The Fire Learning Network announced today that all 23 slots for this year’s Spanish language Prescribed Fire Training Exchange have been filled. In September 2012 fire practitioners and land managers from the Americas and Spain will travel to northern New Mexico to attend the two-week-long training exchange, which is sponsored by the Fire Learning Network (FLN), The Nature Conservancy and the Santa Fe National Forest. This is the second time the FLN has offered this specialized training in New Mexico. Portions of the 2010 training exchange were featured in a video about how fire is being used to protect the City of Santa Fe’s watershed.

FLN training events emphasize experiential learning and strengthen local partnerships while they increase capacity for restoration and fuel reduction. Participants will spend the majority of their time alongside experienced burners from state and federal agencies, conducting prescribed burns in the region’s forests and grasslands. They will also spend some time in the classroom learning about ecological processes and the local flora and fauna.

According to Jeremy Bailey, who organizes this event, "participants are both learning and teaching. One of the most valuable aspects of the session is when attendees discuss forest and grassland management practices and challenges from their home units." The group will also visit the scene of some recent wildfires and controlled burns to witness those fires’ effects.

In previous years, trainees have treated more than 1,500 acres in and around Santa Fe National Forest. By removing excess brush and small trees, the treatments will make forests healthier and more likely to withstand future wildfires.

View the participant announcement.