ArticlePDF Available

The global reach of zoos and aquariums in visitor numbers and conservation expenditures

Authors:
  • Swiss Federal Office for the Environment

Abstract and Figures

A survey conducted by the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, in collaboration with national and regional zoo and aquarium associations, showed that annually more than 700 million people visit zoos and aquariums worldwide and are thus potentially exposed to environmental education. Furthermore, the world zoo and aquarium community reportedly spends about US$ 350 million on wildlife conservation each year. Therefore, the world zoo and aquarium community has the potential to play an important role in both environmental education and wildlife conservation. Systematic reviews are encouraged to provide further evidence for the effectiveness of zoos and aquariums as centers of education and conservation.
Content may be subject to copyright.
Zoo Biology 30 : 566– 569 (2011)
BRIEF REPORT
The Global Reach of Zoos and
Aquariums in Visitor Numbers and
Conservation Expenditures
Markus Gusset
and Gerald Dick
World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) Executive Office, Gland,
Switzerland
A survey conducted by the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, in
collaboration with national and regional zoo and aquarium associations, showed
that annually more than 700 million people visit zoos and aquariums worldwide
and are thus potentially exposed to environmental education. Furthermore, the
world zoo and aquarium community reportedly spends about US$350million on
wildlife conservation each year. Therefore, the world zoo and aquarium community
has the potential to play an important role in both environmental education and
wildlife conservation. Systematic reviews are encouraged to provide further
evidence for the effectiveness of zoos and aquariums as centers of education and
conservation. Zoo Biol 30:566–569, 2011. c2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Keywords: aquarium; conservation; education; funding; visitor; WAZA; zoo
INTRODUCTION
Modern zoos and aquariums increasingly see themselves as centers of
education and conservation [Miller et al., 2004], as stipulated in the revised World
Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy [WAZA, 2005]. There is in fact a dual
mission of many zoos and aquariums to be leaders in both education and
conservation [Patrick et al., 2007]. As for example with the Congo Gorilla Forest
exhibit at Bronx Zoo or the Masoala Rainforest exhibit at Zurich Zoo, education
Published online 6 December 2010 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com).
DOI 10.1002/zoo.20369
Received 7 June 2010; Revised 29 July 2010; Accepted 25 October 2010
Correspondence to: Markus Gusset, World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) Executive Office,
IUCN Conservation Centre, Rue Mauverney 28, 1196 Gland, Switzerland. E-mail: markus.gusset@waza.org
rr
2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
and conservation increasingly complement and reinforce each other [Rabb and
Saunders, 2005; Fraser and Wharton, 2007]; both are contingent upon people being
exposed to and spending money on such initiatives.
However, as the last global survey was performed nearly 20 years ago
[IUDZG/CBSG, 1993], there is no up-to-date estimate available of the number of
people who are potentially exposed to environmental education, whether formal or
informal, at zoos and aquariums. Davey [2007] showed that regional zoo and
aquarium attendance may indeed vary over time. Furthermore, we entirely lack an
estimate of the financial expenditures of the world zoo and aquarium community on
wildlife conservation. We thus sought to obtain current figures on the global reach of
zoos and aquariums in visitor numbers and conservation expenditures.
METHODS
We approached 12 national and regional zoo and aquarium associations,
covering all regions of the world, to provide a figure regarding the following two
questions: How many visitors did your member institutions receive in 2008? How
much money was spent on wildlife conservation by your member institutions in
2008? (Wildlife conservation in this context encompasses in situ conservation of wild
species and habitats, including related ex situ work). Although all 12 associations
submitted figures on visitor numbers that they sought to obtain from their more than
1000 members, only seven associations submitted figures on conservation
expenditures.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
About 600 million people reportedly visited zoos and aquariums worldwide in
2008. When comparing zoo and aquarium attendance between the last global survey
in 1990 and 2008 (Table 1), those associations reporting higher numbers in the
current survey represent regions with established documenting structures (North
America, Australasia, and Europe), suggestive of a growing number of visits in these
regions [cf. Davey, 2007]. Conversely, those associations reporting lower numbers in
the current survey represent regions where obtaining comprehensive numbers is
more challenging (Latin America, Africa, and Asia). Although the current survey
was specifically aimed at collecting documented figures from the associations’
TABLE 1. Annual Number of Visits to Zoos and Aquariums Worldwide in 1990 [IUDZG/
CBSG, 1993], 2008 (This Survey), and Adjusted (in Millions of People)
1990 2008 Adjusted
a
North America 106 186 186
Latin America 61 11 61
Africa 15 8 15
Australasia 6 17 17
Europe 125 142 142
Asia 308 221 308
Global total 621 585 729
a
1990 figures for Latin America, Africa, and Asia. 2008 figures for North America,
Australasia, and Europe.
