#freethebears

[paulawiegmink]

Beary Pawsome Art Auction in aid of Free The Bears has just gone live in Perth, Western Australia: https://oktion.com.au/event-details/307 If you would like to support this worthy charity this painting among many other artworks are available...check it out 🐻 #freethebears #savethebears#auction #savingwildlife#sunbears#moonbears #againstanimalcruelty#artforanimals #animalart#animalsinart#bearsinart #bearsoninstagram#endangeredwildlife #artspeaks#artistforconservation #artistsforconservation#originalart #acrylicpainting#originalacrylicpainting #onefightunite#artoftheday (at Perth, Western Australia) https://www.instagram.com/p/Ck0coRjPEMJ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[positivexcellence]

towwn:  ♻️ sustainable sandals ♻️⁠ ⁠ 8 sustainable shoe brands helping us put our collective best foot forward this summer:⁠ ⁠ @flipslide_au⁠ love @genpadalecki’s mustard yellow slides? obvi. so do we! the natural rubber flip flops are vegan and simply sustainable. the aussie-based co. is easy on the eyes, the wallet, your feet + our planet. Snag a black pair now on pre-order or sign up to get notified when the new batch of colors are released. ⁠ ⁠ @nomadicstateofmindhome⁠ these rope art sandals have a real americana grassroots story, as the brand began in a 1969 vw bus & is currently based out of north carolina. they work with well-paid nicaraguan artisans and subscribe to a “no scraps left behind” business model. ⁠ ⁠ @tkees⁠ these sleek, minimalist sandals and flip flops are eternally in fashion, thus reducing “trendy” seasonal waste. plus, some of the best-selling styles have been reimagined in vegan leather. ⁠ ⁠ @naeveganshoes⁠ these unisex birkenstock-lookalikes are ethical and innovative, made with recycled car tires, natural cork and pineapple leaf fiber.. ⁠ ⁠ @allbirds⁠ sustainably crafted using sugarcane, the popular sneaker company recently launched eco-friendly sliders + flip flops for both men and women made with the world’s first carbon negative green “eva” (i.e. the material used in basically all footwear soles). ⁠ ⁠ @alterreny⁠ design your own customizable sandals made from reclaimed fabrics and recycled plastic with this ny-based brand. they also employ fair labor practices + wages, support ocean plastic cleanup & donate to multiple nonprofits. though pricier than some others, the site boasts a 40-65% off sale section.⁠ ⁠ @etiko_fairtrade ⁠ the brand uses mostly eco-friendly materials, including global organic textile standard (#gots) cotton, traces its entire supply chain & minimizes waste. plus, buying these natural rubber unisex flip-flops automatically donates 10% to marine conservation org @seashepherd or bear charity @freethebears.⁠ ⁠ @itsyoursole⁠ these classic flops are good for your feet + the planet. the orthopedic shape molds to your feet for equal pressure distribution, while soles are made from carbon-negative recycled wine corks.⁠

[kyuuudies]

This is our eldest brother, Chicco. He is 3 years old. He is the family's "luoran boy". He is grumpy yet a very responsible kuya. He helps mom with the household chores and takes good care of us whenever mom's at work. He loves food sooo much. ♡

[peacephotography]

Polar bears take over a Russian weather station.  Photograph: Dmitry Kokh

[givevolunteers]

Strong women helping build a new home for animals rescued from the wildlife trade. That’s a whole lot of goodness to celebrate 🙌 . . . 📷 : @skyloevera #givelaos #givevolunteers #freethebears #strongwomen #volunteerabroad #traveldifferently (at Luang Prabang) https://www.instagram.com/p/B9KdfcenQdb/?igshid=1ovdto2yhr54x

[searchandrescue]

Tat Kuang Si bear rescue centre, Luang Prabang, Laos. #freethebears #moonbear https://www.instagram.com/p/B7PwtutJnDK/?igshid=1vx8e92ryvxyy

[official-calexit-account-blog]

[areksv]

#voting #ivoted🇺🇸 #2020 #worseyearofmylife #democracy #republic #california #freethebear #californiarepublic #lgbtq🌈 #curlyhair #curlyhairaroundtheworld #greenquartz #threeoflife (at Glendale, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CHJedUvBqqt/?igshid=1c13orw64z4n9

[staywokedesigns-blog]

Calexit Free the Bear

Click Image to Buy :)

