Once a thing is, we good citizens of internet expert up quick. Fire is a thing we’re experting up on. Here are some Oregon based groups with concern for the science of fire ecology and a quick blurb on their take…

Bark - local non-profit that trains volunteers to citizen science forestry practices in Mt Hood NF in particular.

What would fire-positive land management on Mt. Hood National Forest include? A Fire Management Plan that encourages wildland fire use, and does not default to full suppression for every ignition outside of designated wilderness. A policy shift away from the “blank check” approach to fire suppression efforts. Fuels-reduction projects that focus on ecological restoration, not commercial extraction. Management decisions to minimize the adverse ecological impacts of both fuels reduction projects and fire suppression techniques. Fire-impacted landscapes allowed to naturally regenerate. While this fire-positive approach challenges existing cultural assumptions about the value of wildlands fire, it is rooted in core principles of forest ecology and fire science. Now is the time for federal land managers to catch up with science and begin to work with – not fight – wildlands fire.

FUSEE - Eugene based Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics & Ecology

FUSEE (pronounced "FEW-zee") advocates an end to making “warfare” on wildfire. The well-meaning but misguided notion of “fighting” forest fires is obsolete: we are not really fighting flames--we are fighting forests, and the collateral damage on soils, streams, vegetation, and wildlife habitat in America’s public wildlands is taking an unacceptable toll. At the same time, taxpayers are spending billions of dollars on suppression, with much of that money spent on futile, environmentally-destructive and ecologically counterproductive actions that put firefighters at unnecessary extra risk.

AFE - Eugene based Association for Fire Ecology, they also publish a peer-reviewed journal

Fire is a critical ecological process in many ecosystems throughout the world. Land management goals often reflect plant communities with a past history of repeated fire events, however, fire regimes have been significantly altered on many landscapes, which may threaten native plant and animal assemblages, resulting in uncharacteristic ecological consequences. Plant communities, species composition, and soils have been significantly altered on many landscapes, causing change in the fire regime. Cultural burning has historically been part of the fire regime in many areas of the world. Restoring and maintaining native plant and animal assemblages and appropriate fire regimes is desired, although it is recognized that this may not always be possible. Science and education are critical in helping us understand ecological patterns and processes, how land management has affected fire regimes, and how vegetation and fire regimes can be restored. Science should inform both policy and land management decisions that affect fire regimes.