567Visitor Numbers and Conservation Expenditures
Zoo Biology
members, which generally proved feasible for the former three regions, the previous
survey [IUDZG/CBSG, 1993] relied on the associations’ estimates of zoo and
aquarium attendance. This may be more appropriate for the latter three regions,
given the underestimates in documented figures confirmed by those associations in
the current survey. Considering this variation in reporting between the two surveys
and assuming a largely unchanged number of existing zoos and aquariums, it seems
legitimate to adjust the results accordingly (Table 1), in which case zoos and
aquariums worldwide receive more than 700 million visits annually. This figure,
which may include multiple individual visits, is most certainly an underestimate
[WAZA, 2009] and is unparalleled by any other group of conservation-oriented
institutions.
The world zoo and aquarium community reportedly spent about US$350 mil-
lion on wildlife conservation in 2008. This amount includes the expenses of zoo-
based conservation organizations, but given that only about half of the associations
submitted figures on conservation expenditures (see above), it is most certainly an
underestimate. Across regions, zoos and aquariums in North America and Europe
spent the most by far on wildlife conservation (97% of expenses reported). In
relation to major international conservation organizations (Fig. 1), the world zoo
and aquarium community is among the main providers of conservation funding.
CONCLUSIONS
The large number of visitors received and amount of conservation money spent
suggest that the world zoo and aquarium community has the potential to play an
important role in both environmental education and wildlife conservation
[for examples, see Zimmermann et al., 2007; Dick and Gusset, 2010]. However, it
remains largely unclear how education initiatives affect visitor behavior [Ogden and
Heimlich, 2009] and how financial expenditures influence conservation efforts
Fig. 1. Amount of money spent on wildlife conservation by major international conservation
organizations (figures taken from annual reports) and the world zoo and aquarium
community (this survey) in 2008 (in thousands of US$).
568 Gusset and Dick
Zoo Biology
[Ferraro and Pattanayak, 2006]. Regarding the latter, Gusset and Dick [2010]
showed that increasing support provided by zoos and aquariums, particularly
financial, indeed leads to a significantly higher overall impact of a conservation
project. Systematic reviews [Pullin and Stewart, 2006] are encouraged to provide
further evidence for the effectiveness of zoos and aquariums as centers of education
and conservation.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are grateful to ALPZA, AMACZOOA, AZA, CAZA, CAZG, EARAZA,
EAZA, JAZA, PAAZAB, SAZARC, SEAZA, and ZAA for providing figures on
visitor numbers and conservation expenditures. Laura Penn and three anonymous
referees kindly provided helpful comments on this paper.
REFERENCES
Davey G. 2007. An analysis of country, socio-
economic and time factors on worldwide zoo
attendance during a 40 year period. Int Zoo
Yearb 41:217–225.
Dick G, Gusset M, editors. 2010. Building a future
for wildlife: zoos and aquariums committed to
biodiversity conservation. Gland, Switzerland:
WAZA Executive Office. 215p.
Ferraro PJ, Pattanayak SK. 2006. Money for
nothing? A call for empirical evaluation of
biodiversity conservation investments. PLoS Biol
4:482–488.
Fraser J, Wharton D. 2007. The future of zoos: a new
model for cultural institutions. Curator 50:41–54.
Gusset M, Dick G. 2010. ‘‘Building a Future for
Wildlife’’? Evaluating the contribution of the
world zoo and aquarium community to in situ
conservation. Int Zoo Yearb 44:183–191.
