Whistler-based bear group wins Premier's partnership award

Back row (left to right): Tina Symko, Steve Wright, B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell, Tony Hamilton, Crystal McMillan Front row: Andrew Milne, Sylvia Dolson, Heather Beresford, Nicola Brabyn, Claire Edwards, Chris Doyle

The Whistler Bear Working Group won a 2008 Premier's Award in the Partnership category for the Lower Mainland region.

Co-founded and co-chaired by the Get Bear Smart Society, the Whistler Bear Working Group leads the way in reducing the number of human-bear conflicts and limiting the number of bears killed each year in the Whistler area.

"This is a great honor for us," says Get Bear Smart Society Executive Director Sylvia Dolson. "All of the people on the working group · and, indeed, all the residents of Whistler · should be very proud of themselves for working together to make Whistler a safer place for both bears and people."

The group, comprised of representatives from the Resort Municipality of Whistler, the Ministry of Environment, the RCMP, Carney's Waste Systems, VANOC, the Whistler-based Get Bear Smart Society, Squamish-based Bear Aware and the Bear Aversion Research Team, meets regularly to discuss how best to manage Whistler’s bear population.

The Premier's Awards are given out annually to programs and initiatives in B.C. that exemplify public service excellence. Other Premier's Awards recognize excellence in the categories of Cross-Government Integration, Innovation, Leadership, Legacy, Organizational Excellence and Service Excellence.