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Mary Hutton is the founder of the Free the Bears Fund and animal activist.

Activism
In 1993, Mary Hutton started a petition at her local shopping mall after witnessing on television the extraction of bile from an Asiatic Black Bear. The bear was in a coffin-sized cage with its bile being removed via an catheter]. Within months she had thousands of signatures and regular supporters. In 1995, [[Free the Bears Fund was officially formed. The petition was presented to the Chinese Embassy in Canberra which evoked public and media interest. Mary Hutton continued to fundraise. During this time she was made aware of the dangers facing the South East Asian Sun Bear. Mary was asked to help rescue and relocate some Sun Bears that had been taken from Phnom Penh restaurants. Her work with the bears spread to encompass multiple species including Asiatic Black Bears, Sloth Bears, and Sun Bears. The fund is active in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, India, Thailand, and Kalimantan.

Achievements
Hutton has been a finalist for the Senior Australian of the Year Award five times.