Global decline in subsistence-oriented and smallholder fire use

Abstract Controlled fire use by hunter-gatherers and smallholder agriculturalists and pastoralists shapes ecologies and enhances livelihoods worldwide. Yet, at the global scale, we know little about how these practices influence human wellbeing, ecologies, and wildfire risk. As a basis for global syntheses, we collated information from the literature about fire practices in 587 case study locations spanning the globe. Here, we assess the coverage and completeness of this data. Limited quantitative data, particularly, presents a challenge for improved modelling of anthropogenic influences on fire regimes. We also analyse global trends in fire practices from these studies, finding evidence that subsistence-oriented fire practices have declined in recent decades, while market-oriented fire practices have increased. The case studies point to important drivers of these changes, especially economic pressures, and state governance. We discuss the implications of these findings for fire policy, and future research.