Climate Action

THUR-C04: Myth vs. Evidence: What Science Says About Designing for Wildfire

Thursday, September 17, 2026

2:15 PM - 3:30 PM PT

1.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW

Speaker(s)

Emily Schlickman, ASLA (she/her/hers)

Associate Professor
University of California, Davis
Davis, California
YV

Yana Valachovic

Policy Institute, Associate Director
University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources
Eureka, CA
Alexandra D. Syphard

Senior Research Scientist
Conservation Biology Institute
La Mesa, California

Wildfire is transforming landscapes, communities, and professional responsibilities across the American West. Yet, public and policy conversations often rely on misconceptions rather than evidence. This session convenes three members of the California Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force Science Advisory Panel to examine ten wildfire myths and offer research-based guidance.

Learning Outcomes:

Identify ten persistent myths about wildfire risk and distinguish them from evidence-based findings in peer-reviewed research.
Describe how land-use patterns, building design, vegetation management, and climate interact to shape wildfire outcomes.
Apply scientific insights about ember exposure, fuel treatments, and settlement patterns to planning and design practice.
Recognize why layered, scale-specific, and geographically contextualized interventions, rather than single solutions, are necessary for effective wildfire risk reduction.