European project explores innovative solutions to address extreme wildfires

The initiative seeks solutions at different stages of maturity: innovative ideas, prototypes, services, products, or community initiatives that aim to address the challenges associated with extreme wildfires – thus contributing to improve the safety of communities and the resilience of forests. The FIRE-RES project, featuring INESC TEC as partner, launched an Open Innovation Challenge and will grant the winners the possibility to develop their ideas and test their solutions in a network of 11 Living Labs, spread over nine countries.

In recent years, Europe has witnessed a significant increase in the frequency and intensity of wilfires – increasingly extreme events that lead to devastating social, environmental, and economic consequences. The FIRE-RES project focuses on these issues, namely on the development of an integrated and holistic management strategy capable addressing wildfires.

Considering an integrated fire management approach, the project develops and seeks solutions that can mitigate extreme events, facilitate their resolution, and improve the aftermath phase. “The Open Innovation Challenge we propose features a set of challenges identified by a wide range of entities and regions with different governance and territorial characteristics”, explained Alexandra Xavier, coordinator of INESC TEC’s Centre for Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship (CITE).

The solutions must address the FIRE-RES innovation challenges, around seven domains: risk communication and awareness; engagement and empowerment; training and education; management before, during and after extreme wildfire events; monitoring; forecasting and decision-making support; policy and governance. The 17 challenges were defined after the actions promoted in the Living Labs, which welcomed local agents dedicated to fire management – namely representatives of the public sector, civil protection, landowners, the scientific community, private companies, and citizens’ associations.

“As part of the FIRE-RES Open Innovation Challenge, we are looking for technological and non-technological solutions that address one or more of the challenges presented. The winners of the Open Innovation Challenge will have the opportunity to validate their solutions with potential customers and users, access a wide range of relevant actors and carry out proofs of concept and demonstrations in 11 FIRE-RES Living Labs“, mentioned Alexandra Xavier. The Living Labs are in Spain, Sweden, Bulgaria, France, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Chile.

Applications for the Open Innovation Challenge are open until November 19. On October 18, a webinar will be held to clear all doubts about this call. For more information, please check the project’s website.

The FIRE-RES project is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme and brings together a consortium of 34 partners from 13 countries.

The dissemination of this initiative is also part of the activities of the EEN, with INESC TEC as member and support office.