New Partnership to Promote Fire Safety in Informal and Humanitarian Settlements

Kindling and FSRI are partnering to prevent fire incidents and reduce the impact of fire in informal and humanitarian settlements. 

April 8, 2024 (Columbia, Maryland) – The Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) and Kindling announced today that they are partnering to advance fire safety in informal and humanitarian settlements through a new initiative called Kindling Fire Risk Reduction through Learning, Amplification, Mobilization, and Empowerment (Kindling FLAMES). The collaborative effort leverages the combined expertise and complementary missions of the two nonprofit organizations, putting actionable fire safety knowledge in the hands of people in vulnerable communities, enabling better, more fire safe decisions. 

A single fire in a shelter, refugee camp, or other informal settlement can displace tens of thousands of people. However, the risk of fire in these communities has historically been neglected. The goal of Kindling FLAMES is to understand the root causes of fire risk in informal and humanitarian settlements so communities can be better supported by fire safety and risk reduction systems, ultimately preventing fire incidents and reducing the impact of fire. This multi-pronged initiative encompasses both fire dynamics and social research, as well as education and amplification, to activate the research findings. Kindling is leading this project, with sponsorship by FSRI and supporting expertise from FSRI’s research and amplification teams. 

Kindling FLAMES consists of three work packages:

• Conducting full-scale fire experiments of purpose-built residential structures specific to the humanitarian and development sectors designed to understand fire spread within humanitarian and informal settlements; 
• Collaborating with a community in Cape Town, South Africa, to co-create a contextualized fire risk assessment and reduction plan; and
• Establishing best practices for learning and education around fire, activating the learnings and driving impact.

“People in informal and humanitarian settlements face a heightened and unequal risk of fire that can impact their properties, livelihoods, and health,” said Danielle Antonellis, Founder and Executive Director of Kindling. “Understanding the interwoven technical and sociocultural factors that influence the spread of fires in these communities is essential. This project delves deeper into the issue and generates contextualized data critical for aiding humanitarian agencies and other key actors in making more-informed decisions.” 

“As sponsors and supporters of this project, we’re privileged to play a role in driving positive change,” said Dr. Steve Kerber, Executive Director of FSRI. “This partnership signifies our joint commitment to understanding the root causes of fire risk in informal and humanitarian settlements and to laying the groundwork for a local, national, and global response to this risk.”

Kindling FLAMES leverages collaborations with several academic and community-based partners to compound the impact of this investment. These partners include the Instytut Techniki Budowlaneg (ITB), University of Edinburgh, and Stellenbosch University, which will advise on the fire experimentation phase.

While there is no quick fix for fire risk in informal settlements, an evidence- and community-based approach is essential. The findings from this research will contribute to a body of fire risk data and inform evidence-based policy making, guidance, and programming. These insights will enable fire safety and risk reduction systems to better support communities in informal settlements, ultimately preventing fire incidences and reducing the impact of fire.

Learn more about Kindling FLAMES here.

About Kindling

Kindling is a U.S. based tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2020 to support and inspire fire safety in vulnerable communities around the world. The organization’s mission is to connect fire safety knowledge to local and global humanitarian and development efforts to reduce the unequal impact of fire on people, property and livelihoods in vulnerable communities around the world. To learn more, visit kindlingsafety.org. Follow Kindling on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

About the Fire Safety Research Institute

The Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) strives to advance fire safety knowledge and strategies in order to create safer environments. As part of UL Research Institutes, the nonprofit safety science organization within the UL enterprise, FSRI uses advanced fire science, rigorous research, extensive outreach, and education in collaboration with an international network of partners to impart stakeholders with knowledge, tools, and resources that enable them to make better, more fire safe decisions, ultimately saving lives and property. To learn more, visit fsri.org. Follow FSRI on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.