IUDZG/CBSG. 1993. The world zoo conservation
strategy: the role of the zoos and aquaria of the
world in global conservation. Chicago, IL:
Chicago Zoological Society. 76p.
Miller B, Conway W, Reading RP, Wemmer C,
Wildt D, Kleiman D, Monfort S, Rabinowitz A,
Armstrong B, Hutchins M. 2004. Evaluating the
conservation mission of zoos, aquariums, bota-
nical gardens, and natural history museums.
Conserv Biol 18:86–93.
Ogden J, Heimlich JE. 2009. Why focus on zoo
and aquarium education? Zoo Biol 28:357–360.
Patrick PG, Matthews CE, Ayers DF, Tunnicliffe SD.
2007. Conservation and education: prominent
themes in zoo mission statements. J Environ
Educ 38:53–59.
Pullin AS, Stewart GB. 2006. Guidelines for
systematic review in conservation and environ-
mental management. Conserv Biol 20:1647–1656.
Rabb GB, Saunders CD. 2005. The future of zoos
and aquariums: conservation and caring. Int Zoo
Yearb 39:1–26.
WAZA. 2005. Building a future for wildlife: the
world zoo and aquarium conservation strategy.
Bern, Switzerland: WAZA Executive Office. 72p.
WAZA. 2009. Turning the tide: a global aquarium
strategy for conservation and sustainability. Bern,
Switzerland: WAZA Executive Office. 78p.
Zimmermann A, Hatchwell M, Dickie LA,
West C, editors. 2007. Zoos in the 21st century:
catalysts for conservation? Cambridge, UK:
Cambridge University Press. 371p.
569Visitor Numbers and Conservation Expenditures
Zoo Biology
... This is particularly important for snake conservation as negative attitudes and persecution have directly contributed to their global decline (Gibbons et al. 2000;Vaughn et al. 2022). In addition, zoos can also contribute to reptile conservation by providing financial (Gusset and Dick 2011) and technical support for in situ projects, making them integral to the One Plan approach to the conservation of reptile species (Byers et al. 2013). ...
... Venomous reptiles particularly elicit strong emotions, including fear, disgust, curiosity, and fascination due to their potential danger, which can both attract and repel visitors (Kontsiotis, Rapti, and Liordos 2022;Landová et al. 2020; Marcellini and Jenssen 1988;Rádlová et al. 2019). Since visitor attendance is essential for generating the financial resources required for zoos to fund in situ conservation (Gusset and Dick 2011;Mooney et al. 2020), some authors have urged zoos to take a flagship approach and prioritize keeping large popular mammals to increase visitor attendance and in situ conservation fundraising (Colléony et al. 2017;Hutchins, Willis, and Wiese 1995;Mooney et al. 2020). Large mammals however require large enclosures (reduce the overall carrying capacity of zoos), have less chance of being successfully reintroduced, and are often not well suited to captivity, raising ethical issues that may ultimately deter visitors (Balmford, Mace, and Leader-Williams 1996;Clubb & Mason 2003). ...
Article
Full-text available
Zoos are under increasing pressure to strategically manage their collections to maximize visitor attendance, financial income, and their contribution to conservation. As a result, the compositions of zoo collections are undergoing significant changes. Many zoos are keeping fewer species and prioritizing keeping large flagship animals that are more attractive to the public. To understand the effects these changes are having on captive reptile numbers, we have analyzed the trends in reptile holdings between 2003 and 2023 at UK zoos. Our findings show that despite an overall increase in reptile numbers in the period analyzed, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of venomous snakes held at UK zoos, and as a result, venomous snakes are being excluded from many of the conservation benefits that zoos provide. To understand the key factors contributing to the decline in venomous snake numbers, 57 staff members across 35 different BIAZA–accredited zoos were surveyed. Results from the survey identified that a perceived increased risk of harm, increasingly stringent health and safety regulations, and increased husbandry requirements were all key contributing factors to why venomous snake numbers at zoos are in decline.
