Humane Solutions was engaged by the District of Squamish to provide wildlife education and community engagement as part of the District's human-wildlife conflict reduction strategy — an acknowledgment that sustainable conflict management requires behavior change, not just reactive response.

The Context

Squamish ranks among the top ten communities in BC for black bear activity. Located at the intersection of dense forest, residential neighborhoods, and extensive trail networks, the community has sustained exposure to a variety of wildlife species — including bears, coyotes, and deer — that residents encounter regularly.

The District's approach to this reality has been forward-thinking. Rather than defaulting to lethal management or complaint-driven response, Squamish has invested in proactive infrastructure and education: shifting curbside collection timing to reduce wildlife attractants, implementing Bear Smart principles, and now partnering with Humane Solutions on community engagement.

Our Role

Working in conjunction with the BC Conservation Officer Service and the District, our team took on the role of:

  • Identifying wildlife hotspots — mapping areas of elevated conflict activity to direct education and infrastructure resources precisely
  • Coordinating public communication — translating field observations into accessible guidance for residents
  • Implementing Bear Smart initiatives — supporting residents in reducing the attractants that drive conflicts: unsecured garbage, organics bins, fruit trees, and bird feeders

"Education, innovation and collaboration are critical to mitigating human-wildlife conflict and our team is committed to maintaining industry best practices while also focusing on sustainability and welfare," said Emma Harris, Chief Operating Officer at Humane Solutions.

Why This Approach Works

Human-wildlife conflict in high-density wildlife communities is fundamentally an attractant problem. Bears and other wildlife are not randomly aggressive — they are responding to accessible food sources that humans create through garbage management practices, landscaping choices, and outdoor storage habits.

Lethal management of individual conflict animals does not resolve these attractant drivers. The next animal moves in. Community education and infrastructure change — securing attractants, understanding seasonal behavior, knowing when to call Conservation Officers — is the only approach that addresses root causes at scale.

Mayor Karen Elliott's statement at the program launch made this explicit: "Our goals are twofold: to safely co-exist with wildlife whether out on the trails or within our neighbourhoods, and to protect the species that live here."

A Model for Municipal Wildlife Programs

The Squamish engagement represents the kind of municipal wildlife program that produces durable results: data-driven identification of hotspots, professionally designed community communication, and collaboration between the municipality, provincial conservation authority, and a specialized private operator.

We look forward to publishing outcomes from this program as the engagement develops. Municipalities and regional districts interested in similar programs are welcome to contact us to discuss structure and scope.