USDA Retiree Honored for Lifelong Work on Wildland-Fire Mitigation

Reno, Nev. – Jack Cohen, USDA Forest Service retiree, has received the 2017 Wildfire Mitigation Legacy Award for being instrumental in developing the science behind many effective wildland-fire mitigation concepts used today across North America.

Mr. Cohen devoted his career to the importance of community wildfire-risk reduction through fire adaptation and helped create the tools and best practices that make up fire adaptation today.

The Legacy Award, the first ever presented, honors an individual who has championed mitigation efforts over a long period of time and made major contributions to the development of mitigation messaging, tools and implementation at the regional or national level.

“The work Mr. Cohen has done to improve the science of mitigation in the wildland-urban interface has had a major impact on firefighter and community safety,” said Chief Erik Litzenberg, IAFC Wildland Fire Policy Council chair. “His persistence in vocalizing the mitigation message continues to pay dividends in communities all across the United States.”

The legacy award is part of the Wildfire Mitigation Awards, started in 2014, which are the highest commendation for innovation and leadership displayed by individuals and organizations committed to wildfire mitigation. The awards were presented March 22 at the IAFC Wildland-Urban Interface Conference in Reno, Nevada.

The mitigation awards are sponsored by the National Association of State Foresters, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the National Fire Protection Association and the USDA Forest Service.