Our Work
The Partnership has generated a number of collaborative multi-media research products intended for the First Nations audience, fire management professionals, researchers, and the general public.
University of Alberta graduate student researcher Kyla Mottershead was awarded a SSHRC Storytellers "Honourable Mention" for this 3-minute video which outlines the research of the First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership.
Book
FIRST NATIONS WILDFIRE EVACUATIONS
A Guide for Communities and External Agencies
The FNWEP has published a book in 2021! Our guide is based on interviews with 200+ wildfire evacuees from seven First Nations. Learn from their experiences, good and bad, and discover invaluable insights on evacuation preparedness. Authored by Dr. Tara McGee & Dr. Amy Christianson, this book is packed with real-life stories, checklists, and guiding questions. With climate change raising the danger of wildfires around the world, the experiences of the communities featured in this book will serve as an indispensable resource for any community or town at risk from fire. Proceeds support Indigenous students at the University of Alberta.
FNWEP Phase II Newsletters
Our newsletters provide regular updates about research and other partnership-related activities. Click on the button to view and download the newsletter series (PDF).
Research Summaries
These 2-page summaries describe evacuation experiences, and also provide key lessons learned in five First Nations communities: Atikameg - Whitefish Lake First Nation 459 (AB), Dene Tha' First Nation (AB), Mishkeegogamang Ojibway Nation (ON), Sandy Lake First Nation (ON), and Onion Lake Cree Nation (SK). Click on an image to view and download a summary (PDF).
TwoPager_Whitefish.pdfTwoPager_Dene_Tha_First_Nation.pdfTwoPager_Mish.pdfTwoPager_Sandy_Lake_First_Nation.pdfTwoPager_OnionLake_1.pdfMagazine & Newspaper Articles
Issawi, H. (2019, January 18). Wildfire evacuation plans on reserves could reduce stragglers by keeping closer to home, U of A researcher says. The Star. [open access article]
McGee, T.K., Christianson, A.C., Asfaw, H., & Mottershead, K. (2018). Advice for emergency managers from the First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership. HAZNET: The magazine of the Canadian Risks and Hazards Network, pp. 18-21. [open access article]
Smith, A. (2017, July 14). Wildfire evacuations on First Nations have huge mental health impacts. Windspeaker. [open access article]
Nair, R. (2017, July 13). First Nations evacuations complicated by legacy of residential schools, expert says. CBC News. [open access article]
Journal Articles & Reports
Foster-Sanchez, M., McGee, T. K. (2024). “It’s not the beds, it’s the people”: Building capacity to better host First Nation evacuations in northeast Ontario, Canada. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Volume 112. [open access article]
Mottershead, K., McGee, T. K., Christianson, A. (2020). Evacuating a first nation due to wildfire smoke: The case of Dene Tha’ First Nation. International Journal of Disaster Risk Science. [open access article]
McGee, T. (2020). Evacuating First Nations during wildfires in Canada. Fire Safety Journal, 1-12. [abstract]
Asfaw, H. W., McGee, T., & Christianson, A. C. (2020). Indigenous elders’ experiences, vulnerabilities and coping during hazard evacuation: The case of the 2011 Sandy Lake First Nation wildfire evacuation. Society and Natural Resources, 33, 1-19. [abstract]
Asfaw, H. W., Nation, S. L. F., McGee, T. K., & Christianson, A. C. (2019). Evacuation preparedness and the challenges of emergency evacuation in Indigenous communities in Canada: The case of Sandy Lake First Nation, Northern Ontario. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 34, 55-63. [abstract]
Asfaw, H. W., McGee, T., & Christianson, A. C. (2019). The role of social support and place attachment during hazard evacuation: the case of Sandy Lake First Nation, Canada. Environmental Hazards, 1-21. [open access article]
Asfaw, H. W., Sandy Lake First Nation., McGee, T. K., & Christianson, A. C. (2019). A qualitative study exploring barriers and facilitators of effective service delivery for Indigenous wildfire hazard evacuees during their stay in host communities. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 41, 101300. [abstract]
Christianson, A. C., McGee, T. K., & Whitefish Lake First Nation. (2019). Wildfire evacuation experiences of band members of Whitefish Lake First Nation 459, Alberta, Canada. Natural Hazards, 98(1), 9-29. [open access article]
McGee, T. K., Nation, M. O., & Christianson, A. C. (2019). Residents’ wildfire evacuation actions in Mishkeegogamang Ojibway Nation, Ontario, Canada. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 33, 266-274. [abstract]
Yumagulova, L., Phibbs, S., Kenney, C. M., Yellow Old Woman-Munro, D., Christianson, A. C., McGee, T. K., & Whitehair, R. (2019). The role of disaster volunteering in Indigenous communities. Environmental Hazards, 1-18. [open access article]
Christianson, A., McGee, T., & Mottershead, K. (2015). Wildfire Evacuation Experiences of Whitefish Lake First Nation 459. Report prepared for Alberta Centre for Child, Family and Community Research. [abstract]
Presentations
McGee, T.K. (2024, Aug 27). First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership. Presentation at the workshop 'Decolonizing Emergency Management: Reimagining Fire Safety in First Nation' organized by the Anishinabek Nation, Online.
