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This research explores the perceptions of preservice teachers in Turkey in terms of their preparedness for various disasters, including epidemics, earthquakes, fires, and floods, all of which have profound social and economic impacts on education. Using a descriptive survey model, the study examined the responses of 512 preservice teachers at a single university across all levels of their educational program. The survey, conducted digitally due to the pandemic, consisted of 70 questions. Findings reveal inconsistent levels of confidence and readiness across different types of disasters. For instance, while most preservice teachers understand the severity of the coronavirus and are concerned about the long-term effects of protective measures, the majority admit to a lack of preparedness for earthquakes. While they lack practical experience with fires, they are conversant with various fire safety measures. Their understanding of and preparedness for floods, however, were limited. The study highlights the critical need for comprehensive disaster education and readiness training for preservice teachers, suggesting the urgent need for reliable, scientifically backed information.

Access to dangerous goods training for firefighters in remote areas is limited for financial and logistical reasons. Virtual reality (VR) is a promising solution for this challenge as it is cost-effective, safe, and allows to simulate realistic scenarios that would be dangerous or difficult to implement in the real world. However, rigorous evaluations of VR training tools for first responders are still scarce. In this exploratory user study, a simple VR training tool involving two dangerous goods scenarios was developed. In each scenario, trainees learned how to safely approach a jackknifed truck with a trailer and how to collect and communicate information about the transported materials. The tool was tested with a group of 24 professional firefighter trainees (n = 22) and instructors (n = 2), who each completed the two training scenarios. The main goal of the study was to assess the usability of the VR tool in the given scenarios. Participants provided feedback on cybersickness, perceived workload, and usability. They also filled out a knowledge test before and after the VR training and gave feedback at the end of the study. The VR tool recorded task completion duration and participants' navigation and use of tools events. Overall, the tool provided good usability, acceptance, and satisfaction. However, a wide range in individuals' responses was observed. In addition, no post-training improvement in participants' knowledge was found, likely due to the already high level of knowledge pre-training. Future directions for improving the VR tool, general implications for other VR training tools, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Safety education aims to promote safe habits through experience-oriented education that combines knowledge, skills and attitudes. However, in situations where experience-oriented safety education is challenging, realistic content created through technological advancements can indirectly function as an excellent safety education tool that allows for individual safety experiences. This study conducted a safety education program for 34 elementary school students using the most commonly used realistic safety education content in Korea, the 'simulator fire extinguisher,' four times. Safety knowledge tests and safety problem-solving ability tests were used as measuring tools and statistical significance was verified through paired sample t-tests. This study demonstrated that the safety education program using the 'simulator fire extinguisher' was effective in improving safety knowledge and problem-solving abilities . The average score of elementary school students increased from 8.47 to 9.23 in safety knowledge tests and from 4.26 to 4.64 in safety problem-solving ability tests. These results were statistically significant (p < 0.001).

Fire and rescue operations in tunnels constitute unusual and complex working environments for first responders. The ability to make correct decisions, based on the tunnel's specific characteristics, demands welltrained incident commanders equipped with sufficient knowledge and skills. The potential catastrophic consequences of tunnel fires have increasingly become a societal concern, with a growing demand to increase safety and emergency response management in European tunnels. However, from the incident commanders' perspective, learning in tunnel fire safety remains a relatively unexplored area. The current learning activities for tunnel fire response are limited and place no specific requirements on the content, instructional techniques and necessary level of competence. Designing learning activities requires careful consideration of what, why and how learning occurs. To enhance incident commanders' competence and ensure adequate emergency response during incidents in tunnels, the European Commission recently supported the development of an educational programme. As part of this programme, a pilot course was developed for incident commanders and carried out in Stavanger during the fall of 2021. The designers had a strict focus on parameters enhancing learning, based on a vocational learning model. This article presents the design and results from the pilot course and the mechanisms that are most likely to promote and inhibit learning. Results show that learners must be engaged in activities that emphasize problem-solving abilities and critical reflection, to enhance their ability to make sense of complex situations and subsequently act effectively. Furthermore, sharing experiences requires an open atmosphere of communication and the encouragement of creativity.

