2020 Micro-Grant Winner: Riva Duncan
About Riva:
Riva is an Interagency Fire Staff Officer in OR in her 31st year with the USFS. She has worked on 7 national forests in five regions across the US. She has experience on T2IA crews, a hotshot crew, engines, fuels, and dabbled a bit in helitack. She’s proud to consider herself a pyroevangelist.
Grant Category: Writing
US Winner
One Foot in the Office — Being a Fire Manager in an Ever-changing and Complex Environment
Project Vision:
I will write essays on a blog over this fire season with first-hand accounts of some of the challenges that Forest FMOs and Fire Staff Officers face in supporting the boots on the ground. How we must navigate the line between supporting the firefighters and advising/mentoring agency administrators who are “the deciders.” I guess I want to show that we’re human, too; we love our jobs and the people we work with, and we don’t take our duty lightly. I strive to be a good leader every day, and some days I do better than others. I want to show those moments, figurative fire chafe and all.
Writer’s Quote:
Favorite thing about firefighting:
Just one thing? Yikes. The beauty, laughter, heartache, joy, exhaustion and elation all wrapped up into one glorious wad of camaraderie and shared experiences. Yeah. That.