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  Journal of the Wildfire Conservancy

  Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024)

  This year’s Annual Symposium of the Wild-

  fire Conservancy included experts from

  around the United States and California.

  These leaders in their field are working on

  critical projects that directly or indirectly

  relate to the work of the Wildfire Conser-

  vancy and our key organization and agency

  partners.

  Day one of the Symposium was focused on

  firefighter health and safety. The discus-

  sion encompassed several ongoing projects

  related to wildland/WUI firefighter cancer,

  personal protective equipment (PPE), cul-

  tural and behavioral barriers, and wellness.

  Presentations were made from agency ex-

  perts in both science and policy, discussing

  the challenges and opportunities related to

  advancing safety, code, and standards.

  The second day was focused on topics re-

  lated to community resilience. The Conser-

  vancy brought in experts from the housing

  development industry, advanced mate-

  rials experts for construction and design,

  representatives of the insurance industry,

  and representatives from the California

  Legislature (both Assembly and Senate).

  Through presentations and panel discus-

  sions, subject matter experts addressed

  California’s crisis related to wildland/WUI

  fires, and the urgent steps needed to break

  this devastating cycle.

  At the end of each day, a facilitated dis-

  cussion among all participants and experts

  focused on addressing key concerns and

  emerging issues, gaps in information and

  understanding. Recommendations for fu-

  ture direction and work were consequen-

  tial. Those results are presented herein and

  summarized below.