This study reviewed educational, aesthetic, entertainment and deviant experiences which are elements of the metaverse experience set them as research variables and presented the results of the study through a survey. First, it was found that the educational experience was statistically significant for safety education satisfaction and had a positive effect. In order to provide practical education, educational experiences must feel like reality and fun content must be easily delivered. Second, it was found that deviant experiences were statistically significant for safety education satisfaction and had a positive effect. This can be said to increase the prevention of safety accidents only when the deviant experience service feels like reality and interesting contents related to safety education are easily delivered. Third, it was found that the aesthetic experience was statistically significant for safety education satisfaction and had a positive effect. This can be said to increase the prevention of safety accidents only when aesthetic experiences and services feel like reality and interesting contents related to safety education are easily delivered. Fourth, it was found that the recreational experience was statistically significant for safety education satisfaction and had a positive effect. This can be said to increase the prevention of safety accidents only when entertainment and deviant experience services feel like reality and interesting contents related to safety education are easily delivered.

Ample of knowledge leads to positive attitude. Knowledge is an important tool that promotes attitude changes. Knowledge and Attitude of students towards safety is important because action of a person depends on believe. Unsafe actions of students are caused most of injuries and harms. It is important to minimize such harms by knowledge. Present study was conducted to find out the relationship between safety knowledge and attitude of students towards their safety. Study was quantitative in nature and researchers applied correlational research design. Sample of the study consisted of eighty-nine grade three students enrolled in government schools. Data were collected by self-constructed knowledge test for safety having 50 items and attitude scale for safety having 40 items mode of 5-point Likert type options. Content validity of self-constructed instruments was ensured from experts and Cronbach's Alpha reliability was censured in SPSS. Researchers personally collected data from respondents after ensuring ethical consideration prior to collect data. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and Pearson coefficient of correlation. The major findings of the study indicate that body safety, road safety, food safety, Internet safety, sports safety and fire safety knowledge strengthen the attitude towards safety. The results indicated that there was statistically significant relationship between knowledge and attitude about safety. On the basis of results, it is recommended that existing safety knowledge and attitude should be strengthening in school students in addition to their conventional education. Further researches may include research with male and female students at elementary and secondary level.

The emergency industry has always been an important and challenging profession. Paramedics and firefighters are exposed on a daily basis to potentially traumatic situations with some of what they experience leading to transformations, changing them deeply and fundamentally. These transformative experiences (Paul [2016]. "Transformative Experience". Oxford: Oxford University Press) where they are required to navigate life and death as part of their profession provide a clear need for transformative learning (Mezirow [1991]. "Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning". San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; Mezirow [2012]. "Learning to Think Like an Adult: Core Concepts of Transformation Theory." In "The Handbook of Transformative Learning: Theory, Research, and Practice", edited by Edward W. Taylor, and Patricia Cranton, 73-95. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass) in order to improve their professional and private lives. The study uses a qualitative approach where 57 paramedics and firefighters reflected on their experiences working in the field and on the impact these experiences had on them and their private lives. In empirically charting, the transformative experiences and learning processes, the data support the theories of Paul (2016) and Mezirow (1991; 2012) and show there is a need to provide support for existing workers and better preparation before they enter a career. It raises the question whether saving lives is currently a sustainable profession and how it can become a more sustainable profession.

Objectives: This case study examined multi-level social-ecological supports in promoting well-being through college students impacted by one of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history. Participants: College students attending a large public university were surveyed (N = 354, M[subscript age] = 22.7, 76.2% female, 61% white).Methods: Measures included demographics, individual factors (mindfulness, sleep problems), social support (emotional support, family support, and friendship), and sense of community. Multiple linear regression models on well-being were constructed. Results: Findings indicated that mindfulness, sleep disturbances, emotional support, family support, number of close friends, and sense of community were significant predictors of well-being. Conclusion: Findings highlight the importance of universities in proactively bolstering critical social-ecological needs of college students living in communities vulnerable to climate-change accelerated environmental disasters.

Purpose: The overall quality of education may be compromised due to the limited availability of safety and security (S&S) courses in professional teacher education. The purpose of this paper is to identify the main safety-related training needs of a higher education institution, which may provide insights for improving the quality of education from a safety perspective. Design/methodology/approach: This study included 17 interviews with students and staff experienced in S&S due to their professions. The study also used Laurea University of Applied Sciences' (Laurea) S&S reports, which have a variety of S&S events from 28 October 2020 to 20 December 2021. Both data sets were analyzed using qualitative theory-driven content analysis. Findings: Safety risks at schools are mainly constructed through the negative psychosocial atmosphere and lack of safety knowledge and/or skills. There is a need for safety training covering key topics such as crime prevention, violence, fire safety and understanding inclusion and diversity. Practical implications: The study proposes a new risk-based training and development management model for school management and the planning of training activities. Social implications: The analysis offers valuable perceptions of the S&S challenges of educational institutions, which can be used as a starting point to enhance overall educational quality and safety. Originality/value: This paper provides a novel way of improving the safety of education by approaching training needs from a risk assessment perspective.

