Fighting Fires, Saving Futures: How the European Union’s Game Changing Partnership Empowers Belizean Communities

Each dry season, Belize’s communities brace for the threat of wildfires that can ravage homes, livelihoods, and critical habitats leading to widespread environmental damage and biodiversity loss. Slash-and-burn agricultural practices can also get out of control if not properly managed causing great harm to both people and the environment. Thanks to a strategic European Union partnership supporting three complementary initiatives—led by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the Southern Emergency Services, local community volunteers across different districts of Belize are now better equipped to both prevent and respond to fires before they spiral out of control. In Mahogany Heights in the Belize District, community health worker Raquel Vega knows this all too well: after a blaze destroyed a neighbor’s home, she realized, “We lost a home. I said we have to put something in place…to work together on how to manage fire and get people engaged.” Thanks to a European Union funded initiative, Raquel and members of the community have completed hands-on workshops in fire-line building, controlled burns, and emergency protocol. Where fires once smoldered unchecked, this fire season villagers were better prepared to form rapid-response teams that patrol the forest edge and douse hotspots long before they spread, proof that collaboration truly is key.

That spirit extends into the heart of the Maya Forest Corridor. WCS Site Manager Yahaira Urbina’s team carries her SMART (Spatial Monitoring And Reporting Tool) on every patrol, logging fire sightings and producing real-time heat maps, while remote-sensing data helps estimate burn areas and target prevention activities. “The European Union partnership helped us establish the ranger team in the corridor,” Yahaira explains. “It cemented the pillars of our protected-areas management, especially outreach and fire-management training.” 

While WCS led intensive field training in the Belize district, the European Union-funded effort in Cayo District, implemented by IOM, has focused on establishing emergency response teams and firefighting brigades in six communities including Billy White, Los Tambos, Santa Familia, Duck Run 1, Duck Run 2 and Duck Run 3. Investing in community outreach, fire management training and evacuation planning, has helped villagers create fire-safe housing zones and learn early-warning protocols. Some of the communities are surrounded by pine savannahs placing them at greater risk of forest fires. Because of this a fire bowser outfitted with firefighting equipment was also donated by the EU to support emergency response capacity.

In six communities in Stann Creek and Toledo, the Southern Emergency Services (SES) has run wildfire trainings focused on the establishment of fire breaks, safety protocols, manual handling, and fire behavior to ensure that when fires do occur, community responders can act swiftly to protect lives and property. The EU funded initiative through SES in collaboration with Humana People to People Belize has fostered a cohort of empowered individuals who participated in numerous live fire exercises and scenario-based planning and are ready to serve the communities of Silk Grass, Independence, Bella Vista, Big Falls, San Pedro Columbia and Punta Gorda in case of emergency. 

Disaster preparedness and response is a top priority the EU supports globally, with a focus also on reducing fires by supporting fire prevention and response capacity. Across all three projects supported by the EU in Belize, the common thread is empowerment: young and old alike have traded passive worry for proactive readiness. These home-grown teams stand as the first line of defense. Backed by the technical expertise, equipment, and coordination fostered through the European Union partnership, their stories underscore a key lesson: wildfire management isn’t only about hoses and helicopters, it’s about people coming together, sharing knowledge, and protecting both their homes and the extraordinary biodiversity that makes Belize unique.