Health and Wellbeing + Fire Stewardship

Gathering Voices Society supports Yunesit’in and Xeni Gwet'in First Nations to explore the health and wellbeing benefits from members participating in Indigenous fire stewardship.

Project Overview

Gathering Voices Society has been collaborating with Yunesit’in and Xeni Gwet'in First Nations since 2021 on a health evaluation project titled, ‘Caring for the Land, Caring for Each Other: Health and Well-being from Indigenous Fire Management Programs’. The goal of this project is to understand how being involved in fire stewardship may influence things like physical activity, mental wellbeing, community connection, and environmental health-traditional food security.

During the spring and fall burns, participants and community members provide their perspectives on involvement in the fire stewardship program through interviews and surveys. Preliminary findings highlight the important role of fire stewardship in bringing community together, providing connection with Elders and ancestral teachings, and in fostering physical activity and a healthier environment.

Fire Practitioner standing in burning field and looking at his watch.

“This is the source of healing for people…being on the land, you always feel good. You feel that wind moving through you, you're close to the fire, you're close to your ancestors and there's just everything about this feels like the right thing to do.” ~ Fire Steward

Context and Purpose

Fire stewardship interventions, led by Indigenous Peoples and guided by their knowledge systems, have been documented among Indigenous Australian participants as increasing physical activity (through undertaking fire management practices on the land), improving mental health and wellbeing (increasing feelings of control and agency), and enhancing access to traditional foods. Combined, these outcomes have delivered reduced incidence of lifestyle diseases among participants, with documented reductions in obesity, chronic heart disease and diabetes.

The health outcomes for Indigenous Canadians involved in fire management and stewardship interventions have not been empirically evaluated – and this research is timely as Indigenous fire management and stewardship programs have become an important priority across Canada. We anticipate positive health and wellness outcomes for the participants with the Yunesit’in and Xeni Gwet’in First Nations, in line with the outcomes seen in the Australian context.