The Battle Against Megafires

Climate & Environment

Apostolos Voulgarakis

Professor and AXA Chair in Wildfires and Climate Change at the Technical University of Crete, Associate Director of Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Environment and Society, Imperial College London

There’s no doubt: we are entering a new era marked by increasingly frequent catastrophic wildfires, the so called ‘megafires’.  From Australia and the Amazon to Siberia and Greece, every region on the globe has experienced unprecedented wildfires in the past decade. But why is this happening?

Join Professor Apostolos Voulgarakis as we delve into this phenomenon and its implications for our planet.

What you will learn

What megafires are
Why they are rapidly increasing
Their impact on the planet
How we can act to prevent their deadly impacts

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The masterclass in 3 main chapters

Chapter 1

Why have we entered the era of megafires?

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First, we need to define ‘megafires’. Even if the emerging term does not have a strict definition, we can already classify some fires in this category.

When does a fire become a megafire, and what are their specific causes? What has sparked this new era of megafires?

Chapter 2

What is the impact of megafires on the planet?

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Did you know that both the World Health Organization and the World Bank have recognized "megafires" as a significant cause for concern?

This is due to the profound environmental devastation they cause, as well as their substantial impacts on human health and the economy.

Let's examine these diverse and devastating impacts of megafires.

Chapter 3

How can we better manage megafires?

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The World Economic Forum has characterised the need for better wildfire prediction tools as ‘urgent’.

In the face of this major challenge, recent scientific knowledge is essential to better prevent risks and evaluate upcoming catastrophes.

But different approaches are needed to understand how to fight megafires and keep the battle against them going...