Tree Ring Lab | UBC Vancouver
The UBC Tree Ring Lab is an interdisciplinary research group addressing environmental challenges like megafires and forest dieback, working with Indigenous communities, governments, and industry to improve forest management. Their work spans BC, Alberta, and Patagonia, focusing on wildfire preparedness, disrupted fire regimes, Indigenous stewardship, and forest dynamics. Combining expertise in tree-ring science, social sciences, data, ecology, and digital arts, they advance research, education, and advocacy grounded in ecological justice, equity, and diverse knowledge systems.
Connect with Lori
Dr. Lori Daniels
Director of the Tree Ring Lab
Professor, UBC Vancouver
lori.daniels@ubc.ca
Dr. Daniels is an internationally recognized expert in forest ecology and the impacts of humans and climate change on wildfires. Dr. Daniels is familiar with British Columbia’s diverse ecosystems and has a proven track record of Indigenous and community partnerships. As the co-director of the Centre for Wildfire Coexistence, Dr. Daniels will be positioned as a go-to expert in wildfire.
Awarded the 2023 Association of Fire Ecology Distinguished Leader in Research Award and 2020 Killam Teaching Prize in Forestry, she is a proven public educator, having given over 250 presentations, workshops and field tours to forest professionals and community and school groups. Since 2015, she has conducted close to 300 media interviews as a specialist. In 2022, Dr. Daniels was a panelist on the “Expert Roundtable on Wildfire and Forest Resilience” held in conjunction with the UN General Assembly (UNGA77) release of their report on climate tipping points.
Fire Ecology and Remote Sensing Lab | UBC Okanagan
Connect with Mathieu
Dr. Mathieu Bourbonnais
Director of the Fire Ecology and Remote Sensing Lab
Assistant Professor, UBC Okanagan
mathieu.bourbonnais@ubc.ca
Dr. Bourbonnais is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences at UBC Okanagan. He is the Principal’s Research Chair in Wildland Fire Risk and Fire Management, the Co-director of the UBC Centre for Wildfire Coexistence, and the Principal Investigator of the Earth Observation & Spatial Ecology Lab. Dr. Bourbonnais’ research spans the realms of technology and ecology. He develops new tools and sensors to monitor and predict fire risk, fire severity impacts on biodiversity, and to support prescribed fire planning, operations and monitoring. Dr. Bourbonnais is also a leader at UBCO in curriculum development. He is the Geospatial Program Chair and since joining UBCO in 2018, has developed and launched a Minor in Geospatial Sciences and the Fundamentals of Wildland Fire Ecology and Management Micro-credential Program. His research is informed by over a decade of experience in wildland fire management as a Wildland Firefighter with the Alberta Wildfire Rappel Program and Parks Canada.
Fire Ecology and Management Lab | UBC Okanagan
Coming January 2026
Connect with Jen
Dr. Jen Baron
Director of the Fire Ecology and Management Lab
Incoming Assistant Professor, UBC Okanagan
jen.baron@ubc.ca
Dr. Jen Baron is a Postdoctoral Researcher and an incoming Assistant Professor in Fire Ecology at the Centre for Wildfire Coexistence, University of British Columbia Okanagan. Her applied research program focuses on the landscape ecology of fire, wildfire and ecosystem management, and ecocultural restoration. Through her research she works to understand how the ongoing legacies of colonial land management and climate change have altered wildfire regimes and ecological dynamics, and how the strategic applications of treatments and management can restore resilience in fire-adapted communities, ecosystems, and landscapes. In partnership with Ktunaxa communities, her collaborative research aims to support the revitalization and expansion of Ktunaxa stewardship practices and enable the re-introduction of beneficial fire to ecosystems. Dr. Baron has given over 40 media interviews and has translated her research widely to influence wildfire and forest management policy and practice. She is also an Associate Editor for Fire Ecology, which focuses on ecological and management aspects relating to wildland fire. Her research is informed by her prior experience as a consultant working with First Nations communities and organizations and conducting fire effects monitoring on prescribed fire operations.