Last week’s Polar Bear Week celebration was a huge success, with people joining us from around the globe to take part in our Tundra Connections broadcasts and watch our live Polar Bear Cams. The need to take action for polar bears was everywhere on social media, too, and the week was featured widely in the press, from Smithsonian to Newsweek, Yahoo News/The Weather Network, and even NASDAQ.
Photo: Kt Miller / Polar Bears International
Week Four in Churchill 2022
Alysa McCall, Director of Conservation Outreach and Staff Scientist
MINS
07 Nov 2022
Photo: Kt Miller / Polar Bears International
Director of Conservation Outreach and Staff Scientist Alysa McCall and Chief Climate Scientist Flavio Lehner host a Tundra Connections webcast on Tundra Buggy One, with support from Director of Conservation Technology BJ Kirschhoffer (on the left).
In addition, this community raised just over $48,000 toward our $150,000 goal on the “Detect and Protect” bear safety project. While we didn’t meet our goal, the funding will have a real impact on our efforts to promote bear-human coexistence. (Didn’t have a chance to donate? You can do so here.)
Meanwhile, the annual gathering of polar bears near Churchill continues as they anticipate freeze-up. More bears are arriving daily as temperatures drop, snow softens the tundra, and the first ice of the season rims the shore.
Here’s how you can follow along:
Our live Polar Bear Cams let you immerse yourself in the migration no matter where in the world you live. We’ve had some amazing sightings this year—including a polar bear attempting to catch a seal in the open water, a mom and her twin cubs, and a bear testing the ice to see if it’s strong enough to hold his weight—and the action continues.
We’ve scheduled two free Tundra Connections webcasts this week. The first, Walk Like an Egyptian … Polar Bear: Live from COP27, will air on Tuesday, November 8th, at 1 pm Central. The second, What Can You Learn from a Polar Bear?, in partnership with Discovery Education, is slated for Wednesday, November 9th, at 11 am Central. To join us, sign up for a reminder through the links above and watch here at the appropriate time.
And, finally, we’re excited to share that Good Morning America will be broadcasting from Tundra Buggy One with Polar Bears International on Thursday, November 10th! We hope you’ll be able to tune in to learn more about polar bears and their conservation.
Photo: Kt Miller / Polar Bears International
It’s been a whirlwind of a season and it’s hard to believe we’re close to wrapping it up. I’ll be in touch on Monday to share what we’ve planned for our last week of polar bear season—until we return next year!
P.S. Midterm elections are being held in the U.S. this week and, once again, climate change is on the ballot. Can we count on you to show up and VOTE for candidates who support climate action—helping to ensure the polar bears’ future and our own?
P.P.S. Missed some Tundra Connections broadcasts and want to catch up? You can watch the archives here.
Field Highlight
Every fall during the polar bear migration, Tundra Buggy One, our mobile broadcast studio, roams the tundra near Churchill, Canada. Generously donated for our use by Frontiers North Adventures, Buggy One allows us to livestream polar bears from the shores of Hudson Bay through cams in partnership with explore.org—bringing the migration to you! The buggy also hosts our Tundra Connections webcasts, allowing us to connect viewers around the world with scientists, educators, and special guests. Join staff member Kt Miller for a tour inside!
