Mayor Richard Bissen joined Maui’s state, county and community leaders at After the Fire USA’s 2024 Wildfire Leadership Summit last week in Sonoma, Calif. Together, they shared updates on Maui’s wildfire recovery efforts and gathered valuable insights from other jurisdictions affected by similar disasters.

“Our intention is not only rebuilding homes and businesses -- our priority has always been to return the heart and soul of our community: Our people,” Mayor Bissen said during opening remarks.

The annual summit is organized by After the Fire USA, a nonprofit created by wildfire survivors and experts. This year’s summit and related meetings from Sept. 10 to 13, 2024, drew more than 185 leaders from across the country to address the complex issues of preventing, responding to and recovering from megafires. About half of the summit participants have been actively working in megafire-affected communities across California, Oregon and Colorado.

One highlight of this year’s session brought the Maui delegation to Santa Rosa’s North Bay Fires burn scar. There, Lahaina fire survivors connected with Santa Rosa community members who are further along in the rebuild process.

“Once the survivor started speaking and telling her story, I instantly realized a connection I had to her story and how it was getting too real for me,” said Laurie Lei DeGama, a Lahaina fire survivor in the Maui delegation. “I literally pulled back and started to cry. Another survivor from the neighborhood standing in the back came up to me and asked if I was okay. The instant bond we had of relatability was met with him crying as well. It’s something you can’t explain. Seven years later and he is still crying. We talked, he comforted me, I asked him questions, and it was like we were old friends.”

The Maui delegation comprised about 25 people, with about half serving as summit speakers, including Mayor Bissen, State Sens. Angus McKelvey and Troy Hashimoto, County Managing Director Josiah Nishita, County Public Works Department Highways Division Chief John Smith and members of Mayor’s Lahaina Advisory Team.

“As mayor often says, this truly will be some of the most important professional work that we will ever do in our lifetimes, and I believe that’s true for us and I believe that’s true for all of you here today,” Nishita, who leads the Office of Recovery, said during a speech. “We are honored that our community has entrusted us with the opportunity to help them recover throughout this process.”

“Truly, Maui wouldn’t be where we are today if those who had come before us hadn’t reached out and provided assistance,” Nishita added. “We are standing on the shoulders of giants who have come before us. We are deeply thankful and appreciative.”

The theme of this year’s summit was “From Flames to Futures: Navigating Wildfire Leadership with Hope and Resilience.” Attendees heard from megafire experts to gain valuable lessons learned, discover new technologies and share best practices for megafire communities.

“We convene dedicated frontline workers, relentless civil servants, compassionate innovators, experienced private sector leaders and effective philanthropic organizations to not only share best practices, but also to have frank conversations about what has been learned, what needs to be improved, and how we are going to collectively meet the moment,” said Jennifer Gray Thompson, founder and CEO of After the Fire USA.  

After the Fire USA collaborates with public officials, the private sector and the nonprofit community to address the results and systemic issues leading to the era of megafire. For more information on the nonprofit, visit https://afterthefireusa.org.

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