[paulawiegmink]

'Moon Bear' acrylic on stretched canvas painted to help raise funds for Free the Bears, Perth, WA. This not for profit foundation was started by Mary Hutton when she learned of the cruel practice of bear bile farming for traditional medicines in Asia. Thank goodness for people like Mary who took action. Mary is responsible for starting the Cambodian Bear Sanctuary, now the largest of its kind. If you are able, please support this wonderful foundation. Thank you Mary Hutton @freethebears🤗 #freethebears#bears#moonbears #artistsforconservation #conservation #wildlife#animals#animalart#bearsinart #savingwildlife#wildlifeconservation #maryhutton##wildlifepassion#helpsavethebears (at Perth, Western Australia) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cek4vijvnYh/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[ashleabechaz]

🐾Link in bio🐾 Only a couple of these Charity Bear pin sets remain from my collab with @designed_by_ebony so if you haven't snapped yours up yet now is your chance! . And for such a wonderful cause too! HALF of these sales go direct to @freethebears ! ❤ (ps swipe to see the gorgeous Moon Bear!) . 🐾About the cause🐾: Free The Bears do great work saving Sun Bears and Moon Bears from poaching. Many of these bears are taken as cubs and forced to become dancing bears, or locked up in restaurants for bear paw soup. Free the bears is working to save these bears and return them to the wild where possible. . #conservation #charity #charitypin #freethebears #bear #bearpin #enamelpin #enamelpins #pins #pinspinspins #wildlife #asia #etsy #etsyfinds #collaboration #artists #pingame #pingamestrong #pincommunity #pincollection #pinsofig #pinsanity #pinstagram #melbourne #sydney #california #unitedkingdom #creative #kawaii #accessories

[peacephotography]

Pristina bear sanctuary, Kosovo Photograph: Armend Nimani

[traveladventures]

Weeks 8, 9 & 10: Chiang Rai, Laos

Distance travelled by Air: 0 Miles (6029 total) Distance travelled by Rail: 0 Miles (1188 total) Distance travelled by Boat: 180 Miles (180 total) Distance travelled by Road: 945 Miles (7220 total) Distance travelled on Foot: 94.6 Miles (408.6 total) Places Visited: 5 (30 total) Burgers eaten so far: 7 (19 total) Things learnt these weeks: Everything is better when deep fried, boat is (so far) our favourite way to travel, Millie is still terrible at beer pong.

After reaching Yangon, we spent the next two days travelling back to Thailand and up to Chiang Rai, where we spent most of the next week. After three solid days of travelling, we were very knackered and a little bit homesick, so we didn’t do a huge amount this week. We explored the town a bit, including the night bazaar, where we were sold a platter of all things deep fried for ~£1, including spring rolls, tempura and chicken. We also hired a motorcycle again, and took a day trip out to the Khun Korn Waterfall. This involved parking up and taking a 2km hike through the jungle to reach the falls, through some fairly rough terrain, which was definitely worth the walk. We also took the local bus out to the White Temple, an art installation in the shape of a buddhist temple, for some good photos. 

After a chilled out week in Chiang Rai, we took the local bus to the border with Laos (along with a couple of live cockerels as cargo), and crossed over the Mekong River. We spent the night just over the border, and in the morning we boarded the Slow Boat to Luang Prabang, the former capital of Laos. This was another 2 day journey, but this time it was much more enjoyable! Instead of being stuck in cramped bus seats, swerving at speed on mountain roads, we were on a gentle, scenic cruise down the Mekong River, with occasional stops for locals to get on/off. This was definitely our favourite mode of transport so far, it was just so relaxing and peaceful. We arrived in Luang Prabang at the end of the following day, after a stopover in Pak Beng (where we found a great Indian restaurant for dinner), and took a tuk-tuk to our hostel. 

Luang Prabang is a small town, where we, again, had a very low-activity week. As we’d progressed further south, the temperature was picking up again, so we tried to keep out of the sun by checking out the local markets and such. We also took another trip to another waterfall, the Kuang Si falls, which also houses a bear sanctuary and butterfly park. We were able to climb to the top of the waterfall this time, the equivalent of 51 flights of stairs, and enjoy the view (when we’d finally got our breath back). 

