Stories of SWCA: Vicky Amato

Behind every project at SWCA are people with unique stories.

Stories of SWCA is a new monthly series highlighting the people behind our work. Each feature explores an employee’s background and career journey—what brought them to SWCA, what drives them, and how their work contributes to our mission and impact.

Growing up in the UK as what she affectionately describes as a “wet island”, Victoria Amato didn’t predict a career in wildfires— “Fire wasn’t exactly on my radar,” she joked. Yet, wildfire planning has been at the core of Vicky’s career for nearly two decades.

Today, as a Principal Environmental Planner based in Denver, CO, Vicky and the Fire Services team are celebrating a major milestone: 100 Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs) completed nationwide.

Let’s meet Vicky.

Hardin County Community Wildfire Protection Plan project in southern Illinois in 2020.

Career Path

Vicky’s academic journey began in ecology and wildlife. While earning her first master’s degree at the University of Edinburgh, she was introduced to prescribed burning as a tool for habitat enhancement—a turning point that sparked her interest in fire research. That curiosity led her to a summer session conducting field research with a group of students at Colorado State University (CSU), and later returning to CSU to continue graduate work focused on post-fire effects on wildlife.

Victoria Amato and Emily Geery at a Fire Meeting

SWCA Origin Story

When Vicky joined SWCA’s Albuquerque office in 2007, she was fresh out of graduate school and SWCA was just beginning to explore fire services. At the time, SWCA had only completed a handful of fire-related projects and Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs) were still emerging nationwide. As funding for wildfire planning increased, SWCA (specifically, Joseph Fluder, Albuquerque’s NR Program Director at the time, Anne Russell, and Emily Geery) saw an opportunity to grow in this space.

Vicky helped build the program from the ground up—introducing fire modeling to the GIS team (the same approach we still use 19 years later!), refining CWPP approaches, and, most importantly, developing strong, trust-based relationships with clients. What began as one or two plans a year steadily expanded, both geographically and in scope.

Today, SWCA’s Fire Services core team of around 20 people delivers 10–15 CWPPs annually, alongside utility wildfire planning, federal fire support, hazard mitigation, and growing post-fire recovery work. The team is increasingly connecting fire, water, and restoration work to help communities across the U.S. become more resilient in the preparation for and aftermath of wildfires.

Victoria Amato (left) and Joseph Fluder (right) during the SWCA Grand Canyon River Trip in 2023.

Victoria Amato presents at the UK Wildfire Conference 2024. She presented with Linda Kettley (Firewise UK) and Fiona Newman Thacker (Wageningan University).

What Employee Ownership Means to Vicky

For Vicky, being an employee owner means having accountability and motivation to produce high quality work. “We hold ourselves to a really high standard,” she says. That pride shows in the Fire Services team’s reputation—built on repeat clients, strong partnerships, and consistently trusted work. “We’re known for what we do, and that’s something we’ve earned together.”

Christian Testerman, Arianna Porter, and Victoria Amato at the Cross-Boundary Landscape Restoration Conference in Fort Collins, Colorado