Redaccion
La Palma intensifies its preventive strategy with education, technology, and citizen participation to combat these events throughout the year.
The Cabildo de La Palma presented today the Forest Fire Awareness Campaign 2025, ‘Avoid being the cause, not a mistake’, an initiative that will continue over the next few months with the aim of reinforcing citizen awareness of the increasing risk of these events on the Island. This campaign is supported by a mobile application.
President Sergio Rodríguez emphasizes that «the fight against forest fires cannot be limited to a specific time of the year. Climate change has disrupted that seasonality, and now we must be prepared all year round. This campaign focuses on the individual and collective responsibility of avoiding a fire, which starts with small daily gestures.»
Rodríguez also highlights the importance of citizen collaboration and the integration of technological tools. «Investing in education and awareness is the most effective and economical way to prevent disasters. Additionally, this year we are taking a step further with a mobile application that will allow us to anticipate and act more effectively.»
The Minister of the Environment, Susa Armas, explains that the campaign places special emphasis on the so-called new generation fires. «We are facing an increasingly dangerous phenomenon, fires in the interface zone, where forest areas and homes coexist. This poses a direct risk to people. That’s why we insist on basic recommendations such as not throwing cigarette butts, not burning without authorization, and keeping the surroundings of homes clean.»
Among the innovative elements of this edition is the involvement of design and science in dissemination. Ruth López, a biologist and designer of the campaign materials, expresses that «the key is to communicate clearly and emotionally. We have worked to ensure that each poster, video, or visual message impacts, educates, and remains in memory. Our goal is to change behaviors through empathy and knowledge.»
On the other hand, forest engineer Roberto Castro, developer of the new forest risk app, presents this tool as a crucial advancement and details that «the application is designed to provide real-time information on the risk level in different areas of the Island. It also includes recommendations tailored to each alert level and allows citizens to report dangerous situations. It is a way to involve everyone in prevention through their mobile devices.»
The campaign, launched under the slogan ‘Avoid being the cause, not a mistake’, aims to generate a cultural change in how fires are perceived and prevented. The Cabildo invites all citizens to actively participate and remember that, in most cases, fires are not inevitable but avoidable.
About the ‘Protect Your Home’ app
This is an innovative tool designed to help rural residents analyze the fire risk that may affect their homes. But, most importantly, it provides clear information on preventive measures they can take to protect their homes in case of fire.
This tool is part of the La Palma Tourism Sustainability Plan, funded by the State Secretariat of Tourism of the Government of Spain, the Government of the Canary Islands, and the Cabildo de La Palma.
The application will be available on major digital platforms such as Google Play and the App Store.
FUENTE
