Our friends and sponsors Touratech have done so much to help get the word out about BEARTREK. Now they’ve included us in their 2012 catalog. Check out the wonderful story here:
And for those who would prefer it in a different language they’ve published it in Spanish, German, French and Italian too!
We received this lovely letter from our friend Wong explaining why BEARTREK is so important and what it will do for sun bears:
Why BEARTREK is important to sun bear conservation?
Sun bear holds many world’s records.
Sun bear is the world’s smallest bear species. However, they have the longest tongue, longest claws, and largest canines relatively to their size if compares to other bear species.
They are the world’s most arboreal bear species. Yet, sun bear is the world’s least known bears. They are the least studied bear species. I often refer them as the forgotten species.
Sun bears are nothing but amazing and fascinating! I knew it from years of studying them and working closely with them. It is ashamed that very few people in the world know much about them. For such an little known species, what sun bear need is an army of media coverage, range from the smallest smart phones, tiny news papers columns, articles in magazines, books, internet websites, YouTube videos, TV programs and documentaries, and all the way to big screen feature-length films in cinema. Yes, feature-length films like movies!
As sun bear biologist, I am frustrated all these years by having difficulties to reach people, many people indeed, to share the stories and the plights of the sun bears. That frustration however, was slowly disappeared when Chris Morgan first contacted me about a proposed full length feature film call the BEARTREK in 2005. BEARTREK is a wildlife film produce by Wildlife Media Inc. features Brown bears in Alaska, Sun Bears in Borneo, Andean Bears in Peru, and Polar Bears in Canada. Wildlife Media is making a difference for bears and other wildlife through direct project funding and awareness-building.
“Film can change the world” For BEARTREK, it will change the fate, the future, and conservation of sun bear. The numbers of people BEARTREK will reach and the amount of influence BEARTREK on sun bear is beyond anyone’s imagination. It will be huge, be vast, be significant. Many people across the world will see sun bear, learn about sun bear, and know how special sun bears are for the first time in their life from BEARTREK. All of this knowledge is important for us to save sun bear from extinction as well as their habitat from deforestation. It has been 5 years now I anticipate the project to be completed. At the beginning of each year I pray that the movie will be completed in that year because we need the world to know about the plight of sun bear and their conservation issues urgently. Sun bears and their tropical rainforest habitat need immediate attention and have no time to wait.
“What is good for bears is good for people” is what Chris Morgan always said. “Protect bear habitat and you will protect fresh water, healthy forests, and clean air. No other species captures the human imagination like bears. They amaze us with their power, appearance, intelligence, and adaptability; attributes that have led to human admiration and respect for millennia.”
Like all film productions, BEARTREK is no exception of in need funding to achieve its goals. I am urging you to support Wildlife Media and the production of BEARTREK. I am thankful to those of you who have supported BEARTREK. I also thank Chris, Joe and this team to put this movie together.
We need BEARTREK to hit the cinema screen at no time!
There are various ways to donate to BEARTREK to help get the movie to the big screen. You can learn more by clicking here: DONATE
To learn more about the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (and see a number of great pictures from Wong’s post of this letter) Click Here.
Thanks so much to NBC Live Miami for having me on to talk about BEARTREK a couple of weeks ago – it was a blast – and so great to get word out about our work to the people of Florida!
Ever wonder what Joe does in his “down time”? Right now he’s in Japan filming snow monkeys for PBS. Here’s his report from the field:
Joe and Nimmi in Japan
Yes that’s an Oscar we’re holding! I guess the shelf full of them right behind us kinda gives it away. Let’s just say we’re practicing for the real thing! Dream big right!?
John Taylor (Wildlife Media Chair) and I are charging around LA meeting with film industry executives about BEARTREK. Exhausting but fun! It has been so wonderful to enjoy the response to what we are doing. “A film that funds conservation? How very cool” said one movie professional. We’re leaving our first LA visit with great feelings about completing BEARTREK this year, and launching our massive campaign to change the world. Thanks for your support!
Chris and John
Filmed by Brenda Phillips on location in Peru. Canon 5D Mk II.
