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 "It was very cold, but working on polar bear moms and cubs is well worth some frozen fingers."

So wrote Alysa McCall in a PBI blog post describing her field work

on the sea ice near Churchill.

Alysa, who studies under
Dr. Andrew Derocher, generously volunteers her time to help with public outreach. She takes part in our Tundra Connections broadcasts, writes blog entries, and responds to questions from students interested in learning more about polar bears. And all this on top of a bear-sized

load as a grad student! 

 Thank you, Alysa!

FLICKR PHOTO 

OF THE MONTH

"Mirror, mirror, on the ice..."

Polar bears share their habitat

with a surprisingly rich diversity of wildlife--all of it threatened

by a warming Arctic.

This month's featured species is the muskoxen, oomingmak to the Inuit, whose thick, shaggy fur hangs almost to the ground. A relic of the Pleistocene era, they graze on grasses, willows, lichens and mosses, pawing through snow in winter to find nourishment. 

Want to see muskoxen in the wild? Check out the trip by Frontiers North Adventures to Elu Lodge.  

The Summer Life of a Polar Bear 

The Arctic Documentary Project

A ringed seal basking on the sea ice. A polar bear leaping from floe to floe. The blue and turquoise glow of ice formations. The Arctic is a beautiful, yet fragile, ecosystem--a place experiencing the effects of rising temperatures faster than anywhere else on the planet.  

Photographer and PBI Advisory Council member Daniel J. Cox has begun archiving the still images, video, and written descriptions PBI provides free of charge to our Arctic Ambassador Centers and other outlets into a PBI Media Library. Inspiring an even greater love of the Arctic and raising awareness about the need to take action on climate change, the Arctic Documentary Project will create a record of this extraordinary ecosystem as it undergoes rapid change. 

You can help support this effort through the purchase of special Lowepro camera bags. For a preview of the project, view the ADP webpage here.

Three cheers for the ongoing efforts of the Earth Club, finalists in our Project Polar Bear contest! Their passionate outreach has sparked a green revolution in

their hometown of Sparta, Wisconsin.

It all started with a community campaign to recycle and plant trees--an effort that has, well, snowballed.

The latest? An agreement with International/Hormel to sell the school's recyclables, with proceeds supporting the school's Green Fund. Meanwhile, the Polar Bear Girls continue to galvanize the community through presentations and media interviews. 

Unplug an appliance. Weather-strip your home. Trade out your lightbulbs. Zoos in our Arctic Ambassador Center network continue to amaze us with the CO2

reductions they inspire in their communities. Over the past year, they've racked up savings of over three million pounds.

They've also directly impacted over 30,000 people, with hundreds

of thousands more reached through media.

To honor their achieve-ments, we're presenting these zoos with Champion for Polar Bears awards as part of our Be Cool for Polar Bears tour. The zoos, in turn, are building even more momentum by honoring local green companies with Paw of Approval Awards. Recent recipients include:

• Henry Vilas Zoo: Madison Gas and Electric Company for energy conservation and environmental improvement efforts
• Como Park Zoo & Conservatory: Xcel Energy for CO2 reduction efforts through community education, CFL light bulb distribution, and climate reporting

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