Thank you, Donna for writing the Free the Bears article. To hear about the treatment of these animals during Linda's presentation very disturbing, however very encouraging to hear about passionate people such as the Free the Bears group making positive changes for the bears.
This week's meeting is a club discussion meeting. It's important as many members as possible are able to attend. It's also important that members attend the Voluntary Assisted Dying presentation to be held on Wednesday 17th September so please register on the Trybooking websitehere if you haven't already. We currently have 32 registered attendees.
We need to finalise details for the VAD presentation, and, among other things, David will have some updates on our Rotary Community Group and upcoming events. Have you registered or declined for catering purposes?
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Mary Hutton with a sun bear
Free the Bears
Linda McCormack, a committed Rotarian and CFO of Free the Bears provided an insight into the organisation and her passion for the cause.
Free the Bears, a charity founded 30 years ago by Mary Hutton in Perth, has rescued and rehabilitated over 1,000 bears across sanctuaries in Laos, Vietnam, India, and Cambodia. The organization combats poaching, trophy pet trade, use of bear body parts in traditional medicine, and habitat destruction.
Every location has different regulatory and cultural challenges to overcome. For example, by Free the Bears purchasing dancing bears provides an alternative income for families and running education programs for students in an effort to increase understanding and to break these cycles.
They also conduct research to eventually release bears back into the wild and assess the effectiveness of traditional versus synthetic medicine.
Ways to support include volunteering, adopting bears, raising awareness, becoming bear carers, gifting online, leaving bequests, and participating in events.
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