Background: Video-based training has been widely adopted by private organizations and public authorities to educate occupants on various types of building emergencies. However, the effectiveness of video-based training for preparing occupants for building emergencies has not been rigorously studied nor has the impact of emergency type been investigated on training effectiveness. Objectives: This study examines whether video-based training is an effective method to prepare occupants for building emergencies and how the effectiveness differs in the context of different building emergencies. Methods: We simulated fire and active shooter emergencies in a virtual office building and conducted evacuation experiments to examine participants' emergency responses using both objective and subjective metrics. A total of 108 participants were recruited and responded to the fire or active shooter incident with or without video-based training. Results and Conclusions: The results revealed that participants with video-based training more often chose to follow other recommendations when responding to building emergencies instead of simply following others. Results from ANOVA showed that training increased participants' self-efficacy significantly, especially for those in the active shooter group. Moreover, participants in the active shooter simulation had a higher level of response efficacy than those in the fire emergency simulation. Our results also demonstrated the influence of emergency type on participants' final decisions and considerations of the recommendations. Implications: Our results suggested that video-based training is effective in improving participants' emergency preparedness and changing their behaviour patterns to a certain extent such as reducing following behaviour and encouraging safe evacuations. Additionally, statistically significant interactions between video-based training and emergency types suggested that training effectiveness should be considered in accordance with the emergency type.

Immersive virtual reality (VR) is a technology that can be effective for procedural skills training through game-based simulations such as serious games. The current study describes the instructional design, development, and evaluation of the FSCHOOL fire preparedness serious game in a cave automatic virtual environment (CAVE-VR) for elementary school teachers. The main game mechanics include a storytelling scenario, enhanced realism, freedom of movement, levels, and points corresponding to the learning mechanics of instruction, action, simulation, discovery, repetition, and imitation. The game was developed in Unity 3D with the help of the Fire Dynamics Simulator and a script to emulate and visualize fire propagation. The game featured three levels to respond to school fire safety regulations and was evaluated by elementary school teachers (N = 33) in Greece. A comparative quantitative study was conducted with experimental and control groups. The results indicate that the VR serious game is appropriate for training, providing challenge, enjoyment, and mastery.

Little research has examined burn injury in the pediatric population with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We used data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database to identify 15,844 participants aged <18 years with ASD and 130,860 participants without ASD. Our results revealed that the hazard ratios differed across three age ranges. The ASD group had a lower risk of burn injury than the non-ASD group when they were less than 6 years of age, a higher risk from 6 years to 12 years of age, and no difference when they were older than 12 years of age. More research is required to study the characteristics and causes of burn injury in the pediatric population with ASD.

This research aims to systematically compare the educational concepts between the U.S. and China, to answer a research question: what courses, based on the experience of developing fire services in both countries, should be included in firefighting higher education programs to increase knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs)? The authors utilized the method of content analysis and applied the theoretical framework from emergency management to compare those curriculums from both countries into common contextual research criteria. Results of our analysis demonstrate that the two countries have similar expectations by which to develop core KSAs in their firefighting higher education programs.

This article explains a case study undertaken for the purposes of answering the research questions: What does STEM education look like in a Year 7/8 New Zealand classroom? How do Year 7/8 students engage in the interdisciplinary approach of STEM education? Do/how do students value STEM learning in contrast to individual subject learning? This case study focused on a STEM unit of work with data collected through pre- and post-unit surveys, observations and student journals. Findings illustrate that students find STEM learning an engaging and interesting avenue for developing a deeper understanding when their learning is situated within a context they can connect with. The case study discussed in this article provides a rich example of STEM teaching and learning that will, hopefully, be informative for other teachers and researchers interested in exploring the integration of STEM education in the New Zealand setting.

This article explores school counselors' experiences of the 2017 Sonoma Complex wildfires. Thirty-eight school counselors completed a 20-item survey exploring impact and responses to the devastating wildfires. Results detail school counselors' insights regarding post-fire responses and the impact of the fires on students, families, and school staff. Findings include the importance of open and collaborative communication, counseling support, and contextual interventions that address both instrumental and psychological needs. Implications for practice and future research are presented.

