POLAR BEARS FOR

EVERY SEASON 

 Follow polar bears throughout the year with our 2012 calendars, newly arrived in our gift shop. They feature stunning photographs by Norbert Rosing.

FEATURED SPONSOR

SCIENTIST PROFILE

JOHN BRUNO

UNC Chapel Hill

We're excited to have marine

ecologist and self-described ocean

fanatic John Bruno as one of our

Tundra Connections panelists in Churchill this fall. 

Bruno's research focuses on marine biodiversity, coral reef ecology and conservation, and the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems. He blogs about the ocean on SeaMonster and is developing a blue carbon off-setting company, The BlueCarbon Project, to restore mangroves in Ecuador.

"It's all connected," he says.

"Polar bears, sea ice, and, yes, coral reefs and mangroves."

ARCTIC SPECIES

OF THE MONTH

Brown in summer, white in winter,

the feisty ermine hunts tirelessly for tundra prey like lemmings and birds, relying on its camouflage for successful stalking. As you can see, this little fellow is wearing its winter best! 

FLICKR PHOTO 

OF THE MONTH

Your Passport to the Tundra 

The polar bear migration is in full swing, and the great white bears have gathered along the shores of Hudson Bay near Churchill, Manitoba, waiting for the sea ice to form so they can return to their seal-hunting grounds. 

Eminent polar bear scientist and author Dr. Ian Stirling will make public appearances for presentations and book signings in Winnipeg November 16 and Toronto December 14. 

The book compresses Dr. Stirling's four decades of research on polar bears into a new and comprehensive natural history-and PBI is honored to offer exclusive, signed copies through this event.

Admission is $40 and includes attendance at the lecture, an autographed copy of Stirling's new book, Polar Bears: The Natural History of a Threatened Species, plus wine and hors d'oeuvres. The event is sponsored by Canada Goose, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, PSAV, and Sporting Life.

For tickets to the Winnipeg event, please click here. For Toronto, click here.

Newer Isn't Always Better

As if to underscore the urgency of taking action to reduce greenhouse gases, a new study shows that Canada has lost more than half its ice shelves over the past six years. 

Troubling new research on sea ice thickness finds that nearly all of the Arctic's old, multi-year ice has disappeared. The new ice that forms in winter lacks the thickness of multi-year ice--leading to larger summer melts and more open water.

Did you know a five-minute shower uses 10-25 gallons of water and a full tub, about 70 gallons?

Do the math: If you restrict your shower time to less than ten minutes, a shower uses far less water--and energy--than a bath.

Each year, our Leadership Camp students take this eco-challenge a step further by giving up showers while on the tundra. As the teens write in their blog:

"Because the Tundra Buggy's supplies (including water) must be hauled to and from the Tundra Buggy Lodge, we've all decided to take a pledge against showering this week in order to conserve water and gas. We hope this challenge will demonstrate our commitment to being green!"

Polar bears swimming overhead. Polar bears roaming

in an abandoned mining town. A conservation message that inspires the public to take action on climate change. 

 

No wonder the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium received Top Honors for its innovative new polar bear exhibit, Polar Frontier, at the recent Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

The exhibit focuses on animal enrichment and climate change awareness. It features photographs from the PBI Arctic Documentary Project by Daniel J. Cox of Natural Exposures, which we provide, free of charge, to members of our Arctic Ambassador Center network. Way to go, Columbus!

It's always so inspiring to check in with members of our Arctic Ambassador Center network to see what they're accomplishing. 

This month we reached out to Utah's Hogle Zoo, whose staff recently took part in two transportation challenges.

The first, Utah's Clear the Air Challenge, lasted a month. Participants:

• Reduced driving by 1,283,926 miles and emissions by 2,155,712 pounds
• Saved 58,354 gallons of gas and $721,566 in vehicle costs

The zoo also held its own Ultimate Alternate Transportation Challenge. For 77 days, staff carpooled, used alternate transportation, and biked to work, earning prizes for the most miles saved. They reduced driving by 23,157 miles and prevented 12.85 tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.

Best of all? The challenges inspired permanent behavior changes in many employees.