Some clips from the small high-elevation town of Incawasi in Peru where we filmed for BEARTREK in November 2010. It was like stepping back in time after a grueling ride up dozens of switchbacks to a little village and a warm welcome at about 12,000 feet. The women were dressed in immaculate, colorful clothing – even while working in the fields. And all heads turned as we entered town – not many gringos make it this far! it is amazing to think that the spectacled bear can be found at these high elevations, and often even higher. But their historic range also includes the coast, making them South America’s most wide-ranging mammal as far as elevation is concerned. They have been eliminated from most of their coastal range, but still call the high Andes home in five South American countries – Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. I can’t wait to share some of the incredible footage of these bears that we obtained in Peru – climbing sheer cliff walls to feed on snails! Like nothing you have ever seen a bear do before. But for that you’ll have to wait for the release of our feature-length film BEARTREK in 2013. In the meantime follow us at these sites:
Facebook: BearTrek
Facebook: Chris Morgan Wildlife
Bear hugs,
Chris
The end of every year always brings about a time of reflection and this year is no exception. For a baby organization (just 4 years old) we’ve already done a lot for conservation, and our BEARTREK-inspired television special ‘Bears of the Last Frontier‘ was a huge hit – it went out to 200 million homes around the world. We’re endlessly thankful to PBS and National Geographic for making the program a big success.
We’ve published a fantastic book with Abrams Publishing for the program, a beautiful book with outstanding pictures and writing that keeps the conservation and compassion sparked with the television program alive.
Chris got to talk about bears on Letterman, bringing Bears of the Last Frontier and conservation to the late night audience. BBC, PBS and National Geographic are lining up to work with us more and now we’ve just learned that we won a CINE award for the Bears of the Last Frontier program.
But we still need your help. Our small team is working hard to complete BEARTREK – we plan to film our last location next year – the ARCTIC. There’s some amazing work going on out there from Greenland to Canada, Alaska to Svalbard. Our aim is to tell the story of climate change through the eyes of a polar bear family, and we are gearing up in a big way – it’s going to be such a wonderful addition to our other BEARTREK locations – Peru, Borneo, and Alaska. This picture shows Dr Nick Lunn in Canada with a young polar bear cub (check out those paws!).
Over the last three years the BEARTREK campaign has already provided $40,000 to help his research on polar bears and climate change.
I was interviewed by a British web TV company this morning, and I told the journalist that we are “redefining conservation”, and that “BEARTREK is as much about world peace as it is about wildlife”. She went quiet for a few moments, then took a breath and said, “I’ve never come across anything quite like this – it’s so refreshing”.
If you’d like to be a part of bringing BEARTREK completion just click here: http://wildlifemedia.org/donate/
This is a post from Anne Mize, Wildlife Media board member, on her recent trip to Rwanda. Enjoy!
My daughter Meskie and I have just been in East Africa, visiting the mountain gorillas in Rwanda. We trekked to see them on two different days in Virungas National Park. This park scales three countries, Rwanda, Congo, and Uganda. It is comprised of a number of volcanoes, some still active. The gorillas live on slopes of these volcanoes in dense forested areas. The first day we trekked for nearly 3 hours through open pastureland, bamboo forests, and thick rain forests. At several points we were climbing or sliding down sheer ravines covered in nettles and vines. The exertion of the hike made our arrival at the Suza group of gorillas even more rewarding. There were 20 members of this group, including a pair of twin infants only days old. We watched as they nursed. The mother also had a pre-teen who interrupted the feeding in some very humorous ways. This group was fairly quiet and inactive compared to the group we trekked to the second day.
The second day we trekked for a shorter time through even denser forest. The trackers had located the Agasha group. “Agasha” means special and is one of the largest groups with 25 members. The reason the group is special is that it was created by a silverback who arrived from the outside. This is a unique situation as most groups are formed by young male gorillas called blackbacks who mature and change into silverbacks.
When we arrived we were immediately surrounded by gorillas above us, in front, and behind. Though we are instructed to be no closer to a gorilla than 7 meters the animals don’t know this rule! A number of toddlers were bouncing off of tree branches, climbing up and down vines, and occasionally using one of us as a balance point. Though we are instructed to remain silent it was impossible keep from laughing out loud at their antics. Adolescent boys would play fight and beat their chests, mimicking the great silverback, who remained an inert jungle gym. He was a base for much of the bouncing, trampolining, and rolling for many of the toddlers. Each of the troupe members leaned on, groomed, or rested next to the silverback. The duration of the viewing is one hour and it was very difficult to leave behind this powerful and moving experience of observing animals to whom we are so similar. We slowly climbed back to our gear and left knowing that the mountain gorillas in Rwanda are thriving due to the excellent conservation efforts of the Rwandan government and various NGOs.
Spent the day searching for black bears in the hills near my home town of Bellingham, WA. Found some fresh cougar tracks, but no bear yet. Just a matter of time. Chris
5.1.11
Sent from my BlackBerry. Sorry for the brief message. Chris Morgan, MS
Main hub site: www.chrismorganwildlife.org