The aims of this study were to investigate the feasibility of an experiential learning initiative led by minority exercise science undergraduates and to observe the adaptations after a 10-week high-intensity functional training (HIFT) program in 34 underrepresented, hypertensive, and overweight/obese professional firefighters (PFF; age: 36.8 ± 11.0 years, body weight: 97.3 ± 21.5 kg, height: 181.7 ± 6.6 cm; BMI: 29.2 ± 4.9 kg/m2). Data were analyzed for muscular strength and endurance, cardiorespiratory endurance, body composition, agility, flexibility, and readiness for change. The PFFs trained two to three times weekly during their work shifts at vigorous intensity for 40 min. Their resting diastolic blood pressure and resting heart rate significantly decreased. Improvements in agility, muscular strength, and readiness for change were observed. This HIFT experiential learning initiative was feasible and beneficial and improved the PFFs' health and physical fitness with limited resources. Accredited programs in exercise science participating in low-cost initiatives may aid in mitigating public service workers' compensation and injury rates to better respond to occupational demands.

First responders are continually exposed to trauma-related events. Resilience is evidenced as a protective factor for mental health among first responders. However, there is a lack of assessments that measure the construct of resilience from a strength-based perspective. The present study used archival data from a treatment-seeking sample of 238 first responders to validate the 22-item Response to Stressful Experiences Scale (RSES-22) and its abbreviated version, the RSES-4, with two confirmatory factor analyses. Using a subsample of 190 first responders, correlational analyses were conducted of the RSES-22 and RSES-4 with measures of depressive symptoms, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, and suicidality confirming convergent and criterion validity. The two confirmatory analyses revealed a poor model fit for the RSES-22; however, the RSES-4 demonstrated an acceptable model fit. Overall, the RSES-4 may be a reliable and valid measure of resilience for treatment-seeking first responder populations.

The Pacific Crest Trail is a National Scenic Trail that runs from Mexico to Canada. Use of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) has increased in the past 20 years. It is important to understand how an increase in use can impact the environment and sustainable practices, land management practices, and the hiker experience. Participants included 15 land managers in California and 25 thru-hikers who completed the PCT. In-depth interviews were conducted, and participants were asked questions about hiker interactions, trail angels, land manager interactions, and the permitting process. Data were transcribed verbatim and coded by three independent coders to reach a 90% inter-rater reliability. Emerging themes included: human impacts, permitting and education, and rule enforcement. Hikers also talked about the benefits of in-person education and the need for consistent communication between thru-hikers and land managers. Recommendations for sustainable practices include improvements to the permitting system, education, enforcement, and communication.

In this essay the author recalls the process of organizing and interpreting an exhibition of art and language made in response to a catastrophic fire that devastated California's Sonoma and Napa counties in late 2017. The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art invited a group of artists and writers to be part of its small exhibition planning team to help establish the exhibition's focus, compile the checklist of artworks and writing, compose the interpretive labels, and participate as presenters in the public programs. What follows is a reflection on the process that resulted in unique approaches to organizing, presenting, and interpretation as the artists, writers, and museum staff collaborated to engage the audience directly through first-person stories, with the intention of honoring their shared experience and healing their community.

Purpose: This study aims to examine the use of data visualization as a tool to support practitioner-led organizational learning within the emergency services. The authors investigate how data visualization can support visual communication and the analysis of emergency response data to promote system improvement. Design/methodology/approach: The authors investigate if communication data, presented as node-link diagrams, can be understood and evaluated by firefighters. Objective understanding of the communication network is measured quantitatively, while subject judgement of the emergency response system is measured qualitatively and compared to prior system evaluation outcomes. The authors compare different data visualization layouts and assess their value in supporting practitioner evaluation of emergency response systems. Findings: The authors find that while firefighters are largely unfamiliar with their use, data visualizations function as a tool for visual communication and analysis. The authors identify the importance of visualization design and the difficulty in representing characteristics of a dynamic network within static diagrams. The authors also find some correlation between layout design and how respondents interpret visual data. Originality/value: Results demonstrate the value of data visualization to support practitioner-led organizational learning and suggest future work to support the development of emergency response management.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study how learning within the fire and rescue services may be conceptualized, with special attention paid to tunnel fire safety. Previous studies have developed a model to understand learning in emergency response work. The concept of learning is extended from observed changes in relevant settings to also encompass confirmation of existing knowledge and comprehension of existing practices. We are interested in investigating the properties of the learning model and identifying the mechanisms that influence fire and rescue personnel's experiences of change, confirmation and/or comprehension. Design/methodology/approach: This study relies on quantitative data obtained from a questionnaire answered by 939 Norwegian fire and rescue personnel. Multivariate methods have been used to identify the measurement model and the structural relations of the factors. Findings: The results confirm the theoretical model and indicate that the outcome of learning is influenced by elements of content, context, commitment, decision-making and response and reflection, and that the influence of content and commitment on the outcome of learning is partially indirect and mediated through reflection. Originality/value: To date, no systematic analysis has been conducted to investigate the factorial structure, as well as the interactions and relationship between the model's components. This study makes an important contribution to a detailed understanding of learning within the fire and rescue services.

