NEH manuscript prep: fire humanities [fire humanities: theory and practice is a new book of original scholarship that names and launches an emergent disciplinary field

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) awarded a $187,100 Project Grant under the Promotion of the Humanities Research program (CFDA 45.161) to the Regents of the University of Idaho. The grant will support the development of a new book titled "Fire Humanities: Theory and Practice" that aims to launch an emergent interdisciplinary field exploring the theoretical contributions of the humanities to understanding wildfire. The book will bring together 14 contributors who will participate in a series of 9 workshops facilitated by fire practitioners to engage with fire-prone landscapes in their home regions. The resulting edited volume is planned for submission to an academic publisher by May 2026 and publication in 2027. This project will provide a resource for fire researchers, practitioners, and educators, as well as a roadmap for innovative humanities work addressing the current ecological crisis.

This edited collection brings together fourteen contributors to grapple with the theoretical contributions that the humanities can make to our understanding of wildfire, including the stories, emotions, and representations that shape public perception. Via a series of nine workshops facilitated by fire practitioners that provide contributors with specific ecological, artistic, or epistemological prompts for engaging with a fire-prone landscape in their home region, the book thinks self-reflexively about the humanities in an increasingly burning world. We will submit a proposal to an academic publisher by may of 2026, with publication to follow in 2027. The volume will provide a much-needed resource for fire researchers, practitioners, and teachers and a roadmap for innovative interdisciplinary humanities work in our current moment of ecological crisis.]