Firefighting needs 'all hands on deck' to keep up with wildfires
Jane Park hopes more people of diverse backgrounds will get into the field. And she has a workshop to help
It's going to take a full team effort to combat wildfires in Alberta and across Canada, says Jane Park. But for that, she says, the firefighting field needs to become a whole lot more welcoming.
"The fire industry is very male dominated," Park told What On Earth host Laura Lynch.
Park is the fire and vegetation specialist for Parks Canada's Banff field unit. The Korean-Canadian is one of the leaders running a workshop there called Women in Fire Training Exchange (WTREX), which aims to bring more diversity into firefighting.
"We're trying to change the diversity of the community and provide people with the opportunity to gain some of those skills in a really safe environment," said Park.
The 12-day workshop wrapped up on May 12, and offered people the chance to participate in live fire training, and have discussions with people who work in the field.
Alberta is currently dealing with worsening wildfires across the province. Over 30,000 people have fled their homes, and firefighters are working tirelessly to control the spreading flames.
Park is working to make sure there are more people who feel comfortable in her line of work. Her workshop brings together people of different genders, ethnicity and backgrounds. She says people have attended from across Canada, as well as California, Virginia and Bolivia.
Facing discrimination
When she was a kid, Park always played outside. So transitioning to working outside as an adult was a natural fit. Over the past 20 years, Park has worked in fire-fighting related jobs across Canada. She focuses on the benefits of prescribed burns, which can prevent deadly wildfires that get out of hand.
But her position isn't always recognized, she says, because she's a woman.
"Still, sometimes I show up at meetings and they assume that I'm not the incident commander. And they refer to my colleagues, who are my subordinates, thinking that they're the leader," said Park.
"Some people redirect and apologize. Other people continue to ignore me. I think that's still something that happens."
Rhodri Wiseman is a transgender fire partnerships and training specialist who grew up in Calgary, but now works across the border in Olympia, Washington, for the Ecostudies Institute.
They started working in fire suppression in northern Ontario, but ran into discrimination.
"There was a lot of misogyny, homophobia, transphobia that was really difficult for me," said Wiseman.
"There was also really prominent racism, and especially anti-Indigenous racism that was pretty apparent. And all of that was really difficult to navigate, especially as a young person."
Wiseman wasn't out as trans yet, and left the job because of the culture. They attended Park's workshop to learn about the fire ecology in Alberta, and to hear stories like theirs.
WATCH | 'I had no words': Alberta wildfire destroys homes in East Prairie Métis Settlement
Important expertise
Amy Cardinal Christianson says having more diversity in the people fighting fires can offer different perspectives. Christianson is an Indigenous fire specialist with the national fire management division of Parks Canada.
"I've just seen where Indigenous people are often [left] out of some of these big prescribed fire events that we have. And so one thing that's been really great about WTREX is the inclusion of Indigenous people," said Christianson, who was the event's Indigenous liaison officer.
The Métis woman says Indigenous practices are essential to the health of Canadian forests, and it's important that decision-makers listen to those perspectives.
And some Indigenous leaders say government isn't doing enough to involve First Nations in emergency management plans.
"Indigenous people are the real fire keepers of Canada. They've been the ones who've been stewarding this territory for millennia," said Christianson.
"When settlers first came to Canada, the beautiful open green forest that they saw, most of that was tended by Indigenous peoples with fire."
'Saw themselves represented'
When Park started in her line of work, she realized there weren't many women doing what she was doing. In fact, Park says there was only one other woman working in fire for Parks Canada.
"For a long time I didn't think about what that meant until I got to a bit more of a leadership role," said Park.
"I started to hear from women who were starting out their careers and who were saying they've never seen a woman in some of the types of leadership roles I've been in … and that because they saw me and saw themselves represented, they thought that it was then possible."
That's one of the challenges Wiseman faces. When they were working for Canadian fire agencies, they didn't see anyone like them in leadership roles, said Wiseman
"I think it's been really exciting to see that more. And that has encouraged me to pursue more leadership roles. And I hope that seeing events like this can inspire others," they said.
Park says that there is still a way to go. Anecdotally, she says that on the fires Parks Canada fights, only about 10 per cent of the crew members are women. And the amount of diversity of other underrepresented groups, such as racialized people, is much lower still.
And she says that as climate change continues to impact Canadian forests, that needs to change.
"We do need all hands on deck, which means, all the diverse groups of people," said Park.
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With files from Molly Segal and Paula Duhatschek