Leonard Ellis knows more than most tourism operators what it means to pivot a business. Over his 50-year career, and as the owner of Bella Coola Grizzly Tours, he has transitioned from hunting big game to viewing them instead. But his motivation to bring balance to nature through guided tours is unchanged. Leonard has worked to re-introduce grizzly bears to an area where prior hunting outfitters had driven them out, and he says today’s trips are a lower-impact operation. But how do we know tourism’s best role in conservation? Are we sometimes harming when we think we’re helping? This conversation brings up hard questions and gives us a fascinating glimpse into what it means to roll with the changes in a tourism life on the land.

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