10/10/10

Hey everybody! So 10/10/10 is coming up! That means worldwide eco-friendly events! YAY so I am currently organizing a winterizing of our community garden for Polar Bears International! I will have to let you guys know how it goes! If you want you should plan your own event in your hometown! Just check out www.350.org        yes. go do it now! Talk to you guys SOON! ~Wildlife Katie

Pilot Whales in New Zealand

I was reading today on Yahoo! News about the pilot whales stranded on the beaches in New Zealand. Apparently a pod of around 120 whales were beached.  Only 43 whales survived and made it back out to sea.  Reading about these pilot whales made me really sad. Why does that have to happen? Was this a cause of climate change? or did the whales just so happen to be at the end of their lives?
 I remember watching a Steve Irwin Crocodile Hunter episode where Steve put his hand on a dying whale and spent time with it as it passed away. Things like that really hit home in my heart. I want to be a conservationist and I want to go help out the whales someday. I wish I could be one of those people who coaxed the 43 whales back into the ocean. How amazing these creatures are. So beautiful and graceful. I love them. If anybody knows a way for me to get involved in whale rescue let me know. I am sure someday I will get there. I just need to get my degree first. ~Wildlife Katie

(AP Photo/New Zealand Herald, Steven McNicholl) 
Citation:
"Stranded Pilot Whales." Yahoo!News. Web. 22 Sept. 2010.< http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Stranded-PilotWhales/ss/events/sc/092210pilotwhales;_ylt=AnONXQUVO_vtXh7j4JCMTniGWo14;_ylu=X3oDMTBuaWpybDd1BHBvcwMxMgRzZWMDZXAEc2xrA2ltYWdl#photoViewer=/100922/photos_wl_pc_afp/f4a354d2599e39d8bf67901eb00c31fe>.

What 2010 Brings

Hey Friends, Family, and Fans,

I am really excited for the rest of this year! I am having two friends from Melbourne, Australia that are coming to visit in November! I am really excited about their visit because as you should probably know- I am obsessed with Australia. I hope someday I can work with marsupials in the wild or have an opportunity with the Australia Zoo (Steve Irwin's Zoo). I recently had a friend return from Australia and she bought me, "The Secret Life Of Wombats, By: James Woodford," So far it is a really incredible book about one of my favorite marsupials. The book also happens to feature Dr. Rod Wells, whom I happened to chat with recently about wombat warrens. I got his contact information from Mrs. Sandy Mann from the Brookfield Zoo's Women's board. I met her when at the scholarship luncheon that I attended before this summer. It is quite amazing how you meet so many people and how many connections people have! Really cool stuff.

I am also really excited for December of 2010 because I am going to California to meet up with my fellow arctic ambassadors with Polar Bears International!!! This will be our first reunion since our trip to Canada. I am so incredibly excited for visiting the San Diego Zoo, learning how to surf, celebrating new years in L.A. We have many plans and I can't wait until Christmas Day when I leave on the plane!

Well thats enough info for now. Talk to you all soon! Big Bear Hugs~Wildlife Katie

College Life

Dear Friends, Family, and Fans,

I am now a college student and time seems hard to grasp, but as I am getting older I am starting to put my priorities in line. I really would like to spend more time writing in my blogs. I am not sure if anybody even reads them but someday I am sure somebody might come across them and be amused or something. Being in college means less time at the zoo. I finished up Zoo Camp for the summer but I am planning on doing some overnights for Boo at the Zoo, etc.. As for being an Arctic Ambassador I am planning an event on 10/10/10 to make a difference. I am so far planning on winterizing the community garden here in my hometown. I have also started filming small documentaries for a future Wildlife Katie Show. Its quite fun, nothing too special yet but maybe it will become something. I also began reading, "Communication Skills for Conservation Professionals, By: Susan K. Jacobson," It is for Ph.D students but I wanted to get a bit of a head start on what my future should bring! Also Susan K. Jacobson is an associate professor in the department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida! (The school I hope someday to attend, possibly transfer or go to for grad school!) Well I have to go write up my first lab report on why cells are so small. Fascinating I know! Well my good readers I will talk again soon. ~Wildlife Katie

