A conference about peoples and bears, about coexistence.
The goal of the conference is to bring together the diverse views, skills and experiences of invited experts to contribute science-based proposals to improve the quality of people-bear coexistence as part of future urban and national policies. It will also contribute to the assessment of the current scientific situation of the brown bear population in Romania and to raising awareness of the gaps in people-bear coexistence, for the benefit of the local community. There is a clear intention to create a tradition, involve young people in scientific activity and provide a platform for national and foreign researchers to present their results.
The organizers of the TusnadEcoBear Conference 2024 together with Research and Development Institute for Wildlife and Mountain Resources from Miercurea Ciuc, invites you, to contribute to a NEW INITIATIVE. As a speaker or participant to the Conference you are invited to contribute with a paper to the first number of Journal for Mountain Resources and Environment which will be a partner of our Conference in the years to come.
Journal for Mountain Resources and Environment (JMRE) intends to publish open access, peer-reviewed papers that address the research, policy, planning, and practice related to natural resources. The journal looks for papers that expand natural resource management and conservation knowledge ranging from practical experience to advances in theory. The journal places special emphasis on transdisciplinary studies that connect findings to management and conservation outcomes to address which strategies work as well as which strategies fail.
For the first special issue dedicated to the TusnadEcoBear Conference 2024, which will be also the first number of JMRE, the editorial team invites you as participant to the conference to prepare a:
- Review. (max. 8000 words). Science-focused reviews should synthesize findings based on a well-developed scientific literature. Reviews should be explicit about the methods used to find the information and criteria on data curation.
- Research Paper. (min. 4000- max. 6000 words). Research papers describing original theoretical, empirical or synthetic research.
- Perspectives (max. 2000 words). Perspectives are opinion pieces that provide a forum for scientists and practitioners to develop ideas with broad significance to the JMRE topics. The focus can be on concepts, methods, applications, policy, or current or urgent conservation problems.
- Letter (max. 1000 words). A letter is a short communication regarding topics of interest to readers, including observations on controversial subjects.
Your support for the JMRE start-up is essential to ensure a future for the promotion and dissemination of quality research in the Carpathians and beyond. The editors will be present at the conference to offer more information about their plans and how you can help this new initiative.
See you all soon!
Contact at: contact@jmreri.com
SPEAKERS - 2024
„Bear management is becoming increasingly challenging as both human safety and the conservation of large carnivores have to be considered. I am pleased to see that collaborative management and participatory decision-making among the stakeholders around the issue of human-bear coexistence have taken root in Băile Tușnad and active community engagement is being promoted by the local civil society organizations to work together towards a viable coexistence plan. We all have to share responsibility for brown bear conservation and management, no matter we are representing foresters, hunters, public/local communities, authorities, or conservationists! ”
„Human-bear conflicts requires approach that involves preventive measures, public education and responsible land use. Mutual cooperation among various stakeholders leads to the improvement of human-bear coexistence in common areas.”
„I am very pleased to be returning to Tusnad to take part in the third EcoBearConf. Last year’s event was really interesting, enjoyable and worthwhile. After several major incidents and developments in recent months have put bear–human coexistence back under the spotlight, this year’s conference is even more important.”
„The conservation of large carnivores in human-shaped landscapes is not a simple procedural issue but rather a wicked, complex problem, often marked by social conflicts and dilemmas. These conflicts and dilemmas typically arise from differing visions, agendas, interests, and experiences regarding large carnivores. Understanding these social conflicts and dilemmas, whether manifested or latent, and identifying morally, economically and legally acceptable compromises for navigating them is as important as understanding the biology, ecology, conservation status, and the impacts caused by large carnivores. I will present a handful of concepts and heuristics that can help in co-understanding and navigating the wicked nature of human-large carnivore systems.”
„Human and bear coexistence is not just a conservation challenge; it’s an opportunity to respect and learn from nature. By understanding the balance between wildlife habitats and human needs, we can create a future where both species thrive side by side”
„Coexistence between humans and bears will only be possible when strategies are crafted with careful consideration of both the challenges and benefits they bring to rural communities. True coexistence involves understanding, mutual support, and reaching shared agreements”
„Human-brown bear coexistence can be facilitated by maintaining collaborative management at all times. It is vital to reduce conflicts caused by a lack of communication between stakeholders, conflicts that only damage the brown bear’s already tarnished reputation in the public perception.”
„With ever-expanding human influence on natural systems, it is more important that ever that we learn how to coexist with the nature we encroach upon. An important step in this is improving how we monitor and manage human conflict with large carnivores, something we are seeking to advance using digital twins.”
„Coexistence is a function of mutual understanding. Understanding that wildlife needs its place and we are getting aggressively into it, and understanding that local communities often face significant losses and need support. It is hard to bring back carnivores to places where people have lost the skills of living with them.”
„In the Anthropocene, finding harmony between the utilization of ecosystem services and biodiversity conservation is imperative—let the brown bear be our symbol of coexistence with nature.”
„In his book The Honest Broker, Roger Pielke Jr. states, „In the absence of perception, there is no uncertainty.” This implies that both perception and certainty are present in every community and shape how systems, such as wildlife management, are constructed. As perceptions toward coexistence with carnivores evolve, so too should the certainties upon which management systems are built. However, what happens if perceptions and certainties shift over time, but the management system remains static? Without feedback loops to refine our perceptions and adapt to new realities, societal memory risks becoming trapped in a cycle of unresolved issues, leaving key challenges unaddressed.”
„In the interest of better human-large carnivore coexistence, financial sustainability should be emphasized more in the framework of conservation planning. More cost-effective, data-driven biodiversity monitoring solutions could alleviate the bottleneck of unstable funding mechanisms.”
„Every organism plays a very important role in the ecosystem. Just because we don’t know this role in detail doesn’t mean there isn’t one. Large carnivores have a place in the ecosystem anyway, so it is important to maintain their protection and stable population. Arousing fear in people through the media, as well as social networks, has had a significant impact on increasing the human-wildlife conflict. It is generally known that fear comes from unawareness, which is why I think educating people is an essential step towards understanding how to coexist with large carnivores.”
„Raising awareness in the local community through education, sensitization, involvement in scientific work. This is necessary because even the most modern technology is of no help or value if it is not used properly. For me the bear is a symbol of nature and I strive to make their presence acceptable, since that’s the most difficult. Communities close to nature need their natural environment for a better quality of life and livelihood. Humans will use their natural environment in a more sustainable way if they understand how bears behave and redefine why they exist.”
„Species conservation, especially for animals like the brown bear, faces complex challenges due to factors like habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, climate change, and illegal hunting. The emergence of AI, combined with knowledge graphs, offers innovative ways to tackle these issues by predicting and potentially preventing human-wildlife conflicts.”
”The biggest challenge of coexisting with large carnivores is that we need to demonstrate that we are the more intelligent species.”
„The human-wildlife conflict is a two-sided process that should be studied and managed as much as possible. Helping local people understand the needs of bears and also the preventive measures they can take is key to reducing the negative impact of the conflict. A large part of them do not have information about the methods by which they could protect their property and resort to the cooperation of hunters, a process that we are trying to reverse by building a more positive image of the species.”
„My major interest came on how this conflict highlights the challenges of coexisting with wildlife, especially large predators. It raises questions about how we can balance human development with the need to protect wildlife and their habitats. Finding solutions requires understanding bear behavior, implementing preventative measures, and promoting education and awareness to foster respect and minimize conflict.”
