policy.
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Two periodicals are official publications of the IAWF:
The IAWF puts on conferences related to wildland fire.
Human Dimensions of Wildland Fire Conferences
Each year the IAWF awards two student scholarships; in 2011, scholarships were awarded to students from Mexico and the United States. These scholarships, each worth $2,500 USD, were designated for Master of Science or PhD. students studying wildland fire or wildland fire-related topics. The IAWF is exploring ways to expand the scholarship program to also include students enrolled in undergraduate wildland fire programs.
FireNet is a moderated email-based discussion and information distribution system, or listserv, specifically serving the wildland fire global community. This is a free service for subscribers.
Posted messages go out to the entire global network. Blatant advertisements for commercial products or messages with degrading language or images are not allowed. All posts are viewed and approved by a moderator before release to help eliminate unwanted intrusion to FireNet subscribers. All other reasonable messages relating to wildland fire, including requests for information, ideas, opinions and announcements are posted.
On July 10, 2001, The Thirtymile fire, started by an escaped campfire near Winthrop, Washington, claimed the lives of four U.S. Forest Service firefighters. On January 30, 2007 the U.S. Attorney in Spokane, Washington, charged the Incident Commander of the fire, Ellreese Daniels, with four counts of involuntary manslaughter and seven counts of making false statements.
On February 20, 2007, the IAWF released a survey of 3,362 firefighters which showed that 36% of the full-time wildland firefighters surveyed will make themselves less available to be assigned to wildland fires as a direct result of manslaughter charges filed against a firefighter in Washington state.
The IAWF WILDLAND FIRE SAFETY AWARD is given to someone in the wildland firefighting community who has made a significant contribution to wildland firefighter safety, either directly on the fireline, or indirectly through management or cultural changes. The purpose of the IAWF EMBER AWARD is to acknowledge sustained achievement in wildland fire science. The name 'Ember' was chosen to reflect the fact that research and science often move slowly, and their benefits or impacts may not be apparent for years or more.
The International Association of Wildland Fire created a partial list, by date of the year, of some of the more famous, or infamous, multiple fatality wildland fires around the world over the last 150 years. It is not intended to be a complete list of every fatality fire. By having these wildland fires on a calendar, the lessons learned from even a 130 year old fire will be less likely to be forgotten. An unforgotten lesson learned may save the life of a current or future firefighter.
The IAWF maintains a Wildland Fire Event Calendar that displays planned meetings and conferences related to wildland fire, as well as anniversaries of historic events.
Information about joining the IAWF can be found on the organization's membership page.