Catrin Edgeley

Catrin Edgeley serves as an Assistant Professor in the School of Forestry at Northern Arizona University, where she focuses on the social dimensions of wildfire management and community resilience in fire-prone landscapes. Her work bridges environmental science and social science to address critical challenges in disaster risk reduction across the Southwestern United States, particularly in Arizona.

Dr. Edgeley's research centers on wildfire risk perception, community adaptation to smoke and post-fire flooding, and the development of fire-adapted communities. She investigates how social context shapes evacuation behaviors, flood risk mitigation, and recovery processes after wildfires, emphasizing the role of non-governmental organizations and community coalitions. Her scholarship highlights the importance of local ecological knowledge and socially defined indicators in monitoring environmental change and building resilience.

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a pronounced shift toward interdisciplinary approaches integrating physical and social sciences. Her 2024-2025 work demonstrates growing emphasis on post-wildfire flood insurance uptake, human-caused ignition prevention, and policy frameworks for managing natural ignitions beyond suppression. She frequently employs mixed-methods designs including household surveys, horizon scanning, and participatory modeling to translate research into actionable strategies for land managers and communities.

Dr. Edgeley actively collaborates with the Kittitas Fire Adapted Communities Coalition and other stakeholder networks to advance landscape-scale wildfire adaptation. Her work with NGOs during community recovery processes and partnerships with federal land management agencies exemplify her commitment to co-producing knowledge that addresses real-world wildfire challenges while respecting local contexts and social vulnerabilities.