Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional adaptation

As wildfires grow increasingly complex, institutional adaptation- adjusting institutions to respond effectively to environmental changes- is crucial for enhancing wildfire management capabilities. However, institutional adaptation is a challenge as the connection between environmental changes and human institutions remains poorly understood. Here, by analyzing trends in five incident characteristics linked to institutional complexity at national and regional levels from 1999 to 2020 in the USA, we show national trends of increasing institutional complexity of wildfire indicators associated with wildfire governance, logistics, management, resource scarcity, and network coordination. Substantial regional variation was observed, with some cases exhibiting trends in opposite directions. For example, while jurisdictional complexity increased in the West, it decreased in the East. These results offer insight into the linkage between environmental change and demands for institutional adaptatio..., , # Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional adaptation

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9cnp5hqsk](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9cnp5hqsk)

**Nowell, B., Jones, K., McGovern, S.M. 2025. Changing wildfire complexity highlights the need for institutional adaptation. Nature Climate Change.** 

#### Description of the data and file structure

Information about each input dataset available on Dryad and the attribute descriptions.

**1) incids_mtbs_final.gpkg** : MTBS geospatial wildfire boundaries and engaged jurisdictions

fid: unique record identifier

incident_id: unique fire identifier

fed_engag_cnt: count of federal jurisdictions within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius

trib_engag_cnt: count of tribal jurisdictions within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius

st_engag_cnt: count of states within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius

cnty_engag_cnt: count of counties within the wildfire boundary or 5-mile radius

cenpl_engag_cnt: count of census places...,