WildWise Yukon has expanded its program and reach significantly since 2012, particularly over the past three years. Our current funding allows for 15 hours per week which is divided between administration and program coordination. The goal of this project is to hire and education/outreach coordinator to work on influencing human behavior change through targeted outreach events. The coordinator will work with other environmental and conservation coordinators and governments on informing tourists and Yukoners about reducing humanÂbear conflict through attractant management and safe/respectful wildlife viewing practices. This work will be informed by the research and outreach work that WildWise has initiated since 2012 (for example, the Whitehorse Bear Hazard Assessment, Tourism Operator Survey and CrossÂ-Jurisdictional Bear Smart Communities Scan) as well as by challenges identified by partner agencies, Renewable Resource Councils, First Nations governments and the public. It specifically addresses all of the recommended actions to achieve goal 1 and most of the recommendations to achieve goal 3 of the draft Conservation Plan for Grizzly Bears in Yukon. An outreach/education coordinator will be tasked with coordinating events, training opportunities, school visits and Visitor Information Centre sessions, when possible, in collaboration with other agencies.is project had the following goals:
- To connect people (local or not) with current information and best practices for reducing conflict with grizzly and black bears
- To develop ongoing educational and outreach tools that are effective in getting people to change their behavior to better coexist with wildlife
- To improve safety for people in bear country and protection of bears throughout their habitat
- To make human-wildlife conflict data accessible to the public
Proponent: WildWise Yukon
Contract: 2019-20-11
Amount Awarded: $13,000
Final Report: Download