Vancouver Island campaign shares ethical bear viewing essentials

The tourism industry and its bear-viewing providers have teamed up on a campaign to encourage consumers to be careful when choosing a tour operator – and always prioritize the bears’ well-being.

“It comes from the growing interest in bear viewing and the growing interest of travel on Vancouver Island…” said Kathy MacRae, Commercial Bear Viewing Association of B.C. executive director. “Tourists and locals alike maybe don’t know how to interact with bears, both black and grizzly, and so we’re hoping to bring some education to people.”

The bear-viewing association, a collection of service providers, was formed in 2001 to “promote sustainable bear viewing in British Columbia and aid in the protection of wild bears and their ecosystems.” In order to be a member, businesses are required to sign a code of conduct adhering to ethical standards informed by both scientific research and First Nations direction.

MacRae said that due to a lack of legislated regulations when it comes to bear viewing, the industry has to self-regulate.

“Operators have tenures and park-use permits and things like that to operate, but there aren’t the same type of regulations there are with whale or marine mammal viewing, so what we have done as an industry is we sort of regulated ourselves.”

Recently, the association has been working with Tourism Tofino, Destination Campbell River and 4TVI, formerly Tourism Vancouver Island, on a campaign to promote ethical bear viewing.

“The focus for us is to help remind residents and inform visitors about the opportunity that presents itself with bear viewing on Vancouver Island,” said Brian Cant, 4TVI president. “While there’s definitely recommendations on how best to deal with a bear or choose a bear watch operator, the focus for us is that continued education piece around those large animals on the Island and in our region.”

Cant added that this includes whether one is out looking for bears, or spots one on the side of the highway.

“The education campaign initiative is really focused on helping educate people in ensuring bears remain safe and plentiful in the region.”

MacRae said one such behaviour they’re trying to curb is bear selfies – an activity she attested to having personally witnessed.

“I’m not kidding, bear selfies – you hear about that with people. They see bears as cute and cuddly and that they can approach them and not understanding body language or respect boundaries for wildlife, so we’re really hoping people will start to understand more with some education…” MacRae said. “Thankfully nobody has been hurt, knock on wood when I say that, because this is wildlife that we’re dealing with, but consequences are usually it’s the bear (that suffers).”

Negative impacts include the bear moving away from a feeding ground, or even becoming habituated to human presence.

As a part of the campaign, responsible bear-viewing basics have been posted on 4TVI’s website at vancouverisland.travel/plan-your-trip/forthebears. These include warning people to respect bears’ space, never approaching in close proximity, crowding or pursuing the bear.

The information covers both grizzlies, which have tours focused on in inlets near Campbell River and Telegraph Cove, as well as black bears, which can be found throughout Vancouver Island.

Alongside the basics, 4TVI released an educational YouTube video, For the Bears, which the organization said will be promoted throughout the fall and into 2025.

“One of the best ways for us to convey this information to visitors is through video,” Cant said. “The consumption of tourism information is so primarily done in the video format today and we will be using our other social channels like Instagram and Facebook to help share versions of this or link directly back to our YouTube channel.”

In a statement, Tourism, Destination Campbell River said it applauded the work being done by the bear-viewing association, local tour operators and Indigenous partners.

“We are extremely fortunate in Campbell River to share this region with an abundance of wildlife, especially bears, that many people come from all over the world to see,” said Trevor Dalton, business development officer with Tourism, Destination Campbell River. “But keeping the wildlife wild, safe and protected is more important than any visitor statistic we track.”

Brad Parsell, executive director with Tourism Tofino, added that First Nations on Vancouver Island have had a special relationship with all wildlife, particularly bears, for millennia.

“That relationship is based on respect and giving these animals the space they need,” he said in the release. “Everything is connected in these ecosystems and we need to ensure that bear populations thrive into the future by being educated when we encounter one.”

To book a tour with an association-certified business, visit bearviewing.ca.

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