2nd International Workshop on
Extreme Wildfire Events

A new forum advancing science for the era of extreme wildfires

📅 23 – 25 June 2026
📍 Prague, Czech Republic
Call for Abstracts Learn More

About the Workshop

The X-Fire Workshop aims to serve as a focused international forum for advancing knowledge on the unique challenges of extreme wildfire events through the exchange of scientific and operational insights. The Workshop is structured around the following key objectives:

  • Enhance understanding of extreme wildfire events by integrating up-to-date knowledge from multiple scientific disciplines, including –but not limited to– physics, meteorology, fire ecology, fuel dynamics, numerical modeling, machine learning, and remote sensing.
  • Identify research gaps and challenges in observing, modeling, predicting, and managing extreme wildfire events.
  • Facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers, operational experts, and policymakers to develop innovative methodologies, enhance predictive capabilities, improve decision-making, and identify lessons learned from past events to inform best practices in extreme wildfire events management.

By creating a focused scientific and operational exchange on extreme wildfire events, X-Fire aims to fill a critical gap, ensuring that the complexities of these events receive sustained attention and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The Venue

FLD CZU Wood Pavilion
CZU Logo

FLD CZU Wood Pavilion

The workshop will be held at the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences of the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (FLD CZU).

Address: Kamýcká 1070, 165 00 Praha-Suchdol.

The Faculty provides a comprehensive forestry education system and is a respected international research centre. In 2019, the Faculty completed the educational and technology centre, which is one of the best university centres in Central Europe thanks to the most modern technologies and equipment.

Destination: Prague

Prague Cityscape

Prague is a compact, walkable capital that mixes old-world charm with a modern, comfortable vibe. The historic center is full of cobblestone streets, churches, and bridges, but the city runs smoothly — good public transport, plenty of cafés, and English is widely understood.

In your free time, walking across Charles Bridge, exploring Old Town Square, or heading up to Prague Castle are quick wins. And after the sessions, it’s hard to go wrong with a local pub — Czech beer is famous for a reason.

Call for Abstracts

⏳ Important Update: The abstract submission deadline has been extended to 13 March 2026.

EESP Partnership

📢 New for 2026: We are pleased to announce that the proceedings of X-Fire 2026 will be published in MDPI’s Environmental and Earth Sciences Proceedings. All accepted abstracts will be available as open-access, citable publications. Authors of accepted abstracts will be required to provide an extended version according to the journal’s template by 15 May 2026.

We welcome oral or poster contributions related, but not limited, to the following themes:

1. Modeling of extreme wildfire events

  • a. Wildland fire behavior dynamics: Research using physics-based, coupled fire-atmosphere, empirical, and statistical models, including ML- and DL-based techniques, to investigate extreme wildland fire behavior. This includes applications to historical case studies, idealized modeling experiments, and data-driven modeling of fire spread and behavior.
  • b. Data assimilation: Techniques for integrating observations into fire spread and behavior models to improve accuracy and predictive capabilities.
  • c. Innovations in simulation and visualization techniques: Advancements in numerical methods, parameterizations, computational efficiency, and visualization techniques, including AI-driven modeling approaches, to enhance real-time simulation and large-scale interpretation of extreme wildfire events.

2. Observing extreme wildfire events

  • a. Remote sensing of extreme wildland fire behavior: Observations of fire-atmosphere interactions, plume dynamics, and fire-induced turbulence using satellite, airborne, UAV/UAS, and ground-based remote sensing techniques.
  • b. Field campaigns: Design and implementation of field campaigns to obtain in-situ observations from real-scale extreme wildfire events.
  • c. Innovations in sensor technology and data processing: Advancements in sensor development, automated data retrieval, and processing methods, including AI-enhanced data analytics, to improve the observation and characterization of extreme wildfire events, including multi-sensor fusion and emerging observational technologies.

3. Drivers, trends, and future projections

  • a. Environmental drivers and predictive methods: Research on the drivers of extreme wildland fire behavior, including fuels, weather, and topography, the identification of tipping points, and the development of predictive approaches for extreme wildfire occurrence.
  • b. Climatologies and trends: Analyses of historical trends in extreme wildfire events, linking large-scale climate variability, atmospheric circulation patterns, and fuel changes using observational and modeled datasets.
  • c. Future projections: Assessments of conditions conducive to extreme wildfire events under different climate change scenarios, with a focus on fire-atmosphere interactions.

Logistics & Travel

✈️ Getting There

From the Airport

  • Václav Havel Airport Prague
  • Bus 119 to Nádraží Veleslavín.
  • Metro Line A (Green) to Dejvická.
  • Bus 107 or 147 to Zemědělská univerzita.

From Main Train Station

  • Metro Line C (Red) to Muzeum.
  • Change to Line A (Green) to Dejvická.
  • Bus 107 or 147 to Zemědělská univerzita.

🏨 Accommodation

Recommended hotels near Dejvice (approx. 15-20 min to venue):

💶 Financial Support

Participation is free of charge. No registration fees.

The COST Action NERO (CA22164) will cover travel, accommodation, and daily subsistence for eligible participants (NERO members, one author per paper).

Daily allowance up to EUR 191. Selection based on contribution quality, gender balance, and geographical distribution.

💡 Practical Info

Currency: Czech Koruna (CZK). Cards widely accepted.

Electricity: 230V, 50Hz. Type E sockets (standard European 2-pin with earth pin).

Important Dates

8 December 2025

Abstract Submission Opens

27 February 2026
13 March 2026

Abstract Submission Deadline

1 April 2026

Notification of Acceptance

24 April 2026

Draft Programme Announcement

15 May 2026

Final Programme Announcement

23 - 25 June 2026

X-Fire 2026 Workshop

Committees

Workshop Host & Local Organizing Committee

Roman Berčak
Radim Löwe
Adéla Višová
Nikola Řeháková
Marcela Šipanová
Marketing Department of FLD CZU

Workshop Organizing Committee

Theodore M. Giannaros
Akli Benali
Nieves Fernandez Anez
Roman Bercak
Georgios Papavasileiou
Giacomo Sbaragli
Fabio Silva
Nuria Prat-Guitart
Ljiljana Seric
Renata Martins Pacheco