Emergency services veteran Travis Abbey joins the show to discuss his mission of building wildfire resilience from the ground up in rural and Indigenous communities. With over 35 years of experience in initial attack and incident management, Travis explains why the "Magnificent Seven" model of community-led defense is becoming a necessity as government resources are increasingly overwhelmed. He also opens up about the evolving fire landscape, the transition from seasonal to year-round fire careers, and the personal mental health challenges of a lifetime spent on the front lines.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The Rural Gap: Why communities far from regional centers are often "triaged" out of government resources during major lightning storms.

• Direct Fire Smart: Moving beyond education to physically changing home exteriors and removing vegetation in high-risk Indigenous communities.

• Initial Attack Sovereignty: The process of building a "Type 5" fire crew within an Indigenous-owned natural resource corporation.

• The 30-Year Fire Evolution: How the fire season has shifted from remote landscape fires to constant interface threats and year-round risk.

• Mental Health & "Re-entry": Travis's personal story of his 2019 breakdown and the need for better mental health support as first responders transition back to civilian life.

• The Stay or Go Debate: The complex reality of homeowners staying to defend uninsured properties and how governments are starting to partner with these "local responders."

• Structure Protection Trailers: How a single trailer can provide the pumps, hoses, and sprinklers needed to protect 30 homes.

Ladris founder and CEO Leo Zlimen explains how his company is using hyper-advanced simulation software to solve the most complex variable in any disaster: human movement. By modeling billions of scenarios in real-time, Ladris gives emergency managers and citizens the one resource they need most—time. Leo discusses the move toward "zero-click" simulations, the psychology of leaving early, and why transparency is the key to passing critical public safety tax measures.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The Mission of Ladris: Striving for a future where zero lives are lost during natural disasters through better pre-planning.

• Time as a Resource: Understanding the "maximum distance" problem—how far can you actually get in 30 minutes during a crisis?

• The Power of Simulation: How running billions of "what-if" scenarios helps first responders make tactical decisions before the first spark.

• The "Zero-Click" Future: Moving from static emergency plans to real-time models that detect fire and immediately provide the plan with the highest probability of success.

• B2G Realities: The nuances of working with government agencies and building the "translation layer" between tech and the fire service.

• Transparency for the Public: Using visual models to show residents exactly how a fire would impact their specific neighborhood to encourage earlier evacuations.

Former "evil insurance executive" turned founder Andrew Engler explains how his new venture, RockRose Risk, is using an $80 billion problem to create a massive opportunity for homeowners and businesses. He breaks down why the traditional insurance market is failing, how 1000% premium increases are actually a signal for systemic change, and how RockRose is providing massive discounts to those willing to harden their properties and manage local fuels.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The 35% Discount: How RockRose works with 16+ global carriers to give money back to clients who perform verified mitigation.

• The Insurance Rabbit Hole: A look into the complex world of reinsurance, retrocessionaires, and why local rates are often dictated by global models.

• Infrastructure vs. Climate: Why Andrew believes wildfire is primarily a failure of infrastructure management, not just a weather problem.

• The "Tylenol Murder" Fallacy: A critical look at "security theater" in disaster prevention versus addressing core vulnerabilities.

• Pro-Entropic Business: Why the next generation of successful companies will be those that become more valuable as environmental volatility increases.

• The Fire Quadrangle: Steve and Andrew discuss the physics of suppression—from removing fuel to breaking the chemical reaction.

• Privatizing Results: A controversial look at shifting from a "time and materials" firefighting model to a "performance-based" model like SpaceX or FedEx.

Dr. Johnny Torgeson, a 25-year fire service veteran and author of Forging Your Team, breaks down the fundamental flaw in modern leadership training. He argues that while anyone can be taught to manage tasks and KPIs, true leadership is a "soft skill" rooted entirely in relationships and team building. Johnny shares his unique "Wisdom Formula," discusses why we must "fail fast and fail often," and explains how to "win the day" even when life punches you in the mouth.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The "Free Donut" Mindset: Why successful people focus on the prize while others only see the length of the line.

• Management vs. Leadership: Why you don't need a relationship to be an effective manager, but you can't build a team without one.

• The Wisdom Formula: A mathematical approach to personal growth: Knowledge x Experience x Reflection = Wisdom.

• Winning the Day: How to reset your momentum with "small wins" when a plan falls apart.

• The Fallacy of Values Training: Why academic seminars fail to change a person’s core behavior and what to do instead.

• Active Mentorship: Why the best mentors reach down and across rather than waiting for someone to ask for help.

• Shadow Work: How teams create the intrinsic value that allows organizations to thrive beyond just a paycheck.

