Long-term human fire management and environmental change in high-elevation social-ecological systems

This project investigates social-ecological relationships within Pacific Northwest high-elevation ecological zones, emphasizing long-term cultural burning practiced by indigenous communities. The primary objectives of the project are to conduct archaeological surveys of subalpine ecosystems; interpret processes of high-elevation subsistence during the early Holocene and subsequent changes in burning practices; and investigate how subsistence land management influenced historical fire regimes and long-term ecosystem stability/change.

This study employs an interdisciplinary approach that interweaves archaeology, paleoecology, participatory mapping, and computational modeling to evaluate how human-environment interactions shape high-elevation landscapes. This research develops partnerships with federal land managing agencies and indigenous partners in the co-interpretation of research results.

Historically, fire has been used as a part of a set of tools to manage ecosystems but relatively little is known about the influence of historical practices of burning in high-elevation ecosystems. This project evaluates the spatial distribution and chronology of high elevation land-use, documents long-term trends in climate and human influence on fire and vegetation, and records material evidence for cultural burning practices to rejuvenate or maintain important plant species.

This research develops a novel paleo-fire reconstruction and introduces new methods of soil charcoal analysis to make more substantial connections between past human land-use, cultural fire, and vegetation change. Datasets resulting from this project are evaluated using a computational “virtual laboratory” to examine dynamics among climate and cultural burning that may not be interpretable from the archaeological and fire history data alone.

Results from this project advance the understanding of social-environmental change and stability in high-elevation ecosystems to enhance cooperative management strategies (e.g., co-stewardship, co-management), maintain cultural ecosystem services, reduce potential future wildfire severity, and buffer against ecosystem loss in these unique landscapes.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.