Sarah Dickson-Hoyle’s research sits at the nexus of community-based bushfire management, ecological restoration and Indigenous knowledge and governance.
Working collaboratively with the Secwépemcul’ecw Restoration and Stewardship Society in Canada – founded by eight Secwépemc First Nation communities directly impacted by the 2017 Elephant Hill bushfire in British Columbia – her research is employing a combination of ethno-ecological and qualitative social science methodologies to monitor post-fire recovery of culturally important plants and other eco-cultural values; document local social-ecological knowledge and memories of landscape change; and support the development of co-management initiatives that seek to support First Nations in (re)asserting traditional stewardship practices, knowledge and connection to land and place in fire-adapted and fire-affected landscapes.
Sarah completed her Master of Forest Ecosystem Science as an associate student with the Bushfire CRC. She is currently a research and teaching assistant in the Faculty of Forestry at the University of British Columbia while she completes her PhD as a Future Forests Fellowship recipient.