"News about bears, and activities of the GBOP team as they promote an accurate understanding of grizzly bears and their recovery in the North Cascades Ecosystem through community education and involvement."
The Grizzly Bear Outreach Project (GBOP) provides education and community outreach about Grizzly Bears in the North Cascade Ecosystem (NCE) of Washington State. This includes information about grizzly bear ecology and behavior, sanitation and safety in bear country, and policies associated with the recovery process. The project engages community members in a process of education and rational, multi-party dialogue that targets people living, recreating, and working in the NCE. It provides a non-advocacy setting for residents to make well-informed opinions on grizzly bear recovery, perceptions and attitudes towards bears based upon accurate information. Over the last two hundred years, the number of grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) has declined from an estimated 100,000 individuals in the lower 48 to around 1100. The grizzly bear was listed as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1975 and six recovery ecosystems have been established since that time. The North Cascades Ecosystem (NCE) in North Central Washington is the largest grizzly bear recovery ecosystem. Less than 20 grizzly bears currently live in the NCE. photo credit: Chris Weston