Experts warn the Arctic is one of the fastest-changing fire regions on Earth and the evidence is mounting. Wildfires across the circumpolar Arctic have tripled since 2018 and Alaska issued its first-ever heat advisory for the state’s interior. These aren’t isolated anomalies. Over the last two decades, an estimated 174 million hectares have burned across the Arctic, and fire seasons that were once rare are now routine. These signals show how quickly the climate baseline is shifting.

The concern is the kind of fire now becoming possible. Arctic fires are burning deeper, lasting longer, and igniting fuels that were once locked safely beneath the surface. And because these fires can release stored carbon, they have outsized consequences for the global climate system.

The Permafrost Problem

A large share of U.S. boreal/arctic wildfire emissions now come from Alaska alone, largely because these fires burn vegetation and the soil beneath it. As permafrost thaws, it reveals vast layers of peat frozen for millennia. Once exposed and dried, peat becomes a fuel capable of releasing immense stores of carbon, possibly ranging from hundreds of billions to trillions of tons. 

Unlike typical wildfires, Arctic fires can burn meters deep into the soil and smolder underground for weeks or months, sometimes overwintering as so-called “holdover” or zombie fires that re-ignite the surface the following spring. Researchers are also tracking more lightning strikes, which adds yet another ignition source to landscapes. In some areas, fire records that once stretched back centuries are now being broken in a matter of years.

This vulnerability extends to the forest itself. For the past five thousand years, black spruce has shaped much of the boreal ecosystem. Its cones open in the heat of a burn and reseed the landscape, making fire a natural and necessary process. But today’s hotter, more frequent fires are damaging black spruce’s ability to regenerate and leaving opportunities for faster-growing deciduous trees to take their place. Deciduous trees, like aspen and larch, alter habitats and reduce the landscape’s ability to lock away carbon long-term.

This creates a quickening loop: warming melts permafrost, thawed peat burns, burning peat releases carbon, and increased carbon quickens the permafrost melt.

A Different Kind of Fire

As the Arctic confronts a new fire reality, Indigenous leaders are reminding us that fire on the land can come in more than one form. 

For thousands of years, Arctic communities have approached fire with intention and care, informed by seasonal cues, ecological rhythms, and long-held stewardship knowledge. Cultural burns for example, practiced in the early spring when snow still lingers and the ground is protected, are one expression of this philosophy: low-intensity fires that help maintain ecosystem balance, support biodiversity, and protect sensitive soils.

Across the circumpolar North, Sámi, Inuit, Gwich’in, Aleut, and other Indigenous stewards are observing changing climate conditions, sharing insights, and rebuilding knowledge networks that once helped northern ecosystems thrive. These approaches demonstrate that outcomes are shaped by preparation, attention to the rhythms of the land, and coordinated stewardship, rather than by reacting only when wildfire strikes. Caring for landscapes means learning from those who have stewarded them for generations and applying that understanding to help both communities and ecosystems thrive.

Preparation Shapes Outcomes

The burning arctic is a reminder of something true across fire-dependent landscapes: preparation shapes outcomes. 

Indigenous cultures treat fire as something to guide, not an element to eliminate or risk to ignore until it becomes a crisis. When communities work together early, seasonally, and consistently fire behaves differently. It becomes less destructive, more predictable, and in the case of nature, even beneficial. Homes, communities, and ecosystems all fare better when preparation comes before an emergency. Understanding your surroundings, tending your Home Ignition Zone regularly, and taking early steps to reduce risk all shift the odds long before a wildfire arrives.

That same logic underpins our work at Frontline. Early action, informed decisions, and smart defenses give people more control over what happens when wildfire enters the picture.

Living With Fire, Not Against It

Living safely with wildfire today requires a blend of wisdom and innovation. Science helps us understand how a warming climate reshapes risk; indigenous stewardship offers a model and mindset for guiding fire thoughtfully; all while technology gives homeowners practical ways to stay ahead of the most dangerous conditions. From tending shared landscapes to strengthening individual structures, when communities prepare together they build resilience.

These insights remind us that the more we draw from both traditional knowledge and modern tools, the better equipped we are to navigate the fire seasons ahead. 

For a fuller picture, read The Arctic is on Fire and listen to Native America Calling >