The Yukon Wildland Fire Management branch has sent two wildfire officials to Rovaniemi, Finland to participate in a Scandinavian emergency services conference.

The territory’s representatives will be presenting on wildfire management in the Yukon to strengthen the perspectives of attendees on wildfire management in northern climates.

The conference will begin Wednesday and end Friday.

Topics will include the Yukon’s expertise in wildland fire incident management, use of prescribed fire and cultural fire, tactical and strategic fire use to fight wildfires, wildfire impacts and partnerships with Yukon First Nations.

The conference theme is Future of the Fire and Rescue Services in the Arctic Region.

It’s being hosted in Rovaniemi, Finland by ArcResc, a Finnish project that promotes international co-operation in the field of rescue services in the Arctic region and shares knowledge and develops performance of rescue operations.

The Yukon government delegation includes Doug Cote, a wildfire risk management specialist, and Carl Cibart, the manager of operations, incident management.

“Yukoners are very proud of our wildland fire management team,” Community Services Minister Richard Mostyn said Monday.

“Our representatives in Finland have a valuable opportunity to share their expertise with other northern emergency response agencies and learn from them in return.

“The Yukon government is committed to building pan-Arctic relationships in the vital area of emergency response.

ArcResc is a two-year project of the Finland government focusing on: Arctic environment and disaster scenarios; rescue services in the Arctic; forest fires and wildfires; Indigenous people; climate change-related issues; and international and cross-border co-operation.