Thank You - UPDATE November 17, 2023
Thank You
The staff and boards of the North American Bear Center and the Wildlife Research Institute both thank you, even though those words don’t seem enough to express how we feel about the overwhelming support you showed once again!.
And it was fun! Last night it felt good for Donna and me to remember some of the many ways that so many people have stepped up to make the mission of learning and educating about bears what it’s become.
I also thought about that a couple years ago when Wildlife Professional Magazine devoted its November/December 2021 issue to the change in public attitude that was best expressed with its cover that showed a crowd watching a wild black bear with interest rather than fear. The articles throughout that issue made me think how so many of you worked locally, nationally, and around the world to promote a new view of bears. Article after article in the magazine was about changing attitudes toward bears and other animals.
The media is joining that push. It began with documentaries about bears that began airing in 2001, continued with intensive media coverage of the Lily Fan phenomenon that began in 2010, and is continuing in part with a new TV series created by a French Canadian film company featuring animals of various kinds that people have discovered are not the terrors people had thought. To show that for bears, the company selected the work you all are supporting. Its episode about bears should air in spring or early summer this coming year.
Thank you for all you do.
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