... Zoos and aquariums fulfil a crucial role in various facets pertaining to the preservation and conservation of biodiversity. They serve as educational centres (Carr and Cohen 2011;Schwan et al. 2014), research hubs (Rose et al. 2019), and facilitators of species survival through both financial and technical support in the animals' native habitats, as well as through captive breeding programs (Gusset and Dick 2011;IUCN 2014). Additionally, these establishments provide a unique opportunity to instil positive values and promote sustainability practices among visitors (Sjögren et al. 2015). ...
Article
Full-text available
The environmental impacts of human activities are widely acknowledged, but the ramifications of inadequate waste management on threatened species in distant habitats often remain overlooked. This study explores the potential of Augmented Reality (AR) technology in zoos as an educational tool to raise awareness regarding unsustainable practices in high biodiversity ecosystems. By leveraging newer AR technologies, animals in zoos can serve as effective ambassadors, conveying sustainability messages and showcasing the challenges faced by threatened species in their natural habitats. Through a comprehensive examination, this paper sheds light on the valuable insights and potential applications of utilizing AR technology for conservation education. While the impact on knowledge change was not found to be statistically significant, the incorporation of AR has the potential to enhance visitors’ perception of new scenarios, thus augmenting the educational value of zoos by introducing novel elements, exemplified by the representation of the detrimental effects of unsustainable waste management in delicate ecosystems. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that the majority of users perceive the utilization of AR in zoos as a highly positive experience, fostering increased engagement and extended periods of observation within the habitats. However, the findings of this study also demonstrate that AR does not necessarily offer an education solution despite its potential to enrich the visitor experience in the context of zoos. Therefore, more objective-focused designed and curated AR experiences need to be developed, to unveil the education potential of AR in zoos and aquariums.
... For example, the Association of Zoological Gardens, with its 71 members in German-speaking countries, had more than 43 million visitors in 2018 (Kögler et al. 2020). The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria reported more than 140 million visitors in 2017 (Griffith 2017) and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums recorded more than 700 million annual zoo visits in one year (Gusset and Dick 2011). ...
Article
Full-text available
With their hundreds of millions of visitors worldwide, zoos are important environmental education institutions in our society. Although not every visitor participates in a conservation education program, zoos offer opportunities for all visitors to learn about animals, the environment, and species conservation through signage and informational panels. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether the location of giraffe-themed Giraffa camelopardalis camelopardalis exhibition panels has an impact on how intensely visitors engage with the signs. In addition, it was investigated which thematic complexes on the signage are looked at longer by the visitors and whether there are group differences in the viewing of the exhibition. The results showed that significantly more people looked at the exhibition panels when they were placed directly in front of the giraffe house, which can potentially be explained by the situational interest triggered. The signs with general information about giraffe biology were viewed significantly longer compared to the signs with information about the habitat or species conservation. It was also found that people who viewed more signs also tended to look at them for significantly longer periods of time. Individuals with children generally had a shorter viewing time. These findings suggest that strategic placement of signage and consideration of content type can enhance visitor engagement. However, further research is needed to explore these factors in different contexts and to develop best practices for educational signage in zoos and similar settings.
... The UK ranks third in the general assessment but second in the "Veterinary" category. However, New Zealand and Australia (3rd and 4th in our evaluation) ranked 28th and 11th, respectively, in that category (39th and 10th in the general assessment), also being among the regions that host the lowest annual number of visitors [32]. Perhaps the fact that many Australian zoos put a strong emphasis on their conservation role [51][52][53] might somehow spur higher scientific production rates in this area than expected. ...
Article
Full-text available
Zoos and aquariums attract millions of visitors around the world. At the same time, the functions they fulfill and the way they do that have been subject to scrutiny from different fields of knowledge. The way societies perceive animals has evolved in recent decades and so has the social perception of institutions that work with them. This scoping review aims to gather studies from the last three decades that shade light on how current societies perceive zoos and aquariums. We selected papers describing quantitative studies published in English in peer-reviewed journals. We reviewed 71 works from different fields of knowledge. The proportion of female authors was noticeably higher than in general science. Most studies were carried out in culturally Western countries, a fact that constitutes a gap in knowledge from a global perspective. We also noticed an underrepresentation of aquariums and of children in the analyzed papers, and a need for more pre–post studies to ascertain the effect of a zoo or aquarium on its visitors. These conclusions point out interesting directions for future studies to help scientists, managers, and citizens design the future of these institutions.
