The Ecological Restoration Institute at Northern Arizona University used the Fiscal Year 2001 funds to design, implement and test scientifically credible ecological restoration treatments designed to reduce hazardous fuels while simultaneously restoring the ecological and economic integrity of frequent fire landscapes. The approach we used integrated the best research-based evidence with the practical experience of natural resource management professionals and the values of stakeholders. These treatments are the first replicated ponderosa pine restoration treatments at a landscape scale. This funding prompted many new discoveries and action on the ground. These discoveries span a wide spectrum of disciplines from bio-physical to social science. Restoration requires the integration of many forms of knowledge in a practical hands-on approach. The diversity of information in this report reflects that fact. Such an interdisciplinary approach has resulted in a broad range of advances, including, for example: the link between treatment design and fire behavior, the economic benefits of treatments and wildfire avoidance, ecosystem health changes resulting from removal of hazardous fuels, the relationship between wildlife and restoration, and especially the expanded public acceptance of, and support for, restoration treatments
