Santa Barbara Botanic Garden Launches New Era of Wildfire Research with Appointment of Kristina Fauss, Ph.D. 

As the Garden’s first fire scientist, Fauss will harness engineering, flammability studies, and native plant science to help California communities reduce wildfire risk, conserve water, and support biodiversity 

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (August 13, 2026) — In a pioneering step for both botanic gardens and wildfire science, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has appointed Kristina Fauss, Ph.D., as its first fire scientist. Fauss will investigate how native plants can help California communities create landscapes that reduce property loss from wildfire while conserving water and supporting biodiversity. The public is invited to meet Fauss and learn what they can do now to help protect their homes, landscapes, and communities from wildfire during a hybrid ‘Talk with a Fire Scientist’ on Wednesday, August 26.

Fauss’ research focuses on plant flammability, wildfire hazard, fire ecology, and community wildfire resilience. At the Garden, her research will inform landscaping recommendations, conservation and restoration strategies, and educational programs. She will collaborate across Garden departments and with nonprofit, academic, government, and community partners to evaluate native plants for use throughout California’s fire-prone landscapes.

“Kristina’s work represents an exciting new chapter for Santa Barbara Botanic Garden by expanding what we can contribute to one of California’s most urgent challenges,” said Steve Windhager, Ph.D., executive director of Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. “By bringing together plant science, fire research, and our knowledge of how to promote biodiversity, she is building the approach we need to make our homes, landscapes, and communities more resilient, while building habitat for the native biodiversity that provides for critical services for people and makes California so extraordinary.”

Fauss began her career in civil engineering, applying systems-engineering frameworks to the study of natural hazards and interactions between people and the environment. That work led her to the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she focused on wildfire hazard and ecology, earning a doctorate in geography. Her research interests include geospatial fire-hazard analysis, fire-movement modeling, and laboratory combustion testing.

Fauss’ first major initiative at the Garden is the launch of a laboratory combustion-testing program to identify low-flammability, waterwise native and non-native plants for defensible-space landscaping, to measure how readily each plant ignites, how intensely it burns, and how long it sustains combustion. The findings will help address gaps and inconsistencies in existing “firewise” plant lists and provide homeowners, landscape professionals, planners, and policymakers with more reliable, science-backed guidance.

Looking ahead, her work at the Garden includes pursuing research that could broaden an understanding of how plants and landscapes influence wildfire behavior. A collaboration with UC Santa Barbara’s Climate and Vegetation Change Lab and CAL FIRE is proposed to combine wind modeling with combustion testing to evaluate whether coastal live oaks can serve as barriers during wind-driven fires. Dr. Fauss is also developing a science-based tool for evaluating the flammability of 50 waterwise plants to give city planners stronger evidence for plant-selection guidance.

The Garden is also developing a working relationship with NASA, and documenting the effects of the 2026 wildfire on Santa Rosa Island in Channel Islands National Park by analyzing hyperspectral images captured by NASA aircraft, which record wavelengths of light beyond those visible to the human eye. By connecting this imagery with field observations and other geospatial data, the proposed rapid-response project would map fire damage and track the recovery of Torrey pine groves, island oak refugia, coastal scrub, and other island plant communities. The research will help the National Park Service and partner organizations identify erosion risks, map ecosystem recovery, and guide restoration, rare plant conservation, and long-term monitoring.

Community Talk with a Fire Scientist

The public is invited to meet Dr. Fauss and learn more about her work at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden during a community talk on Wednesday, August 26, from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. Guests will learn how home hardening, defensible space, and community-scale planning work together to improve wildfire resilience. Dr. Fauss will also explore the role of plant flammability in fire behavior and share practical steps residents can take to help protect their homes.

The event will be offered both in person and online. Virtual attendance is free. In-person admission is $10 for Garden members and students with valid identification and $15 for non-members. For details and registration, click here: sbbotanicgarden.org/classes-events/talk-with-a-fire-scientist.