In this article, we present a critical reflection on the academy's approach to knowledge production and dissemination in Australian universities and propose a paradigm shift towards an approach that actively promotes Indigenous knowledges within the academic canon and searches for complementarity and shared interests between Indigenous and Western epistemes. We begin this article with discussion of the role of the academy, and Western and Indigenous discourses around knowledge. From there we discuss contemporary issues of bushfire management and the Juukan Gorge destruction as illustrations to make a case for the role of the academy in engaging with knowledges that arise outside Western paradigms; and translating those knowledges to diverse audiences. Finally, we examine obstacles that must be addressed in a robust academic pursuit of epistemological synergy. Issues of knowledge ownership, epistemological and methodological challenges, and neo-colonialism are discussed as critical aspects of all collaboration towards knowledge integration.

We describe the adaptation of an existing afterschool STEM program in order to make it more relevant and effective for rural teens. The award-winning Teen Science Café (TSC) program was modified to redirect focus away from traditional, academic STEM careers toward STEM in First Response, a field whose members are common and visible in rural areas. The program was implemented and organized by TSC Mentors, local adults who connect youth with out-of-school STEM resources and professionals. We found that attendance at multiple TSCs had a significant impact on how youth viewed First Response in their community, as well as STEM careers in general. This work demonstrates that it is possible to find professionals with robust and exciting STEM expertise in rural areas, to adapt existing STEM program models to connect these professionals to rural teens, and to use these adapted models to help teens become more aware of the STEM opportunities in their communities and increase their interest in STEM First Response careers.

Firefighting is arduous work and it requires a high level of physical fitness and readiness. The purpose of this study is to assess the physical fitness and readiness levels of the Turkish firefighters and investigate the effects of 12-week exercise on firefighters' fitness levels. The study was an experimental study in which 41 firefighters were participated voluntarily. Ethics committee approval and written consents were obtained prior to the study. The experiment group attended to a 12-week planned exercise sessions for two times per week for 90 min. The control group did not participate into a planned exercise during that period. Any caloric restrictions were not recommended nor were calorie intakes controlled in either group. As the Shapiro-Wilk and Q-Q plot tests revealed that the data were normally distributed, independent samples t-test, paired-samples t-test, and Pearson's r to analyse data. The results indicated that body mass index levels of the firefighters in both groups were over the critical level suggested by the World Health Organization and their VO[subscript 2]max levels did not meet the minimum requirements. It was also found that BMI had disruptive effects on physical performance. The experimental group had significant improvement after attendance to 12-week training but the control group's performances were worsened. It was concluded that the firefighters' physical performances were low and they were highly prone to be obese. Instant measures, including promoting exercise and regularly testing the physical performance levels of the personnel, should be taken to reverse the current undesirable situation.

This article describes use of a virtual environment in a multi-disciplinary context to enhance discipline specific skills. A virtual environment built by reusing gaming technology was modified in a collaboration across Computing, Construction Management and Nursing & Midwifery disciplines. A two-staged pilot evaluation considered (i) a construction management cohort engaged with regulatory building inspection critically analyzing their environment to determine compliance and (ii) a nursing cohort, building occupant's experience in a virtual fire drill. Feedback from cohorts was used to improve the virtual environment and reflect on the use of simulations in this context. Results suggest students appreciate graphical realism in the simulated environment and the ability for the virtual environment to enhance practicality in learning and to contextualize theory.

