Earlier this month, a group of visitors from several countries visited ABR while on a U.S. Dept. of State-sponsored project designed to inform about strategies for “managing national and state parks and other natural heritage sites to meet often conflicting goals of resource conservation and viable local economic development.” The visitors did not go to the pens where the bears are housed, as TWRA rules prohibit the public (even international visitors) from such contact, but they toured the rest of the facility, seeing the new buildings and the work being done. Here is a photo of all of the visitors, with their U.S. and ABR hosts. It was an honor to be chosen by the State Department as a stop on the tour of parks and other facilities.
Pictured above are representatives from Brazil, Thailand, Nigeria, Phillipines, (Joel Zachry, ABR advisor who was showing visitors around), Laos, China, Bangladesh, (host from International House), Kenya, Poland, (US State Department representative), (host from International House), (Rick Noseworthy, ABR Curator).