Battalion Chief Quincy Sloan draws on over 30 years of firefighting experience to discuss the critical evolution of fire service culture, from the old-school "suck it up" mentality to a modern focus on mental health, trauma awareness, and vulnerable leadership. He breaks down the three "C's" that threaten morale, the challenges of fighting fires in today's lightweight construction, and why leaders must adapt to earn the trust of the next generation.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The 3 C's: How Confirmation Bias, Conformity, and Toxic Culture can undermine a firehouse.

• Trauma as an Injury: Why viewing PTSD as an injury, rather than a disorder, changes everything.

• The "Old Salty Captain": The power of a mentor seeing something in you that you don't see in yourself.

• Modern Fire Dynamics: How cheaper building materials and lightweight construction have forced a change in tactics.

• Risk Analysis: The crucial difference between risking a lot for a savable life versus risking nothing for property that is already gone.

• Generational Shift: Why today's recruits demand trust and communication before they will blindly follow orders.

• The Palisades Reality: A candid look at the limitations of fire resources during major WUI events and the need for realistic public expectations.

Veteran fire chief and emergency management instructor Paul Prevost joins the show from Canada to break down the critical lessons learned—and often ignored—from major disaster reports. From the tragic loss of firefighters in Baltimore and Georgia to the devastation of Jasper and the successes of the Francis Scott Key Bridge response, Paul explains why span of control, staffing, and rigorous training are the only things standing between safety and catastrophe.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The Repetitive Nature of Tragedy: Why line-of-duty death reports often cite the same causes: lack of ICS, freelancing, and poor accountability.

• The "Canada Plan": The dangerous mindset of "it can't happen here" and how it leaves communities vulnerable.

• Jasper Wildfire Analysis: A critical look at the lack of mutual aid coordination during the recent devastating fire.

• The Danger of Lithium-Ion: How modern hazards like EV fires in parking garages are outpacing current firefighting tactics.

• Robots in the Fire Service: Why remote-controlled monitors and drones are inevitable—and necessary—tools for the future.

• The Baltimore Turnaround: How the Baltimore City Fire Department transformed its incident command culture between two major events.

• Engineering on the Margins: The hidden risks in modern buildings, from single-stairwell designs to sprinkler systems that can't keep up.

• The Power of ICS: Why the Incident Command System is the "operating system" for managing chaos.

Dr. Kira Hoffman, a fire ecologist based in British Columbia, explains why we need to shift from fearing fire to understanding its vital role in our ecosystems and communities. Explore the deep history of Indigenous fire stewardship, the dangers of suppressing natural fire cycles, and why "good fire" is essential for food security, biodiversity, and even reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• Fire as a Human Tool: How fire shaped our evolution and why "wildfire" doesn't exist in many Indigenous languages.

• The Cost of Suppression: The unintended consequences of banning cultural burning and removing fire from the landscape.

• Indigenous Fire Sovereignty: The push for Indigenous-led fire stewardship and the challenges of navigating colonial systems.

• Fire and Food Security: How prescribed burns create more productive berry patches and food sources.

• The "Good Fire" Movement: Why communities need to reclaim fire as a tool for safety and ecological health.

• Social Science of Fire: Why understanding human perception and behavior is just as critical as understanding fire physics.

• Learning from Failure: The need for a culture that shares mistakes and learns from them, rather than hiding them.

• Place-Based Research: Why you can't understand fire without spending time on the land and listening to the people who live there.

Indicium Dynamics founder Mike Ross joins the show from Tasmania to discuss how his company is pioneering the "Digital Forest" concept, using a massive LoRaWAN network and IoT sensors to monitor everything from eagles' nests to wildfire conditions. Discover how his platform integrates data from satellites, cameras, and ground sensors to help agencies make smarter decisions about prescribed burns and rapid response, and hear his thoughts on the future of autonomous suppression drones.

In this episode, you'll learn about:

• The "Digital Forest": How IoT sensors are bringing connectivity to remote wilderness areas where cell phones don't work.

• Data Integration: Why the real power lies in combining data streams from multiple sources (cameras, satellites, sensors) into one actionable platform.

• Prescribed Burn Planning: Using hyper-local data on soil moisture, fuel moisture, and weather to predict the perfect burn window days in advance.

• Lightning as a Trigger: How monitoring lightning strikes in real-time allows for faster smoke detection and response.

• The XPRIZE Challenge: Mike's collaboration with other innovators to develop autonomous wildfire detection and suppression solutions.

• Navigating Regulations: The challenges of deploying new tech in protected areas and the need for faster regulatory approval.

• The Human Element: Why AI can suggest the best course of action, but the final decision still rests with the incident commander.