Los Angeles Fires Project
Research
Climate Mental Health Network has been leading a study to better understand how the 2025 Los Angeles Fires have affected parents, educators, and students, and how schools and communities can support emotional wellbeing and recovery during and after wildfires.
From June - October 2026, we conducted virtual focus groups with more than 100 parents, educators, and students (ages 14-17) who were impacted by the fires. Participants were asked to share their experiences and perspective about how the fires affected them and their school community, as well as what kind of support they received for their mental health, and what support needs may have been missing.
This work was done in partnership with CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort), the Pasadena Educational Foundation, the Greater Los Angeles Educational Foundation, and The Los Angeles Trust for Children’s Health. Research oversight was provided by the IRB at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
We have now completed data collection. Findings will be released publicly in early 2027. Sign up for our newsletter to be notified when the findings are released.
Preliminary findings were presented to the City of Pasadena Human Services Commission in October 2026, and were featured on NBC LA and Pasadena NOW media outlets.
We are grateful for the funding for this research which was generously provided by the Robert H.N. Ho Foundation Global, CORE, and Blue Shield of California.
Resource Development & Sharing
In the next phases of this project, we aim to apply the research findings to create a resource to help schools and their community partners prepare for, respond to, and recover from the emotional impacts of climate-fueled wildfires. This resource will be created with the input of schools, districts, education foundations, and community groups. The resource will then be shared with fire-vulnerable school communities in Los Angeles and beyond.
We are actively looking to secure funding for the next phase of this project.
People
We are grateful for support of our team of advisors, who help shape this work and make it better.
Los Angeles Community Advisors
Juliet Herman, Principal of Palisades Charter Elementary
Laurilie Keay, Executive Director of Alma Fuerte Public School
Helen Chan Hill, Chief Academic Officer, Pasadena Unified School District
Kitty Cahalan, PTA Council of Pasadena Unified School District, PUSD Community Schools Steering Committee, PUSD Student Engagement Committee
Tyler Kenney, Classroom teacher at Verdugo Hills High School, Former teacher at Alliance Environmental Science High School (fire-impacted school)
Strategic & Scientific Advisors
Dr. Tara Leytham Powell, Associate Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, leading expert in school-based disaster mental health with more than 20 years of experience supporting youth and families in the aftermath of climate-related and humanitarian crises
Sam Gelinas, Philanthropic Strategy and Program Development Consultant
CJ Huff, former school superintendent who led his district’s recovery following the devastating Joplin tornado and now directs Halo Response & Recovery Solutions
Dr. Adrienne Heinz, Clinical Research Scientist at the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at the US Department of Veterans Affairs and Stanford University.
Dr. Burcin Ikiz, Chair of Columbia University’s Neuro Climate Working Group
Andy Riemer, Partner at Sideporch, leads strategic advisory work for impact-driven organizations across climate, health, and education sectors.
KaTerri Monet Kelly, ScM, MSHC, Associate Director, Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, The Potocsnak Family Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
Joe Waters, Co-founder and CEO of Capita, an independent think tank and community
Jolie Wills, CEO of Hummingly and author of resources for youth and educators on emotional resilience and disaster recovery.
Joshua DeVincenzo, Ed.D. Assistant Director, Applied Research Services; Adjunct Assistant Professor of Climate, Columbia Climate School at Columbia University; National Center for Disaster Preparedness
Dr. Jyoti Mishra, Founder of Neural Engineering & Translation Labs at UCSD, and the Co-director of University of California’s Climate Resilience Initiative
Dr. Lisa Harshad Patel, Executive Director, Medical Society Consortium on Climate Change and Health and Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Stanford Children’s Health
Dr. Regardt Ferreria, Professor of Social Work at Tulane University, Director of Tulane University's Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy and Executive Director of the Consortium for Emergent Disaster Resilience
Beckett Maravelias, Health Equity Consulting Specialist, UCLA Health Office of Health Equity & Inclusive Excellence; Climate Resilience Planning Co-Lead, UCLA Health System
IRB 26-0415
Principal Investigator: Dr. Tara Leytham Powell
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 1010 W. Nevada | M / C 082, Urbana, IL 61801