Forestry and Fire Recruitment Program (FFRP)

Forestry and Fire Recruitment Program (FFRP)

• Founded: 2015

• Founder: Brandon Smith

• Headquarters: San Bernardino, California

• Annual Budget: ~$2 million

• Website: forestryfirerp.org

What it does
FFRP helps formerly incarcerated individuals—many of whom served on inmate wildfire crews—build real careers in wildland firefighting. The program provides job training, certifications, and direct placement into fire and forestry roles, while also pushing to remove legal and licensing barriers that block people with records from being hired. Founder Brandon Smith, who was formerly incarcerated himself, created FFRP after realizing that the skills people gain while incarcerated often go to waste once they're released.

Why it matters
In California and beyond, wildfires are getting worse—and firefighting crews are stretched thin. At the same time, thousands of incarcerated people are trained to fight fires but are shut out of paid jobs once they’re released. FFRP fixes that disconnect. It helps people turn their past experience into steady, high-value work—boosting public safety while reducing recidivism. The endgame: safer communities, better job pathways, and a stronger, more inclusive wildfire workforce.

Big picture
FFRP is part of a growing movement to rethink how we support reentry and fill essential jobs. It’s one of the few models that tackles workforce shortages, environmental risk, and second-chance hiring all at once—and does it in a way that’s practical, bipartisan, and built to scale. With thousands of trained incarcerated firefighters across the U.S., this model could expand state by state to transform how we staff firefighting and forestry for the long term.