Jackie Krisilas was born and raised in Los Angeles. She has a bachelor's degree in plant science from Cal Poly SLO and was first introduce to fire while studying there. While working for Point Blue Conservation Science doing community-based habitat restoration, she earned her Wildland Firefighter certification through the Fire Forward program. Since then she has been botanizing for the National Park Service in Pinnacles, Golden Gate, Muir Woods, and Point Reyes. She is excited to learn more about fire ecology and prescribed fire as a land management tool.