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Design Process

FRI-FS-13: Designing for Fire: A Living Demonstration of Biodiverse, Firewise Defensible Landscapes

Friday, September 18, 2026
9:00 AM - 2:00 PM PT
Location: Los Angeles Convention Center, Field Session Departure Area (South Lobby)
Ticket Purchase Required
2.50 PDH, LA CES/HSW, AIA/HSW, AICP, FL
Ticket Price: $95 per person

Defensible Space Exhibit LAFD Malibu Forestry

Malibu Forestry Defensible Space Exhibit/ Los Angeles Fire Department


This immersive experience examines wildfire-resilient landscape design through a built demonstration site in the Santa Monica Mountains. Explore how defensible space—integrating Firewise principles, native plant communities, and ecological performance—works with natural processes and regional context to reduce wildfire risk while enhancing biodiversity and landscape character.

Includes transportation. Moderate walking.

Accessibility: The Malibu Forestry Unit Nursery is not designed as an ADA-compliant facility, but it is reasonably accessible to most attendees. The route includes level and gently sloping surfaces with compacted ⅜” natural crushed gravel.

Learning Outcomes:

  • Identify landscape design strategies that reduce wildfire risk while supporting native plant communities, biodiversity, and ecological function.
  • Evaluate defensible space as a spatial design framework rather than a prescriptive checklist or code-driven requirement.
  • Apply Firewise planting, zoning, and material strategies to residential and public landscapes in wildfire-prone regions.
  • Adapt site-based wildfire resilience strategies to diverse ecological, climatic, and regulatory contexts.