ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the place of wildfire within the contested energy spaces of northern Alberta. By analyzing the political aftermath of “The Beast”—the devastating Fort McMurray wildfire of 2016—the author provides an account of the impact natural events have on social relations. To understand the changes that took place, the chapter challenges conventional ideas of political power distribution within state–industry–community relations. By drawing on a theoretical framework combining assemblage thinking and pragmatism, the author investigates how Indigenous communities responded to the wildfire—both in terms of their vital contributions to the emergency situation and particularly how they mobilized for the political negotiations that followed. Alliances were forged and existing power relations were challenged, triggering promising changes in the relationship between government and Indigenous communities of Wood Buffalo.
