We are living in a new phase of the climate crisis. For decades it was conceivable that the dangers of a warming planet were on the distant horizon and that there was time to protect future generations from harm. But in recent years, scientists have given us clear warnings of immediate danger. Millions of people are struggling to survive and make sense of our quickly changing planet where heat domes, superstorms, historic droughts, and century floods are becoming the norm. ​​Wildfires, too, are burning at an astonishing scale—from Algeria to Siberia, from the wetland marshes of the Brazilian Pantanal to the foothills of Athens and the shores of Lake Tahoe.

The era of a solo ranger watching for smoke from a fire lookout tower is over. We are all called to be on the lookout now. Whether you live on the frontlines of wildfire, in the constantly shifting plume of toxic smoke, or care deeply for the people, animals, and places that are affected by fire, we invite you to explore how we are shaping this era of megafires and how it is shaping us.

In the 11-week lecture series Lookout: Envisioning Futures with Wildfire, we'll scan the horizon for the ideas and stories that can guide us through this critical and disorienting time. We’ve invited speakers who offer perspectives from across the arts, humanities, and environmental sciences to think about questions like: What can we learn about transformation from fire’s destructive and creative force? How should we live differently, both with each other and on the planet, in this era of wildfires? How can we honor fire as an ancient, rejuvenating element while also honoring all that has been lost to wildfire?

This series is hosted by the Spring Creek Project and the Environmental Arts and Humanities Initiative at Oregon State University and co-sponsored by OSU's Center for the Humanities, OSU's Sustainability Office, OSU's Arts and Education Complex, and Terrain.org. Additional co-sponsors for individual talks are noted in the schedule below.

The talks in the series will be broadcast live on Zoom Tuesdays at 6 p.m. PST / 8 p.m. CST / 9 p.m. EST from January 4 to March 15. Free and open to everyone.