TOCANTINIA, Brazil -- Fire began crackling like approaching rain on a recent morning in the Xerente Indigenous Territory in Tocantins in northern Brazil. But the Indigenous residents weren't afraid and didn't rush to put it out.

The flames were intentional as part of a wildfire prevention effort planned by the Xerente in coordination with environmental officials before the peak dry months of August and September.

The Xerente live in the Cerrado, a savanna in central and northern Brazil. Every year, villages face the threat of large-scale forest fires, a danger likely to worsen with the arrival of El Niño, a phenomenon that prolongs drought and pushes regional temperatures higher.

After decades of experiencing prejudice, Indigenous leaders now coordinate with the government to apply ancestral knowledge to prevent large wildfires.

During the action, a joint brigade of IBAMA, Brazil’s environmental protection agency, and trained Indigenous people moved into the savanna. On the ground, part of the team used the traditional technique of igniting fires with drip torches or dry palm leaves. A smaller group dropped incendiary spheres from a government helicopter to target-mapped areas.

If a fire threatened to get out of control, crews intervened immediately. The result was a patchwork of burned areas across the savanna that should help protect the ecosystem in the months ahead.

“They know the region, the climate, the vegetation, and the best times to set fires. We began seeking traditional knowledge, learning from them and adapting it to our objectives, aligning with their use of fire,” said Marco Borges, an IBAMA agent coordinating fire prevention in Tocantins. “We’ve learned they are actually our best teachers."

Brazilian officials long followed a “zero-fire” strategy, treating any small burn as a threat to be quickly suppressed and banned under all circumstances. Over time, that approach fell out of favor and authorities began embracing new land management approaches combining traditional knowledge with science. In 2014, the government began partnering with Indigenous communities on controlled burns.

Fire is part of the natural evolution of savanna forests like the Cerrado and several species benefit from periodic burns, said Leandro Maracahipes, a biologist and Yale University researcher.

Fires historically have occurred naturally, sparked by lightning, at the start of the rainy season between October and April. But human activity has led to more destructive fires during the peak drought months of August and September that often are linked to pasture clearing near Xerente territory, which is surrounded by soy and cattle farms.

In the early dry season, when vegetation isn't yet fully arid, small controlled burns help reduce flammable grass buildup. These burn areas create barriers around villages, headwaters and sensitive sites, protecting them from wildfires during peak drought.

“Totally excluding fire leads to a buildup of fuel that feeds high-intensity burns. Such fires can kill even resilient trees and make firefighting nearly impossible as flames spread rapidly across the landscape, including into forests,” Maracahipes said.

When official vehicles arrived in Xerente territory to begin their work, about 30 Indigenous people stood waiting, lined up at a wood-and-thatch tent used as the people’s association headquarters.

They formed two parallel lines, creating a corridor. On the left, a group wore official fire brigade uniforms: bright yellow shirts, green pants and protective boots. On the right stood mostly shirtless men, their bodies marked with traditional painted patterns, some wearing shoes and others with flip-flops. Facing each other, they chanted traditional songs, stomping their feet in rhythm.

At the end of the corridor, Chief Lazaro Xerente, 68, the eldest leader of his people, waited, also shirtless with his torso painted, wearing a feathered headdress. He thanked officials for their presence, but also expressed concern.

“People say, ‘Oh, it’s the Indigenous people who are causing fires,’ when in fact, since I was born, and long before me, my ancestors have always protected the forest,” he said in his native language with translation by Bolivar Rodrigues Xerente of Brazil’s Indigenous affairs agency FUNAI.

After major fires make headlines, out-of-context images of Indigenous people often circulate on social media in Brazil, falsely blaming them and officials for the destruction. In reality, every burn is carefully planned by fire departments.

The operation began with teams gathered around a long wooden table inside a tent to map out the day’s burns, combining satellite data with Indigenous knowledge of the territory to identify areas requiring management.

Some Xerente were hired by the government for two-year terms and receive training and a monthly salary, while others serve as volunteers. The efforts are partly funded through a partnership between Bunge Foundation and IBAMA to support training and equipment for up to 40 Indigenous brigades across five states in the Cerrado and the Amazon.

In regions like the Cerrado and the Amazon, El Niño usually brings higher temperatures and prolonged drought, creating conditions that allow wildfires to thrive. During the most recent event from 2023 to 2024, Brazil saw historic fires that burned more than 30.8 million hectares (76.1 million acres) in 2024, an area larger than Italy, according to MapBiomas, a nonprofit that tracks deforestation and fire.

The Amazon was hardest hit, accounting for nearly 60% of the burned area. The Cerrado ranked second with almost 10 million hectares (24.7 million acres) affected.

Brazil’s Environment Ministry said that it has tracked El Niño impacts since early this year, deploying more than 4,000 brigade members nationwide. Under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the government established a national fire management policy in 2024 to coordinate authorities and civil society, including the use of controlled burns with Indigenous communities.

Humidity has a dampening effect on wildfires, which normally helps protect the Amazon.

“However, in extreme years like the approaching El Niño, tropical forests become more susceptible to fire,” Maracahipes said, adding that the Amazon should remain protected by a zero-fire policy.

But in the Cerrado, fire is an effective land management tool.

“When applied with technical expertise, fire can significantly contribute to environmental conservation,” said André Lima, secretary for deforestation control and land-use planning at the Ministry of the Environment. “In prescribed or controlled burns for agricultural production, for example, it can help prevent major disasters.”

Bolivar Rodrigues Xerente of FUNAI said that his Indigenous elders have taught him that traditional knowledge and modern science are like the two wings of a bird.

“A bird with two wings can navigate the wind, but with only one wing, it can't,” he said. “Technology, without traditional knowledge in the Indigenous communities, doesn’t work.”

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