events by category | november | december | january | february | march | worldwild tours

Calendar: Polar Bear Leadership Camp

The San Diego Zoo, in conjunction with Polar Bears International (PBI), is giving one motivated local high school student the opportunity to explore the subarctic habitat of polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, this fall. Meet with local people, wildlife officials, and other teen ambassadors for one week this October.

The PBI Polar Bear Leadership Camp is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity only offered to select students worldwide—as few as 12 students from 4 different countries. The goal of the camp is to ignite interest in polar bears and inspire and further the growth of a new generation of Ambassadors for the Arctic. Ice flows, temperatures, and the lives of wildlife in the Arctic have already been impacted due to global climate change. Inspiring young people to be ambassadors for this fragile and important ecosystem is central to the Leadership Camp experience.

A rigorous selection process will conclude with one outstanding student. Do you think you could be selected as the San Diego Zoo's representative?

Ambitious students who are entering the 11th grade this fall, will be 16 years old by September 30, 2008, and are members of the Zoological Society of San Diego are eligible. Candidates may apply online and write an essay responding to the prompt question on the application. *See application form for parent's signature and waivers.* The essay should be no more than 1,000 words in length. Your essay and application must arrive at the San Diego Zoo's Education Department no later than May 30, 2008, at 4:30 p.m. Postmarks don’t count and late entries will not be accepted. Or you may apply online here.

A few semi-finalists will be selected and called for interviews. The student chosen will be notified by mid-July. If you are chosen, you will become the Zoo's Arctic Ambassador.

The selected candidate for Polar Bear Leadership Camp will meet with keepers and researchers from the San Diego Zoo for a unique behind-the-scenes opportunity at the Zoo's Polar Bear Plunge to learn more about innovative conservation research and animal care. The student will be required to prepare for the trip by reading up on climate change and polar bears, be available for media interviews both pre-trip and post-trip, and write articles for Polar Bears International and the San Diego Zoo. A daily journal will be posted on the San Diego Zoo and Polar Bears International Web sites.

The adventure begins with a flight to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Here you'll spend a day meeting your fellow adventurers and begin the experience by meeting with biologists from Conservation Manitoba. Next, you will fly to the Northwest Coast of the Hudson Bay to the town of Churchill. There you will spend a few days living in the town known as "The Polar Bear Capital of the World." You will learn about Conservation Manitoba's Polar Bear Alert Program and visit the polar bear holding facility. You will learn about Parks Canada and Wapusk National Park ("Wapusk" is Cree for white bear). While in town, you will meet many residents and First Nation's people to learn how people have lived with the Great White Bear for centuries. One of the days you will fly on a helicopter out to the maternity denning area in Wapusk National Park with a biologist from Parks Canada to learn about how the female polar bears use the permafrost peat to build their cozy dens. In addition, you will spend a few days conducting field research or learning more about current field projects while living in the polar bears' habitat on the frozen tundra in the comfort of the Tundra Buggy® Lodge. Upon returning home, you will leave the frozen tundra but bring back your new-found knowledge and motivation from your experience of a lifetime.

To apply, fill in the Leadership Camp application here.
Applications must be received by May 30, 2008, at 4:30 p.m.