... Since the establishment of the first modern zoo approximately 200 years ago, Z&A have undergone considerable change, transforming from menageries to conservation centres engaged in education, conservation, and research [83][84][85]. Although recreation and entertainment remain an important mission for Z&A (with >700 million people visiting Z&A annually [86]), zoological institutions have a unique opportunity to educate the public about environmental problems and to connect humans with nature [87]. Even though the term "zoo" can refer to any permanent exhibition of wild animals to the public, modern reputable Z&A are members of global, regional, and/or nationally recognised associations (e.g., Association of Zoos and Aquariums [AZA], European Association of Zoos and Aquaria [EAZA], World Association of Zoos and Aquariums [WAZA]). ...
Chapter
Why and how we age are probably two of science's oldest questions, echoing personal beliefs and concerns about our own finitude. From the earliest musings of ancient philosophers to recent pharmacological trials aimed at slowing ageing and prolonging longevity, these questions have fascinated scientists across time and fields of research. Taking advantage of the natural diversity of ageing trajectories, within and across species, this interdisciplinary volume provides a comprehensive view of the recent advances in ageing and longevity through a biodemographic approach. It includes the key facts, theories, ongoing fields of investigation, big questions, and new avenues for research in ageing and longevity, as well as considerations on how extending longevity integrates into the social and environmental challenges that our society faces. This is a useful resource for students and researchers curious to unravel the mysteries of longevity and ageing, from their origins to their consequences, across species, space and time.
... Although differences between the treatment and control groups did not occur, overall participants' perceptions of the zoo's high importance for conservation, well-being, education and scientific research are noteworthy (Table 5). As zoos have traditionally based their mission statements around the pillars of conservation, science and education (Gusset and Dick 2010;Rabb and Saunders 2005) and more recently animal wellbeing, it is necessary to ensure those aims are achieved and that information is effectively conveyed to the public (Spooner et al. 2023). Visitors' perceptions should continue to be assessed as zoos and aquariums contribute millions of dollars towards conservation each year. ...
Article
Full-text available
Zoos and aquariums offer unique opportunities for their visitors to engage with a variety of animals, including many nonnative species. These human–non-human animal interactions may also occur outside of the zoo, as some institutions have ambassador animals that travel to locations for educational purposes. Shifting attitudes towards animals in professional care including ambassador animals has been identified in millennial populations, who are considered drivers of social change. The objective of this series of preliminary studies was to evaluate the impact of live ambassador animals on millennials’ knowledge gain as well as changes in attitudes towards zoos, species conservation and animal welfare. Experiments were conducted using a pre-/post-test methodology with treatment groups consisting of live animals during educational messaging versus control groups with no animal present (n=65; n=34, respectively). The human-zoo animal interaction for each experiment’s treatment group was simply the presence of the animal—no touching was allowed. Results suggest that the use of a live zoo ambassador animal during educational experiences increases positive attitudes towards some species (P=0.02) and enhances perceptions of zoo animal welfare (P=0.02). These studies contribute to critical evaluation of the use of zoo ambassador animals as well as aid in the objective measurement of the effectiveness of these interactions.
... Within zoos, animal information signs are estimated to be read by 10-30% of all visitors [3][4][5][6]. When extrapolated to the 700+ million visits to zoos globally each year [7], this equates to a potential 70-210 million sign readers in zoos alone. Therefore, the seemingly humble sign has a potentially enormous reach. ...