Presentations, Prom, and Polar Bears

Hey People,

Hope life is treating you well. My life is awesome. I am nearing the end of my high school years. WHOAAAAH! So, I needed to update you all. First I will begin with some awesome news. I won two scholarships. One is from the Illinois Conservation Foundation, and the second one I won from the Women's Board at Brookfield Zoo/ The Chicago Zoological Society! I am really excited! I also went to the senior awards banquet at my high school and won the Science Academic Achievement award! So that was an awesome surprise! I had my presentation on Wombats with Science Track Year 2. It went well. I actually had prom the same day as my wombat presentation. So I went to the zoo in my dress, then went to prom right afterwards. It was ok though because my dress fit the zoo theme. Yes, I put a polar bear on my dress. Why? Because the zoo has been a huge part of my life. Each day I remember my expedition to Canada to study the bears and I remember that I am a conservation leader. The polar bear resembles everything during my high school years. I spend more time at the zoo than any friend's house. Another reason why I had a polar bear painted on my dress is so that I could continue to educate. People at the dance would notice the bear and ask about it, or be reminded about protecting this species. Anyway thats a basic sum of what has been going on. Prom was an awesome night and my presentation was fun. I will catch up again later when I don't have senior banquets all week! CAIO! ~Wildlife Katie

Great Bear Wilderness

(Image from Brookfield Zoo/ Chicago Zoological Society)
Hey family, friends, and fans!

Great Bear Wilderness finally opened May 8th! It was amazing. There were Native American dancers, flute players, and story tellers available to participate in the grand ceremony. Robert Buchanan of Polar Bears International was there, as well as Bill Watkins from Manitoba Conservation. Stuart Strahl the CEO of Brookfield Zoo/ Chicago Zoological Society gave a grand opening speech. I have never seen so many excited guests. I was very excited as well. I had already seen the exhibit, but this time I was able to see the reactions of the guests which to me was the most important thing. Now finally I can see the people get connected to the polar bears in the underwater viewing area. The children would put their hands up on the glass and the polar bears would swim to them and put up their paws. It was beautiful watching these connections between humans and wildlife. In the corner of the exhibit I found my rock. The rock was my tundra rock that I picked up while on my adventures in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada with Polar Bears International's leadership camp back in 2008. I risked my life for that rock. I was amazed that it was in the exhibit. Now the bears can be connected back to the wild through my representation of the tundra rock. I hope all of you can have to chance to visitBrookfield Zoo to see Great Bear Wilderness. The bison, bald eagles, polar bears, brown bears, and wolves are a part of this amazing exhibit. If you do happen to check it out, let me know about your experiences. I really care about the bear. I really care about your connections to nature and becoming conservation leaders. You all make the biggest difference. I will talk again soon~ Wildlife Katie

Update from the hectic life

So much has happened and I haven't had time to update my blogs! I know I previously mentioned I was going to put my old blogs on here. I don't think I have time for that. Instead I will be writing about what is currently happening in life. Much more interesting right:? I am currently enjoying the company of my new addition to my life, Chuck. He is my pet hermit crab. Such a fun creature. I give him daily enrichment but I do know that I should be finding him a companion soon. (Her name will be Cindy). So then I can have my cute hermit crab couple. As for zoo life, I am working on my power point presentation on my wombat research. I have not been able to write blogs or do many zoo things because of my current intervention with the musical at my high school. Rehearsals are taking over my life. Anyways, the project sadly is coming to a close and I am going to miss my marsupial friends dearly. But on a good note, I am coming back to work in Zoo Camp again so I am really excited for my new boss Erin and seeing the new team they put together this year. I also recently applied for some scholarships from the women's board at the zoo. I DID receive a youth achievement scholarship from the Illinois Conservation Foundation, so that is exciting. Along the lines of school, I am getting my stuff figured out with Community College. I can't wait because then I will have time to do more volunteering in the Batavia Community. Our community garden project is starting up this weekend and I am excited. Well, I have to go grab some grub! I will let you know about my latest adventures when I have the chance. ~Wildlife Katie