After 4 or 5 days in LP, we took the VIP bus to Vang Vieng. VV is a very small town, situated on a river. It made a name for itself a few years back because of the large number of backpackers who visited every year, and took a ‘tube’ down the river, stopping at bars every 500 yards and drinking (and more) to excess. In 2015, the Laos government stepped in to clean up VV’s reputation after a number of deaths of travellers. The place is a lot more tame now than in it’s heyday, but they still offer tubing between ¾ bars down the river. We had a great day floating on the current, and stopping for a cold drink a few times. In the first bar we were challenged to a game of beer pong by some strangers (who we’re fairly sure worked in the bar), and lost by 1 cup - not bad considering neither of us have played for a couple of years! We also walked out to the nearby blue lagoon on another day, and enjoyed cooling off after walking nearly 7 miles in the hot sun to get there. 

After VV, we arranged another VIP bus to Vientiane. The first VIP bus we’d taken was a double decker coach, so we were expecting similar again - but we were sorely disappointed when a vehicle not much bigger then a minibus turned up. The seats spanned 4-wide across the bus, and there was no aisle - once you were in, you weren’t going anywhere. Luckily, this bus filled up before we had a chance to get on it, and we were placed on the replacement minibus with a little bit of space to stretch out. 

We arrived in Vientiane on Saturday evening, and have spent a couple of days exploring again. The city is right on the border with Thailand, with the two countries split by the Mekong (the same river we travelled down by boat), so we took a wander down to the river and stood on the border looking over to Thailand. Today we took a walk around the city, as we hadn’t really exercised much in the last week or two, and visited the Presidential Palace, the COPE Amputee Rehabilitation Centre, Pha That Luang (a Stupa that is covered in 500kg of gold leaf, and appears on all Laos banknotes) and Patuxai, and war memorial built after WW2. This meant a 9.5 mile walk around town, before coming back to the hostel and collapsing in to a chair! 

Next week: Hanoi

[fahdfadzly]

#freethebears to protect, preserve and enrich the lives of bears. (at Kuang Si Falls)

[solosomji]

Bear Sanctuary in Luang Prabang

The bear sanctuary in Luang Prabang stole my heart away. I was so excited about it and conveniently, it was located at the entrance to some spectacular waterfalls which is what most go to see. So the day after checking in, I headed up to the waterfalls and spent almost half my time at the bear portion! (The waterfalls are also spectacular and well worth the visit.) Free the Bears is an organisation that works in several countries to rescue bears from adverse conditions. Every country has it’s own problems - in Indonesia it’s the forest fires, in India it’s circus bears (which is barely a problem anymore). In Laos, the main problem is that the bears are trapped in bar camps which means they are basically put in a tiny cage and bile is extracted from their body every other day - essentially reopening a wound every other day - one can only imagine how painful this is! There’s a belief that the bile has medicinal properties. Although this practice is illegal, it is not rigorously enforced in Laos. But Free the Bears works with the government to try and develop a strategy for this while also maintaining the conservatory. I was told that some of the bears even develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with one bear knocking it’s teeth out and another falling from a tree, and some need to be kept in special conditions to overcome trauma. Free the Bears believe in no physical human interaction as the ultimate aim is to re-release the bears back into the wild and they don’t want them imprinting humans. But you can feed them by throwing food across the fence and stand and watch them - they eat, play, climb trees and sleep and really have the life! Male and female bears are kept separate as taking care of the existing bears already proves to be difficult financially - forget more bears! I went to the area where the cubs were kept as well and one of them came up to me and put his palm against mine (on the glass) - I could swear we had a connection! Free the Bears attempted a release effort in the past, and, despite much research and investment, it failed. They educated the communities, they left an open cage with food in the middle so that the bears could venture out and then come back in for safety, they had CCTV cameras set up; and yet despite all of this, six months after the bears were released they found them dead. In fact, very few release efforts have succeeded in the past. The really incredible thing is that Free the Bears is expanding from half a hectare to 13 hectares over the next several years where they will be equipped with a much wider range of services including DNA testing and will also have rescued tigers. For this, they need volunteers with all kinds of skills starting February 2017 - photographers, PR specialists, communications people, architects, even policy people! - in a scheme where they will provide accommodation and food and you figure out flights and visas. I am seriously considering going back to work on the policy strategy element to develop a long term vision with government...stay tuned! They are really open to all kinds of volunteers but I will find out more in the next several weeks. If anyone is interested, I’d be more than happy to send through details when I have them!