Michael Coughlan is an environmental anthropologist. His work examines social, cultural, and ecological aspects of landscape conservation with a specific focus on fire management. He uses a social-ecological systems approach to study historical and contemporary interactions between society and wildfires.
Recent Media:
The future of fire: Preparing communities and ecosystems (Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation, April 15, 2024/ Pursuit April 2024)
Trees tell tales of past land stewardship in the western cascades (Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation, October 4, 2023/ Pursuit October 2023)
What East Coasters could learn from West Coast wildfires as smoke from Canada hits Northeast (ABC News, June 9, 2023)
UO researchers seeking public input on air quality during outdoor events (KEZI, May 19, 2022)
Michael Coughlan, Institute for a Sustainable Environment
Michael Coughlan
Assistant Research Professor, Institute for Resilient Organizations, Communities, and Environments
Associate Director, Ecosystem Workforce Program
Associate Director, Ecosystem Workforce Program
Practice Areas: Long term human-environment interactions, Historical Ecology of Landscapes, Cultural and Traditional Fire Use, Forest and Fire Management, Landscape Conservation, Societal responses to Wildfires and Wildfire Smoke