CAL FIRE Awards $4.7 Million To Support Tribal Wildfire Resilience and Cultural Stewardship

Funding Empowers Tribes to Revitalize Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Expand Workforce Training, and Advance Fire-Adapted Land Management Practices Across California

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) has awarded nearly $4.7 million through its Tribal Wildfire Resilience Program to support six tribes and tribal non-profits in implementing projects on tribal, federal, and private lands.

These grants focus on cultural fire, workforce training, fuels reduction, reforestation, land stewardship, and other efforts that promote wildfire resilience and safety for tribal communities. The funding also supports the use and promotion of Traditional Ecological Knowledge to help California Native American tribes manage their ancestral lands. Grant details are available on the Tribal Wildfire Resilience Program website.

Four of the awarded projects are implementation projects that will support tribal workforce development, cultural land management practices, apply cultural burning to promote culture, restore habitat, increase resilience and wildfire safety of communities, and continue to build on partnerships with State and Federal counterparts.

Additionally, two planning projects will foster regional collaboration to increase wildfire resilience by supporting Indigenous-led fire-adaptive stewardship and generate knowledge transfer of Traditional Ecological Knowledge held by ancestors and make it accessible to Tribal Citizens.

“These funds provide an opportunity to support tribes in the stewardship of their land, revitalization of cultural practices and Traditional Ecological Knowledge in their communities,” said CAL FIRE Natural Resource Management Deputy Director Eric Huff. “By funding these efforts we are committing to our partnership with tribes on the state’s wildfire resilience goals.”

These grants support implementation of the Governor’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan and were funded as part of the 2022-23 and 2023-24 state budgets.

The 2024-25 awards are the third time that CAL FIRE has offered Tribal Wildfire Resilience grant funding totaling over $30 million to 23 projects.

For more information on CAL FIRE’s Tribal Wildfire Resilience grants and to view awarded projects visit the Tribal Wildfire Resilience Program website.