polar bear conservation
Following the drastic population losses of polar bears in the 1960s and 1970s, an international accord was reached between the five nations with polar bears (Canada, Norway, US, the former USSR and Denmark, which governed Greenland at that time) (4). These nations signed the ‘International Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears’, and agreed to prohibit unregulated hunting and to outlaw the hunting of the bears from aircrafts and icebreakers (4). The agreement also obliged each nation to protect polar bear denning sites and migration routes, as well as undertake and share information on polar bear research (4). This was one of the first and most successful international conservation measures of the 21st century and was responsible for the recovery of the polar bear (4). The threats caused by climate change are now the main concern, especially as the rate at which environmental changes could occur may be faster than the rate at which many species can adapt. More than ever, the complexity of these issues and their global nature will demand international cooperation if this species and other wildlife is to survive (4).