Adapting whilst recovering: Local responses to the 2017 wildfires in Portugal

Abstract

In recent decades, wildfires have become increasingly frequent and destructive worldwide. To tackle them, a shift in wildfire governance has been advocated: from fighting fire towards a ‘coexisting with fire’ strategy that emphasises fostering long-term, community-led transformations to reduce wildfire risk. This topic has received scant attention, particularly in Southern Europe, a region also grappling with land abandonment and an ageing, dwindling population. This article explores how such transformations unfold at the local level by exploring ten local responses to the catastrophic 2017 wildfires in Portugal, which caused over a hundred casualties and countless damages. Using a collective case study approach and qualitative research methods, the article analyses the practices, motivations, opportunities, and challenges underpinning four groups of initiatives: creating defensible areas around villages, reforesting communal land, goat grazing, and water infrastructures. These aim to simultaneously enhance security, reduce wildfire risk, and revitalise local economies and ecologies. Key elements facilitating these transformations include leadership, particularly by newcomers and local mayors, external funding, and volunteer work. However, challenges such as financial constraints, social conflicts, and land fragmentation challenge the sustainability of these efforts. While context-specific, our analysis suggests that the post-wildfire recovery phase can catalyse significant socioecological transformations in depopulated rural areas of Southern Europe, highlighting the need for further research to support communities in reducing wildfire risk. Ultimately, the study reveals how transforming landscapes and restoring practices of care might bring into being safer, more liveable, less flammable futures in devitalised rural areas amidst the growing threat of wildfires.