McGee, T.K. (2024, Jun 18). Evacuations and Indigenous communities. Presentation at the Mass Evacuation Speaker Series webinar organized by York University. Zoom Webinar, Jun 18, 2024.
McGee, T.K. (2024, May 7). First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership. Presentation at the CRCB Community of Practice Symposium organized by Municipal Climate Change Action Centre. Edmonton, Alberta.
McGee, T.K. (2024, Apr 24). Climate Emergencies and the Health of Evacuated Populations. Presentation at the Public Health 2024 Conference organized by the Canadian Public Health Association (April 23 - 25). Halifax, Nova Scotia.
McGee, T.K. (2021, Apr 28). Evacuating First Nations during Wildfire in Canada. Presentation at the 13th International Symposium on Fire Safety Science organized by the International Association for Fire Safety Science (IAFSS). Hosted virtually by the University of Waterloo, Canada.
Asfaw, H. W. (2021, Feb 16). First Nations Wildfire Evacuations- A Guide for Communities and External Agencies. Presentation at a symposium organized by The Nishnawbe Aski Nation “United for Resilience: First Nations Emergency Management Symposium. Zoom Symposium, Feb 15-17, 2022.
Asfaw, H. W. (2021, Nov 18). First Nations Wildfire Evacuations- A Guide for Communities and External Agencies. Presentation at a webinar organized by the Southwest Fire Science Consortium (SWFSC) in the USA. Zoom webinar, Nov 18, 2021. [Abstract]
Asfaw, H. W. (2021, Oct 16). First Nations Wildfire Evacuations- A Guide for Communities and External Agencies. 3rd Virtual Emergency Management Workshop: First Nations Wildfire Evacuations, organized by the Anishinabek Nation in collaboration with Indigenous service Canada. Virtual workshop, Oct 26, 2021.
Christianson, A. (2018, May 22). Recognizing resilience of Indigenous communities in Canada to wildland fire. IAWF Fire Continuum Conference, Missoula, Montana, USA.
McGee, T.K. (2018, May 22). Wildfire evacuations of First Nations across Canada. IAWF Fire Continuum Conference, Missoula, Montana, USA.
Asfaw, H. W. (2017, October 26). Wildfire evacuation and emergency management in remote First Nations: The case of Sandy Lake First Nation, Northern Ontario. Canadian Risk and Hazard Network (CRHNet) Annual Symposium, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
McGee, T.K. (2017, October 26). Evacuation intentions and actions during wildfires: Insights from the First Nations Wildfire Evacuation Partnership. Canadian Risks and Hazards Network Symposium 2017, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
McGee, T.K. (2017, October 20). Learning from the results of wildfire evacuation research. Emergency Social Services Network of Alberta, Morinville, Alberta.
McGee, T.K. (2017, June 19). Resilience in the face of wildfire: Research findings from Mishkeegogamang First Nation, Canada. International Symposium on Society and Resource Management, Umea, Sweden.
Asfaw, H. (2017, March 28). First Nations wildfire evacuation experiences: The case of Sandy Lake First Nation. Assembly of First Nations. First Nations Emergency Management Forum, Calgary, Alberta.
Christianson, A. (2016, November 29) Wildfire evacuation experiences of members of Whitefish Lake First Nation 459. PolicyWise Research and Practice Showcase. Edmonton, Alberta.
Christianson, A. (2016). Indigenous peoples and smoke. National Smoke Forum. October 28, 2016, Kelowna, British Columbia.
McGee, T.K. (2016, June 23). First Nations wildfire evacuation experiences: Wanting to stay behind. International Symposium on Society and Resource Management, Houghton, Michigan, USA.
McGee, T. (2015, April 22). Wildfire evacuation experiences of a First Nations community in Alberta, Canada. 13TH International Wildland Fire Safety Summit & 4th Human Dimensions of Wildland Fire, Boise, Idaho, USA. [abstract]
Christianson, A. (2013, March 6). Aboriginal Wildfire Evacuation Partnership. Saskatchewan First Nations Emergency Management Forum, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
We respectfully acknowledge that we are situated on Treaty 6 territory, traditional lands of First Nations and Métis people.