Many people inherently believe fire implies danger and destruction. But for thousands of years, Native Californians have long used controlled fire to care for the land and uphold traditions.
The Oakland Museum of California tells the story of these practices through its “Good Fire: Tending Native Lands” exhibit, which opened to the public on November 7, 2025, and runs until May 31, 2026. Organized in collaboration with Native fire practitioners, artists, ecologists, and cultural leaders, the exhibit draws on art, science, history, and storytelling to demonstrate how Native communities in Northern California historically used fire to support biodiversity, enhance food and medicine sources, and as a cultural resource.
Peter Nelson, a professor in the departments of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management and Ethnic Studies, is one of the project’s collaborators. Nelson (Coast Miwok and tribal citizen of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria) works at the intersection of anthropological archaeology, Indigenous environmental studies, and Native American Studies, collaborating directly with tribal nations and Indigenous peoples in California and abroad on issues of cultural heritage preservation, settler colonialism, climate change, and Indigenous landscape management.
The exhibit reframes the narrative that fire is not solely a force of destruction, but also a vital tool for maintaining healthy ecosystems and sustaining cultural traditions. Visitors first experience an immersive sensory environment that simulates the experience of a cultural burn before progressing through the exhibit’s three sections. Working with Fire features tools, narratives, and ecologies that underscore fire’s role in sustaining healthy ecosystems and Native ways of life. Good Fire, Interrupted, confronts the colonial legacy of fire suppression and its lasting impact. The exhibit ends with The Future of Fire, which looks forward to various restoration efforts, ongoing resistance, and cultural resilience
Part of Nelson’s research focuses on Indigenous leadership relating to cultural burns across California. He has worked with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria on controlled burns in Sonoma County, tailoring the fires to benefit plants that tribal members use for food and ceremonies. His interest in fire also extends beyond UC Berkeley: Nelson completed basic wildland firefighter training in 2020 and was part of a volunteer hand crew that helped firefighters manage the LNU Lightning Complex fires. He is also part of a group of prescribed burning specialists that collaborate with communities and private landowners to plan and conduct burns to prevent wildfires on lands that CAL FIRE and local fire departments do not manage.
Learn more about the exhibit at the Oakland Museum of California’s website.
