Will the most damaging wildfire occur in the East?
In 2024 and 2025, thousands of wildfires burned in novel settings across the East, including unprecedented fires in populated regions like Long Island, New York, Massachusetts, and the Carolinas. While fires in the East have been considered rare, intensifying drought combined with limited preparedness could portend significant vulnerabilities in the future. Comparing wildfires in the West to wildland fire management in the East, this talk will explore the environmental, social, and governance frontiers in understanding this region’s potential risk.
Dr. Erica Smithwick, Distinguished Professor of Geography at Penn State, is a landscape and ecosystem ecologist. She is the Director of the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute, and Associate Director of the Institute of Energy and the Environment. Smithwick leads the Penn State Climate Consortium, which brings together interdisciplinary researchers in partnership with society to develop climate solutions. Additionally, she serves as program co-chair for Transdisciplinary Research on Environment and Society. Smithwick is also a former director of the Ecology Institute and the Center for Landscape Dynamics.
