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Chief Royal Ramey spent more than ten years as a wildland firefighter in the US Forest Service, CAL FIRE, and as part of the Buffalo Hand Crew for the Forestry and Fire Recruitment Program (FFRP). He fell in love with being a wildland firefighter while incarcerated in Fire Camp and graduated at the top of his class for Victor Valley College Firefighter I Academy before starting his professional wildland firefighting career. Chief Ramey co-founded FFRP and created the Buffalo Hand Crew to create pathways for more people from similar backgrounds to pursue meaningful wildland firefighting and forestry careers amidst the growing climate crisis. In 2022, Royal received a Pardon from Governor Gavin Newsom on behalf of the State of California. He is a 2023 Obama Leaders USA Program Participant and a 2024 TED Fellow.