Abstract 315 – Developing Effective Polar Bear Safety Educational Materials in a Changing Climate

Alysa G. McCall, Geoffrey S. York, Joanna Sulich, Clive Tesar, Joseph M. Northrup,
Lyle Walton, Greg W. Thiemann

As the world warms and sea ice extent and duration decreases, polar bears are spending more
time on land in more regions. Many people who live on or near northern coastlines have some
knowledge of how to live with polar bears, but more and more communities are experiencing
polar bears for the first time or in increasing numbers. More people from outside the polar
bears’ range are also coming into contact with them, whether as tourists or as transient
workers. If we want polar bears to persist in the wild over the long-term, we have an obligation
to help people live more safely with the world’s largest land predator.
With various partners, Polar Bears International (PBI) has been supporting multi-pronged
coexistence efforts Arctic-wide through deterrence trainings, testing non-lethal and less-lethal
tools, providing equipment, and developing materials with input from communities. To date,
we have developed a variety of educational materials tailored to different cultures, landscapes,
languages, and topics. We illustrate how diverse media products (e.g., colouring books,
handouts, video) can be used to communicate and educate residents and visitors on polar bear
safety best practices.
We will continue to work with locals, communities, governments, and universities to support
the development, printing, and distribution of materials where requested. Polar bear safety
language is likely to be refined over time so materials may need to be updated regularly,
especially as the polar bear’s sea ice habitat continues to shift and decline.