Article
Full-text available
Despite their prevalence in almost all publicly orientated conservation settings, sign design receives limited attention in the research literature. We used a remote eye-tracking device to test how visitors read educational signs, maps, and species signage. Three designs, plus a plain-text control sign, were tested for each sign type. Sign content was based on Brackenhurst Botanic Garden, Kenya, and included four different information texts (156–256 words long) and a species information text (64 words long). Four presentations of extinction threat status were also tested as were depictions of trail routes on maps. Data were collected from 51 participants at six cultural venues across Nottingham, U.K. Signs positioned centre-left of an exhibit were read first. Information on the left-hand side of signs was read first and dwelled upon the longest. Signs with a single large image and a single block of text were generally preferred, and images were most frequently recalled. Extinction threat status was most frequently viewed and best recalled from green–red thermometer diagrams and least from the IUCN red list diagram. Map routes were clearest when presented as coloured solid lines. This study indicates the potential benefit of eye-tracking research for measuring sign use and assisting in sign design.
Article
Zoos are among the most visited tourist and leisure destinations. Moreover, for post-socialist Central and Eastern Europe, visits to zoos are typical. Unlike Western “capitalist” Europe, in post-socialist Europe there were for a long time almost no amusement parks and thanks to this zoos have been long-term key places of (urban) recreation. Due to the different historical developments, the zoos of Central and Eastern Europe differ in terms of time of establishment, location, and ownership compared to those in the west. The collapse of the socialist establishment had a fundamental impact on the future of zoos. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, there was a sharp drop in zoo attendance in the countries of today’s post-socialist Europe, but since the mid-1990s after large innovations, it has been rising again, reaching record highs. The period after 1990 allowed private ownership and brought about the development of private zoos and further expanded forms of zoo tourism. Information © The Author 2025
Article
Full-text available
Ensuring animal welfare is a key aspect of animal management in zoological facilities and aquaria, representing a pivotal facet of their mission. Italy currently lacks a comprehensive and valuable assessment methodology for evaluating the welfare of captive animals. To address this gap, the present study aimed to identify the most important criteria that should be considered in the welfare management and assessment of animals housed in Italian zoos and aquaria. To pinpoint this issue, we engaged experts with diverse backgrounds, structuring their communication throughout an iterative process, by applying the Delphi methodology. A pilot and three Delphi rounds were administered online to 74 experts, asking them to a) validate relevant topics derived from current legislation and guidelines divided into three clusters: Care, Wellbeing, and Regulation; b) assess the relevance of these topics across taxonomic groups; c) propose and confirm indicators for each identified topic; d) suggest and refine a list of questions for animal welfare assessment. The results were three lists of questions, one for each cluster, with a total of 80 topics, 174 indicators, and 272 questions identified by the experts. The aspects included in these lists offer valuable insights into the main aspects experts consider relevant for captive animal welfare. Despite the complexity of animal welfare and the huge amount of species hosted in zoos limiting the possibility to cover this aspect with a single expert consultation, this project actively addresses the urgent need for standardization in animal welfare assessment, contributing to the ongoing development of zoological regulations in Italy. This is especially important given the current limited legislative framework, underscoring the link between animal welfare and successful ex-situ species conservation. These questions can be the basis of fine-tuned protocols to be tested in future projects aiming at animal welfare self-assessment, thus supporting authority inspection processes.
Article
Full-text available
In this study, the authors examine the mission statements of 136 zoos in the United States that the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA) has accredited, and report on the predominant themes of education and conservation in the statements. To explore the relation between these two themes, the authors present a literature review of the roles and purposes of zoos and discuss how the literature compares with the roles and purposes of zoos as found in the zoo mission statements. They conclude that with more than 134 million visitors a year, zoos are in a unique position to provide environmental education and conservation education to large numbers of people.
Article
Full-text available
Attendance figures are an indicator of the popularity of zoos in society, and also reveal the levels of funding available because entrance fees and other revenues generated during visits are the main sources of funding for British zoos. However, the literature provides conflicting information on zoo attendance, and existing reports are also limited by their research designs and lack of international perspective. Therefore, it is difficult to judge how popular zoos really are, and hence there is a need for a detailed analysis of zoo attendance. To deal with this, the present article reports an analysis of worldwide zoo-attendance patterns using a large data set provided by the International Zoo Yearbook. The data show that attendance has generally declined in most world regions during the 40 year period, and was particularly marked during the 1960s and 1970s. There have been recent increases at North American and British zoos since the 1980s. More people visit zoos in Japan and the United States, and attendance patterns during the past 40 years have followed different paths in different world regions and countries. Attendance figures for zoos around the world were compared with several socio-economic variables, and the analysis revealed a positive significant relationship between a country's population size, country income and zoo-attendance figures.
