The Evolution of Smokey Bear: Environmental Education About Wildfire for Youth

Abstract

Many environmental education programs in the United States educate youth about the prevention of wildfire and its role in ecosystems. We reviewed 50 wildfire education programs for youth (WEY) in the U.S. through an Internet search and interviews with program providers. We investigated whether they reflect current wildfire science, environmental education (EE) instructional strategies, and place-based education (PBE) approaches. We found that while one-third of the programs focus exclusively on wildfire prevention, suppression, and safety topics, one-third focuses on fire ecology, management, and science, and one-third includes all these topics, mirroring evolving scientific approaches to wildfire. Also, while state and federal agencies design and disseminate much of the curricula used, 60% of WEY programs incorporate local social and ecological contexts, revealing the close relationship between WEY and PBE.

Keywords:

• hazards education
• informal science education
• natural resource education
• place-based education
• wildfire

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This research was funded by the National Fire Plan through the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station, St. Paul, Minnesota, and by the authors’ home institutions. We thank John Teeple for his assistance in the early stages of this project.

Notes

1. Because we were reviewing the types of programs rather than the number of field offices offering, for example, the traditional Smokey Bear program (of which there are hundreds around the country), we don't quantify here the number of each type of program found in the United States.