Being Bear Aware at UM
Here at the Ñý¼§Ö±²¥, we celebrate many firsts every year. The first snow of the year, the first tree changing the color of its leaves of the year, and of course, the first UMPD “Bear on Campus” email alert of the year. Ironically, this year, that email alert came on the same week that UM hosted its annual Bear Aware Fair on the oval.
Fall is a crucial season for bears as they prepare for hibernation. During this season, bears eat up to 20,000 calories per day in order to store up fat for winter. This increased activity often leads to more bear encounters, especially on and around campus, as bears search for easy food sources provided by humans.
For both humans and bears, being bear aware during the fall season is essential for safety and reducing conflicts. Simple precautions like securing food and garbage, staying alert while walking around campus, especially at night, and carrying bear spray while out in nature can easily prevent negative human-bear interactions. Additionally, the UM has several resources to help all Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ stay bear aware while here on campus.
People & Carnivores
is a Montana non-profit aimed at protecting, connecting, and restoring large carnivores like bears. Recently, in collaboration with the Office of Sustainability, People & Carnivores funded several items of Bear Safe equipment and gear for Campus Recreation’s Outdoor Program. The gear and equipment included bear-safe dry bins and bags, bear-safe coolers, and even a bear-safe electric fence for the Outdoor Program. All of this equipment can be rented by Ñý¼§Ö±²¥, staff, faculty, and community members in effort to help make more adventures bear-aware.
People & Carnivores also funded several bear-safe garbage bins and enclosures on campus last school year. These ensure that bears don’t get into campus waste while looking for food. This helps keep bears safe by not being accustomed to human food, which could lead to dangerous behavior and potential removal from the wild.
National Wildlife Federation
Additionally, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) also funded a compost enclosure for the bins located behind the University Center. NWF is the largest private, non-profit conservation education and advocacy organization in the United States. They place a huge emphasis on funding local wildlife projects, so this compost enclosure is right up their alley (and our alley, literally!). This project ensures that all the compost collected from the UC is safely secured until it is picked up by Missoula Compost. NWF also funded bear-safe garbage bins very recently, which will be installed around the university campus this fall!
Kless Sustainability Fund
Want to know where your student sustainability dollars are going? Well in 2023, the Kless Sustainability Fund funded two bear-safe garbage cans on campus. The project's total cost was $4,275.99, completely funded with student sustainability dollars. The project was proposed in Spring 2023 by the Bear Smart UM Student Group. The bins were installed that summer. The bins are located on the North side of the UC and by the M-Trail trailhead. This type of trash bin ensures that bears don’t get into the trash and reduces the number of negative bear-human interactions.
If you have a project idea that would help keep the UM campus bear-aware, visit the Kless Sustainability website to learn more about submitting a proposal.
Global Leadership Initiative – UM Bear Plan
Lastly, in 2023, a group of Franke Global Leadership Initiative Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ created a Bear Smart Plan for UM as part of their senior capstone project. Titled the project consisted of two parts: a bear management plan and educational outreach for bear safety.
With guidance from bear-conflict specialists from Missoula County, craftspeople, and the UM Wildlife Society, the GLI group provided recommendations to UM involving waste management strategies, solutions for the fruit trees and native plants on campus that serve as bear attractants, and proposed a corresponding budget. Additionally, they provided educational materials like flyers and PowerPoints to classes and encouraged Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ to attend the bear spray demonstration performed by the Bear Aware Campaign. This group of Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ applied for and received funding for the bear-safe bins from both People & Carnivores and Kless Sustainability!
Through collaboration with non-profits, internal and external funding, and student-led projects, UM is becoming a champion for bear safety both on and off campus. By using the tools UM provides, YOU can help reduce the number of negative bear-human interactions and keep bears safe as they prepare for a long winter slumber!
Go Griz