# How the teddy bear taught us compassion

- Institution: TED
- Department: TED2014
- Speaker: Jon Mooallem
- Year: 2014
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: Earth and environment
- Source: [TED](https://www.ted.com/talks/jon_mooallem_how_the_teddy_bear_taught_us_compassion)
- Licence: [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions.)
- Who can watch: Tweens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt legendarily spared the life of a black bear -- and prompted a plush toy craze for so-called "teddy bears." Writer Jon Mooallem digs into this toy story and asks us to consider how the tales we tell about wild animals have real consequences for a species' chance of survival -- and the natural world at large.

## Lectures

1. [How the teddy bear taught us compassion](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/ted/jon_mooallem_how_the_teddy_bear_taught_us_compassion/e3201675576c), 14 min (TED's player)