26: “The Future of Fire” Guest: Robert Atwood, Hummingbird Drones & Fire AI

06/09/23 • 50 min

As an entrepreneur and former firefighter, Robert has spent his career building tools and solutions to increase access to information by firefighters, fire managers and decision-makers. He is passionate about the way new technologies can better inform decision-making, safety and public expenditure. Also, fire. He loves fire.

In this episode, Robert discusses the impact that technology can have on fire and how it can assist in fighting wildfire including remotely piloted aircraft systems and wildfire intelligence fire drone mapping. He also shares stories from his background in firefighting and how it led him to kickstart his own company. This is a great episode for anyone interested in the intersection of wildfire and technology and the future of fire.

Links:

For more information about Hummingbird Drones, visit https://www.hummingbirddrones.ca/:

For more information about Fire AI, visit https://www.fireai.io/:

To learn more about the FireSmart BC program and other partnerships across the province, visit firesmartbc.ca

Links:

For more information about Hummingbird Drones, visit https://www.hummingbirddrones.ca/:

For more information about Fire AI, visit https://www.fireai.io/:

To learn more about the FireSmart BC program and other partnerships across the province, visit firesmartbc.ca

Previous Episode

25: “A Career on Fire” Guest: Mike Morrow BC Wildfire Service

Mike Morrow is a Wildfire Prevention Officer who has worked with the BC Wildfire Service for over four decades. Since his first role as an auxiliary silviculture tech, his career has taken him across the province, including Nakusp, Port McNeill, Vanderhoof and Cranbrook.

In this episode, Mike shares stories from working on the front lines and reflects on his vast experience in the wildfire landscape, including some unique projects he has participated in. He also shares his outlook on how the industry has changed over the years and the importance of adopting FireSmart principles to live in a world with wildfire.

Links:

*Note: the Guardians of the Grasslands project was misquoted during this episode. Mike meant to refer to the Too Close to Home video, which explains the cattle grazing project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-An1z8XMxs

For more information about Cultural Burning and Prescribed Fire, visit prescribedfire.ca

To learn more about the FireSmart BC program and other partnerships across the province, visit firesmartbc.ca

Next Episode

27: “Insights on Wildfire Behaviour and Activity” Guest: Dr. Mike Flannigan, Thompson Rivers University

In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Mike Flannigan from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, British Columbia. As an award-winning researcher and leading expert on wildfire behaviour and landscape fire modelling, his research goals include developing methods to help predict when and where extreme fire weather may arise and exploring the development of early warning wildfire notification systems. His passion for fire and weather has led him to work directly with the BC Wildfire Service to help predict wildfire activity and behaviour and assist them in preparing for and responding to wildfires in the province.

In our conversation with Mike, we lean into his research and extensive time spent studying wildfire as he shares his past experience learning how fire moves, how it consumes fuel and the insights that are constantly changing.

Links:

Follow Dr. Flannigan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeflannigan

Learn more about his research at: https://www.mikeflannigan.com/

To learn more about the FireSmart BC program and other partnerships across the province, visit firesmartbc.ca