Humans have been keeping bears in zoos, menageries, and dens for thousands of years. Maybe because our history with the animals is so long, we tend to think that we know all that there is to know about them. We certainly know how to build enclosures that are capable of keeping bears in. We know how to provide diets that keep them alive. We (vaguely) know how to breed them. Beyond that, we saw little need to go for quite some time.
We're starting to see the realization among zoos that bears are like elephants and great apes: large, intelligent, behaviorally complex animals that need a habitat and a care regime that satisfies their many needs. Every bear is an individual with its own personality and its own story, and the care may need to be adjusted to reflect that. Bears require a lot of space and a lot of keeper time in order to provide the enrichment and training that they need to be kept mentally stimulated. One consequence of this may be that zoos aren't able to house as many bears as they previously were able to, when a small, concrete cage and an adjacent den was considered adequate to meet their needs.
Bears require a lot in order to really be kept healthy and happy (you might even say that they need more than the... bare necessities. I'll see myself out). Based on my experiences working with three species, I can say without doubt - bears are worth it.
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