Rather known than unknown?

“Some people prefer familiar problems over unfamiliar possibilities.”
– Omdenken

Humans are strange creatures.

We complain about bears getting too close to our villages.
About foxes stealing chickens.
About badgers digging under roads like they’ve never read the urban planning rules.

And yet…
When someone says, “What if we could live together with wild animals?”
Things go quiet.

Because living together means doing things differently. Thinking differently. Feeling differently.
And that can be… uncomfortable.

The bear you know

A bear that opens your trash can from time to time?
Annoying — but familiar.
You know where the bin is. You know the damage.
You can be annoyed, blame the system, and end the day with a sense of control. Or at least, recognition.

The fox you don’t understand

But an unfamiliar possibility?
Like:
🐾 Education that isn’t just about humans, but about other wild animals.
🐾 Learning to read wild behavior — not as threat, but as an invitation.
🐾 A society where not just people have rights, but also wild animals have certain (which?) rights.

Now that is scary.
That is intangible.
That requires something of us that we’re rarely trained in: unlearning.

Learning to live together

Because living with wild animals isn’t about finding the right manual.
It’s about listening.
To stories.
To discomfort — without rushing to fix it.

And that’s exactly what is central at Bear at Work Academy.

Making space for the unknown.
Not with ready-made answers, but with real, honest questions.
Not with solutions, but with stories that shift your view.
Sometimes raw. Sometimes soft. Sometimes funny. Always real.

You don’t have to know yet

Maybe you feel some resistance right now.
Or maybe curiosity.
Maybe you’re thinking, “Sounds good, but how?”
Or “Nice idea, but in practice…”

Perfect. That’s exactly where it starts.
Not with knowing. But with daring to wonder:

What if I stop repeating that familiar problem?

What if I explore an unknown possibility – together with others?

And you know what?
I’ve been there too.

I’ve known for a long time that wild animals matter.
Not just as populations or numbers in a wildlife management model —
but as individuals.
Beings who affect us.
Who challenge us — in policy, in emotion, in action.

But how to work with that, let alone to be included in scientific research….
How to take animals seriously, without turning them into little humans (a critique I heard so many times)…
I didn’t know that either.

I had to learn. Over years of research.
Through conversations, doubt, fieldwork, getting it wrong and trying again.
And I’m still learning.

What I do know is: it’s possible.
Without sentimentality. Without wishful thinking.
Just by really looking. And listening. To them. And to yourself.

Final question:

What if you would ask a different question today, than yesterday?

Like this one:
👉 “How can I live in a way that makes space for wild animals?”

The rest will follow.

And if not?
Well — at least you’ll have a good story.
Maybe even one about a bear (my favorite still 😉 )

Or a bee. Or a spider. Or your favorite animal!