Human-Bear Conflicts Expert Team Co-chair

Lana is an independent scientist who has conducted research on American black bears and grizzly bears since 1993. Her Master’s degree focused on reducing negative human–black bear interactions. Her doctoral research examined the effects of timber harvesting on the demography and habitat selection of grizzly bears. She is currently the Principal Investigator for the Orphaned Grizzly Bear Rewilding Project, which is the only rehabilitation and release program for grizzly bears in North America. Her research interests focus on the interaction of humans and bears, particularly as they relate to resource extraction, urban expansion, and commercial bear viewing . Her report, “Reducing human-bear conflicts: solutions through better management of non-natural foods” (Ciarniello 1997) pioneered the BC Bear Smart program. Lana believes in science-based management of bears. She uses temporal and spatial modeling to seek to explain human encroachment into bear habitat, natural food shortages, and human–bear conflicts in relation to grizzly and black bear biological requirements. Lana is the sole proprietor of Aklak Wildlife Consulting based in Campbell River, British Columbia, Canada.