Today is International Polar Bear Day.

In Cochrane, the polar bear habitat is raising awareness about the effects of climate change on the animals.

Bear keepers there say “climate change is not cool” and they're letting people know what they can do to help stop it and ultimately save polar bears. 

Henry is the youngest of the three bears at the only polar bear dedicated facility in the world. 

Officials say there's no better place than this to put International Polar Bear Day in the spotlight. The day is an annual global event drawing attention to the challenges polar bears face in the warming arctic.

Dylan McCarty is the Cochrane Polar Bear Habitat Conservation Coordinator.

"When we see a shorter duration and amount of sea ice throughout the winter, they have less resources to find.  So, we're seeing bears with lower body conditions, lower survival rates and this negatively impacts the bears." said McCarty.

The facility in Cochrane is as close as it gets to the real deal for the bears living there. It's only 250 kilometres south of a natural polar bear population and is a fenced enclosure with 13 acres of land and an 8 acre lake. It's also the only centre of its kind with naturally forming ice.

The polar bear habitat is a place where people can learn about the majestic creatures, see them up close safely, and maybe even have their heartstrings pulled.

Officials say it's important for everyone to learn the importance of these animals.

Sheena Cheff-Morrison from the Cochrane Child Care Centre visited the facility with some of the children in her program.

“We talk about what they eat and where they live and how they like to live in snow and their habitat and stuff like that." said Cheff-Morrison.

World wildlife fund officials say one-third of the world's polar bears will be gone by 2050.

"It's scary to think that we could lose that amount of bears in such a short period of time, but we need to take action quickly, so we can help combat the effect of climate change." said McCarty.

He and his fellow bear keepers encourage people to engage in Meatless Monday as one effort to combat climate change. They say eating one less burger a week is the equivalent of taking your car off the road for 320 miles. 

A new recipe or tip will be posted on the habitat's website.