Canopy & Ember: Indigenous Women in Forestry and Wildland Fire Advancing Women Leaders

A Women’s Forest Congress conversation with Nicole Stiffarm and Dr. Serra Hoagland.

Medium | July 24, 2025
By the Intertribal Timber Council

Frankie Wright (Turtle Mountain Chippewa), a Senior for fire and fuels with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, using a drip torch to manage wildfire. At the WFC virtual event, Frankie shared next-generation perspectives on forestry and fire.

Over the past few years, we’ve witnessed a growing wave of Native women entering the forestry and wildland fire workforce, but observed that they were poorly represented in key leadership positions. What started as a simple recognition between us, as well as a few other women has grown into a formal group, Canopy & Ember: Indigenous women in Forestry and Wildlife Fire. It’s a vibrant and growing network of Indigenous women professionals, students, and allies.

At the mid-June Advancing Women’s Leadership in Forestry and Fire Management: A Tribal Perspective virtual event, co-hosted by the Intertribal Timber Council (ITC) and the Women’s Forest Congress, we had the opportunity to bring together a powerful group of voices. The webinar goals were simple but profound: to uplift Native women in natural resource fields, to provide mentorship and support, and to continue growing a safe, inclusive space where women — especially Indigenous women representing various sovereign nations — can lead, thrive, and be heard.

One of these engaging speakers was Carly Quisenberry, who presented Rangering in Resistance: Indigenous Women, Structural Barriers, and the Myth of the American Wilderness.