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Join the Green Squad as they raise awareness about the impact of climate change on polar bears. Learn about polar bear habitats, the threats they face, and the urgent need for action. See how the team created a mural at Glenside Elementary to inspire change.
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EACAP Project- Green Squad By: Cameron, Rudy, and Zach
About the Polar Bear • fur is pigment free, not white • have black skin • 4.5 inch layer of fat under skin • sharp claws for holding prey and traction on ice • highly intelligent and highly cognitive
Climate • Live in a cold climate • air temperatures on average: -29 degrees in the winter and 0 degrees in the summer • water temperatures around 28 deg.
Where They Live • Live the circumpolar Arctic • Found in Canada, Russia, Norway, Alaska • 19 different populations living across 4 sea ice regions • Seasonal ice region • Polar basin Divergent ice region • Polar basin convergent ice region • Archipelageo ice region
Seasonal Ice Region • Southern-most region • Majority of ice melts during summer months • longer ice free seasons lead to less hunting opportunities • harder to survive in the winter because of this • Most endangered of the 4 regions
Polar Basin Divergent Region • Ice forms along shorelines, but melts in the summer • Polar bears have to swim longer distances for ice patches • isolated patches usually cover unproductive parts • Polar bears still have a hard time finding food
Polar Basin Convergent Region • Ice stays frozen for the majority of the year • Bears have better access to food • Predicted the region will disappear in 75 years
Archipelageo Ice Region • Located in Canadian high arctic and Greenland • Ice stays around for long amounts of time • Main problem: Carbon dioxide emissions • predicted to be last remaining of the 4 regions • expected to disappear in 100 years
Food Sources • smaller beluga whales • walruses • main food source are seals
Threats • Polar bears are experiencing threats and changes to their habitat • Major threats are: • commercial activity • pollution • climate change
Commercial Activity • Commercial activity in the Arctic is easier due to the melting ice • Increased risk of oil spills by ships • oil can get into the fur of the bears • can kill the bears’ food sources as well • need for new docks and transfer facilities take away from the bears’ habitat
Pollution • Arctic contains large amounts of toxic gasses • Transported by ocean and wind currents • Polar bears intake the toxins through their food • Affects the baby polar bears as well • Affects hormones, reproduction, metabolism, etc. • Up to 200 different chemical compounds can be found in a single polar bear
CLIMATE CHANGE • These threats are causing climate change • Longer summer months are affecting when the bears eat • live longer on land and swim longer distances for food • Lowers their fat reserves • Polar bears need ice to hunt and survive
What’s Next? • 97% of climate scientists have concluded that climate change is real • Next 50 years could be some of the warmest years our planet has experienced • ice free season has increased by 20 days in the last 20 years • average polar bear weight has dropped by 15% in last 20 years • Each of the 4 major ice regions that make up the polar bears’ habitat are predicted to all be gone in the next 100 years • ⅔ of the polar population expected to be gone by 2050 • canary in the coal mine
Acting Strangely • As Polar Bears habitats shrink, the more out of the ordinary they’ve acted. • a research team in Svalbard, a group of islands in the Norwegian Arctic, recently observed a starving polar bear eating a dolphin and burying the leftovers in the snow to save for later. • Polar Bears have recently been known to wander into towns looking for food to eat.
The Plan • Scientists representing Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States announced a ten year plan to prevent polar bears from going extinct. • Actions include preserving polar bear habitat and working with policymakers and the public to address climate change. • This is the first time these countries came together to agree on one circumpolar action plan for polar bears
EACAP Project- Glenside Elementary • Painting a mural at Glenside Elementary in Reading, PA • Glenside Elementary is located in Reading, PA • There are roughly 430 students at Glenside • Their goal is to challenge students each and every day to help them become successful people
Step 1: Primer • The wall was painted with various vegetables and fruits • It took us a few hours to primer over it
Step 2: The Painting • We decided to make the painting be an outdoor scene and it to coincide with what Team CEA and the Green Team did on the poles • Rudy was the artist in the group and drew out the sketch • We projected it onto the wall and painted!
Reflections from the project at Glenside • Reading is a very poor city so helping the children out was a great experience. • These children probably did not have the best childhood so bright colors in the cafeteria hopefully put a smile on their faces. • It was a good time and we really enjoyed working alongside Ms. Houck on this project. • It seemed as though she really liked the mural and hopefully the children did as well.
