Biography
Alejandro is passionate about using fire to steward forested landscapes and communities. He grew up in New York City before moving to Portland, Oregon where he attended Reed College, majoring in Biology. At Reed, Alejandro developed his interest in forestry and for his senior thesis chose to write about the impacts climate change will have on the forest communities of the Pacific Northwest. As a Forest Resource Assistant at UC Berkeley’s Blodgett Forest Research Station he participated in his first prescribed burn and has been interested in reintroducing beneficial forms of fire to management systems and communities ever since. He started at CCRCD in February 2023 and will be working to develop a Wildfire Conservation Program in Contra Costa County. He believes that shifting collective understandings of fire is a critical step in reorienting dominant culture’s relationship with the abundance the Earth provides.
Alejandro’s work at CCRCD
Alejandro was hired with three years of funding received by the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts from a CALFIRE Wildfire Resilience Block Grant. In this position, Alejandro will be providing technical assistance, outreach and education related to the subject of wildfire resilience. Significant wildfire risk reduction and preparation planning has occurred in the County in recent years and is documented in the Regional Priority Plan and Community Wildfire Prevention Plan - with plans in place, it is now time for implementation. Initial implementation plans include conducting a needs assessment through partnering with other RCDs, agencies, and private landowners to identify areas of collaboration where fire resiliency impacts can be realized most quickly. Alejandro will be working to increase CCRCD’s ability to deliver technical assistance to partners in the County, and working with private landowners to reduce the threat of wildfire through proactive management of natural resources.
To contact Alejandro with any questions or input, email him at aanasal@ccrcd.org.
The Mission of the Contra Costa Resource Conservation District is to Facilitate Conservation and Stewardship of the Natural Resources in Contra Costa County.