A problem-based immersive virtual environment (IVE) about bushfire safety was developed as a learning tool for children aged 10-12. Its effectiveness was assessed in relation to children's ability to determine how to be safer in a bushfire incident. A series of experiential activities were developed in the IVE with digital storytelling and two-stage embedded assessments providing children with an opportunity to engage with tasks and solve problems while receiving feedback on their performance. Changes from pre- to postsurvey results showed positive learning outcomes as evidenced by significant improvements in children's knowledge of bushfire safety and confidence in their ability to contribute to decisions during a bushfire incident. The significant change in children's knowledge as well as their performance at two-stage embedded assessments was independent of their gender, background knowledge and perceived ability in responding to bushfire hazards. This suggests that when appropriately designed and implemented within educational settings, immersive virtual learning tools can effectively engage children and enhance learning outcomes associated with bushfire safety. The paper also argues that such immersive problem-based learning can improve self-efficacy amongst children in relation to coping with a bushfire situation. Implications of the findings are also discussed.

This paper speculates as to the material consequences of the ecological crisis for the current objectives of the education system in the State of Victoria. Drawing upon new materialist thought, it presents a post-qualitative inquiry into the lead author's experiences as an educator during a 2014 fire event in the Latrobe Valley region of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia, known as the Hazelwood Coal Mine Fire. By engaging in thinking without method it unfolds an argument that a political preference for certain theories has resulted in economic growth becoming a key objective of Victoria's education system. It explores alternative theoretical perspectives, including the theory that there are limits to growth. This theoretical shift implies that any meaningful response to the ecological crisis will require a transition to a post-growth society. The paper considers the implication of this alternative theory for the current objectives of the education system in the State of Victoria. In so doing, it considers what it might mean if we accepted our response-ability to educate for a post-growth society rather than for a society surrounded by smoke and ash.

In this paper we propose the concept of 'becoming-with' in relation to the experience of the catastrophic fires in the summer of 2019-2020 in Australia, and their implications for research into young children's response to bushfires, and their learning about bushfire recovery, which resulted in the development of an arts-based project to explore emergent curriculum and pedagogies for planetary wellbeing. We draw on Deleuze and Guattari's theorising that 'the self is only a threshold, a door, a becoming between two multiplicities'; and 'Spatio-temporal relations' as 'not predicates of the thing but dimensions of multiplicities of events as encounters' to theorise how 'becoming-with' fires enabled the development of emergent curriculum and pedagogies in an early learning centre, which can ultimately contribute to planetary wellbeing.

This review paper synthesizes peer-reviewed empirical research published between 2010 and 2021 about wildland fire communication practices. Our goal was to systematically review and provide an overview of how wildland fire communication has been empirically studied, and theoretical and methodological underpinnings and representativeness of this work. We found that researchers employ diverse theoretical and methodological approaches, yet most work originates from the western United States or Australia. Studies were published in diverse disciplinary journals, most frequently looked at residents as study subjects, and many sought to understand the effectiveness of communication. There is a need to build theoretical and methodological consistency in wildland fire communication research.

Resource degradation is a chief concern related to increased recreational of U.S. public lands. The Seven Leave No Trace (LNT) Principles are used to educate visitors how to reduce recreational impacts. This study sought to understand Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GRSM) hikers' behavioral intent toward LNT practices. A quantitative questionnaire was used to measure participants' behavioral intent toward LNT based on four predictor variables: attitudes of appropriateness, perceived effectiveness, perceived difficulty, and self-reported knowledge. 285 total questionnaires were completed. These results indicate that the predictor variables had varying levels of influence on hikers' behavioral intent, with perceived effectiveness and difficulty being the most significant predictors. GRSM staff may be able to reduce hiker impact by focusing education on the effectiveness and ease of practice of LNT Principles. GRSM staff may also provide education that increases hikers' understanding of impacts and emphasizes appropriateness of proper LNT behavior.

The limited evidence regarding disaster-related environmental education programs for children indicates that these programs can increase disaster resilience and family preparedness activities, and reduce children's fear and anxiety. However, the literature lacks qualitative studies to provide insights into children's experiences of disaster education programs, the programs' influence on citizenship opportunities in disaster risk environments, and follow-ups with children impacted by actual disasters. This paper reports on a pilot study in Victoria, Australia, of the Survive and Thrive program, an environmental education program delivered by the local fire brigade and incorporated into the school curricula for upper primary school children in Anglesea, a coastal town rated as having an extreme risk of bushfires. A mix of longitudinal qualitative methods captured children's experiences and the program's impact on child agency. The results showed that the children enjoyed the Survive and Thrive program and valued the life skills they acquired. The children demonstrated knowledge and skills gained in monitoring environmental risks and bushfire behavior, as well as a more nuanced understanding of the different civic roles of adults and children in responding to a bushfire in different contexts. Faced with the reality of a nearby bushfire during the summer holidays, children demonstrated their capacity for critical thinking and application of their knowledge to support appropriate action.