Wildfire in Sweden: Post-fire Forest Management - Societal Perceptions, Acceptability, and Ecosystem Recovery

This project examines the aftermath of Sweden’s 2018 extreme wildfire, by linking monitoring and evaluation of forest ecosystem recovery with an analysis of societal perceptions. Using an interdisciplinary, mixed method design, we will build on an ongoing natural experiment of different post-fire management techniques and will
conduct a stratified societal value survey that differentiates perceptions according to ownership and prior knowledge.

Here, we aim to identify management strategies that are both societally acceptable and effective in terms of ecological recovery and carbon emissions versus sequestration. Furthermore, we aim to advance the understanding of the role knowledge and information can play for implementing such strategies. Based on these findings, the project shall deliver evidence-based advice for forest fire governance.

Climate warming is predicted to further increase the frequency of extreme fire seasons. Empirical knowledge of societal perceptions of post-fire forest management and the impact of these management strategies on soil- and plant regeneration and carbon budgets, is however scarce. Hence, post-fire management strategies still
require scientific evaluation to support Swedish climate targets, the EU Forest Strategy 2030, and the Paris Agreement.

In this project we will ask people about their views on different post-fire management techniques, provide information about socio-ecological outcomes of those and see it that changes people's perspectives.