Forest insects are showing increasing intensity of outbreaks and expanded ranges, and this has become a major challenge for forest managers. An understanding of these systems often depends upon detailed examination of complex interactions involving multiple organisms. In 2013, a team of researchers formed TRIA-Net, an NSERC support Strategic Network, with the explicit goal of exploring such interactions in the mountain pine beetle (MPB; Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins, 1902) – pine (Pinus sp.) – blue stain fungi (Ophiostomatales) system. Contributions of this network include novel genetic and genomic resources and insights, as well as exploration of how landscape structure affects MPB movements. This review highlights the unique contributions of TRIA-Net to our understanding of the MPB outbreak system. We also highlight how the insights we generated can be used to inform management strategies — including assessing stand susceptibility, predicting spread, and developing better monitoring approaches—and how the approach taken by the TRIA project can be used as a model for tackling other challenging forest insect outbreaks.