Article
Full-text available
The success of zoos and aquariums as conservation centres depends on the holistic embrace of conservation, including acting as model citizen, wildlife conservationist, agent for conservation and mentor/trainer. Success also depends on truly reaching our audiences, from policy-maker to land manager to citizen, to help them care about and care for nature. In pursuing our conservation goal, we must acknowledge our general lack of experience in effectively changing the behaviour of these different audiences, which function at both the global and local level. To start with those closest to us, the visitors to our institutions, we should appreciate that we do not have deep understanding of the effect our business has on them by providing close-up experiences with a variety of animals. Nevertheless, by the caring ways in which we express biophilia and carry out particular conservation activities, our institutions can become transformative models, inspiring and motivating urban people around the globe to have a more harmonious and sustainable relationship with the natural world.
Article
Full-text available
In light of the United Nations declaring 2010 as the ‘International Year of Biodiversity’, we carried out an audit of in situ conservation projects supported by the world zoo and aquarium community. The results of our questionnaire survey show that the 113 evaluated projects are helping to improve the conservation status of high-profile threatened species and habitats in biodiversity-rich regions of the world. Our results show that thanks to the investment made by zoos and aquariums, particularly financial, these projects reached overall impact scores of a magnitude suggestive of an appreciable contribution to global biodiversity conservation. The present first global appraisal of the contribution of the world zoo and aquarium community to in situ conservation from a supported project's perspective thus suggests that zoos and aquariums are on track for ‘Building a Future for Wildlife’, as stipulated in the revised World Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy of 2005. However, zoos and aquariums could make an even stronger contribution by allocating more resources to in situ conservation, which – as our results show – would significantly increase the projects' conservation impact. Increased pooling of resources among zoological institutions thus appears to be advisable.
Article
Full-text available
The field of conservation policy must adopt state-of-the-art program evaluation methods to determine what works, and when, if we are to stem the global decline of biodiversity and improve the effectiveness of conservation investments.
Article
Collection-based institutions—zoos, aquariums, museums, and botanical gardens—exhibit wildlife and thus have a special connection with nature. Many of these institutions emphasize a mission of conserva- tion, and, undeniably, they do contribute directly to conservation education and conservation science. They present an exceptional opportunity for many urban residents to see the wonders of life, and they can contribute to education and habitat preservation. Because many collection-based institutions now hold a stated mission of conservation, we suggest eight potential questions to evaluate actions toward that mission: (1) Does conserva- tion thought define policy decisions? (2) Is there sufficient organizational funding for conservation activities? (3) Is there a functional conservation department? (4) Does the institution advocate for conservation? (5) Do conservation education programs effectively target children and adults? (6) Does the institution contribute directly to habitat protection locally and internationally? (7) Do exhibits explain and promote conservation efforts? and (8) Do internal policies and activities protect the environment? These questions are offered as a place to begin discussion. We hope they will help employees and administrators of a collection-based institution (and citizens of the surrounding community) think about and support their institution's conservation activ- ities. Public support and praise for institutions that are striving toward solutions for conservation problems and pressure on organizations that are moving more slowly toward a conservation orientation can help shift more resources toward saving nature.
Article
Abstract Over the last 30 years, the international zoo movement has gradually adopted conservation as its mantra. World-class zoos have invested substantially in species conservation and animal research as part of their involvement in wildlife conservation. However, zoo exhibit interpretation, policy development, and strategic planning are yet to be organized around a well-developed agenda with a clear set of conservation objectives. As museums increasingly redefine their role in society to speak about alternative futures for living with nature, zoos have the potential to become much more focused cultural change agents, potentially crafting a new vision for how society can live in a productive relationship with the world's remaining biodiversity. This article argues for an activist approach in which institutions with living collections would take on unique conservation tasks including scientifically grounded promotion of conservation values.