Fat Bear Week reminded me that bears really earn their winter hibernation—and people love to engage and participate, not just consume.
On September 29th, Backpack, officially Bear 89, won the 2026 Fat Bear competition. My husband has followed this competition closely for a few years, so I’ve heard plenty about the contenders and their intense rivalries. Approximately 2.5 million votes were cast across the tournament, with more than 200,000 votes cast in the final. Coverage included The Washington Post, People, The Guardian and El País: substantial attention for bears preparing for winter hibernation.
Fat Bear Week draws attention to an important and under-the-radar issue: Alaska’s brown bears and the ecosystems that sustain them. This uniquely fun, participatory campaign invites people to learn more about bears by following the contenders, choosing a favorite, and donating to protect their habitat.
The rest of us don’t need an idea as inspired as Fat Bear Week to put its lessons to work. Here are three takeaways we can all use:
Pay attention to what your audience contributes.
In 2014, park ranger Mike Fitz noticed that a bearcam viewer had shared early- and late-summer images of the same bear. The transformation inspired Fitz and fellow rangers to organize Fat Bear Tuesday, inviting people to vote through Facebook likes. By 2015, it had expanded into a full week.
Rangers recognized its potential and tested a simple way to involve others. That’s a useful prompt for any organization: what are people already noticing, sharing or creating around your mission? Their contributions can reveal opportunities you might otherwise miss.
Give people a meaningful role.
Fat Bear Week participants have real, not performative, power! Their votes determine which bear advances and ultimately wins.
In my writing on social impact, I explore how input, co-creation and open participation can deepen investment by supporters and customers. Where could your audience help shape a decision, contribute an idea or create something that matters?
Build an experience people can keep returning to.
The yearly ritual of Fat Bear Week is key to its success. Live cameras and bear profiles allow viewers to get to know individual animals over time. People and the media start to expect news of the competing bears and their considerable girth.
While millions of votes and international headlines don’t mean that all participants become conservation advocates, the experience offers an opening for deeper interest. And that’s how this fun, participatory campaign can build connection to a conservation mission.
These lessons reflect my approach at Alvo + Beal: look to your community for ideas and approaches that resonate, and use your organizational capacity to scale the participation and impact.
For now, I’m sending my best wishes for a peaceful and safe hibernation for Backpack and his fellow competitors.
