Hello, on behalf of everyone that has signed this petition I have made a speech at the recent Three Sisters For Wildlife rally and delivered the following speech about bear 148. Together we CAN make a difference! If you are here, you probably know who I am talking about when I say Bear 148. For those that don’t a quick recap. 148 was a beautiful 6.5 year old grizzly bear in the prime of her life. Most Town of Banff locals have seen her, while others have had the pleasure of seeing her many, many times. She was the daughter of two legendary Banff bears well known to local’s as bears 64 and 122. The citizens of Banff have literally watched her grow from a cub into the beautiful and intelligent bear we loved so much. She spent almost all of her time in Banff National Park under the protection of Parks Canada. They were able to successfully manage her despite the millions of visitors we see every year for the last 6 years and while things haven’t been perfect, she wasn’t a problem bear to us. She was an important bear coming into a very important time of her life. Breeding age. She learned to adapt to us on every level. She was tolerant and resourceful. She is now dead. Her crime? Simply being a bear in a place where bears belong. We didn’t have a very good year for berries in Banff but the berries in Canmore were ripe and delicious. Instinct told her to gain as much weight as possible before denning for the winter, so she ventured into the Canmore area in search of her main source of food….berries. This mistake proved to be fatal. She crossed an invisible border that removed her from the protection of those that knew her best (Parks Canada) and into the jurisdiction of AF&W. Within days they were threatening euthanasia. Our goal when we started this journey was to save 148’s life. Now that she is gone, our goal is to ensure that she is that last animal to fall victim to a failing system. We….You…Everyone must stand up and voice their dismay at the expendability shown for wildlife in our current policies. We have a responsibility to stand up when our system is broken. We have a right as citizens to demand change. Every single person here, every single sign I see is a voice. Our wildlife has no voice, they have no say in what becomes of their habitat - they have no say in what becomes of their lives or the lives of their young. They are merely trying to scrape by an existence that they have no control over. We as humans have all of the control. We have the ability to destroy their habitat, and make it impossible for them to survive here, or we have the ability to respect the lives of wildlife and enable them to flourish. I beg our local government and government agencies burdened with this responsibility to choose the latter. Our area is already world renowned for its beauty. We have an exceptional opportunity to become world renowned for our environmental accomplishments. After 148 was translocated over 500 kilometres away she was shot dead by a trophy hunter, after again stepping over another invisible border into BC where it is legal to hunt grizzly bears for sport. Do we blame the hunter, or do we blame those that put her in range of the hunter’s gun? She should have been able to live in this area for the rest of her days and been given the opportunity and respect to contribute to the survival of her species. She was robbed of that opportunity and those that are charged with these decisions need to know that we won’t tolerate these policies any longer. Her death has become a catalyst for change and it would seem that responsibility to ensure that change comes rests with us. The conversation has started, the first steps towards change have been taken and that is because of all of you, because you made politicians listen. You, the citizens of the Bow Valley have decided that enough is enough. It is time for change, it is time for improvements, it is time to check our moral compasses and decide on what kind of future we want to leave for the next generation. What will our legacy be? This area is not only populated by humans and therefore cannot run on human desires alone. Whether this involves bike trails, hiking trails, dog parks, swimming holes, area closures, new developments etc. etc. etc. we ALL have a responsibility to take into consideration the wildlife and environment that drives our economy. For who will come here when there is nothing left? Since 148 has now become a poster child who represents the need to protect all of our wildlife from ground squirrels to grizzlies, I would like to take this opportunity to lead a moment of silence in her honour. Moment of Silence. Thank you