Zoos & Aquariums BBC show boosts Chester Zoo
Data shows impact of zoos and aquariums on conservation CLARE GREENBERG
species survival, engaging in research and education and playing a key role in encouraging the public to take action to protect species and their habitats. AZA’s Annual Report on Conservation
T
and Science (ARCS) details facilities’ field conservation activities, education programming, mission-related research and sustainable business practices. A Highlights publication is also available from the AZA website, describing the community’s efforts as a whole. Highlights from each area include: Education Programming: 26,217,288
instances of programming that educated visitors about a conservation action directly related to a wildlife concern. More than $10m (£6m, €8m) spent on STEM education. Green Practices: 73 per cent of
facilities have a Green Team providing ways for guests to participate in green practices during their visit, as well as at home. 96 per cent of aquariums integrated green practices into public programming. Facilities were found to track their usage of an array of resources, with energy and water being the resources most frequently monitored Research: More than $23m (£14m,
€18m) was spent on approximately 1,000 research projects conducted in 66 countries. Research most often focused on animal care, health, welfare and species and habitat conservation. Field Conservation: AZA-accredited
facilities contributed $160m (£99m, €124m) towards more than 2,000 field conservation projects in 127 countries. The AZA community provides unique venues for informal learning, sets examples in sustainable business practices, makes contributions to science and works towards securing the future for the world’s wildlife.
Clare Greenberg, communications intern, AZA
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he Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) works towards
Chester Zoo’s managing director Jamie Christon has said the hit BBC show, Our Zoo, has provided the equivalent of around £30m ($48.1m, €38m) in free PR for the visitor attraction in the north of England. Our Zoo tells the tale
of zoo founder George Mottershead, who decided to set up the establishment, and depicts the challenges he faced. The show’s first season – which ran for six episodes airing every Wednesday on the BBC in a prime time spot between September and October – garnered an average 5.1 million viewers an episode. “Response has been
fantastic,” Christon told Attractions Management. “We’ve had about 5 million viewers every week and visitor numbers for the month of September are
Our Zoo is based on the true story of the founder of Chester Zoo
52 per cent up on last year. A combination of a good month of a weather and the airing of Our Zoo is what I think has made it happen. “£30m is about the PR
equivalent,” he said. “If we were out there buying space to promote the zoo it would have cost us £30m to get the same sort of
media exposure with the amount of publications and media outlets Our Zoo has appeared in.” The zoo launched a number of new offerings in conjunction with the show, including tours around George Mottershead’s home.
Details:
http://lei.sr?a=q5c2H_A SeaWorld president firm against activists
San Diego SeaWorld president John Reilly said the company won’t back down to activists who oppose the park’s decision to continue to keep cetaceans in captivity. “The wild is a threatened
place,” said Reilly, speaking to political leaders and businesspeople at the South County Economic Development Council’s 24th annual economic summit in San Diego on 10 October. “I’m very proud of SeaWorld, and we’re not backing down. We have no intention of allowing anyone to close all zoos and aquariums.” This year marks
SeaWorld’s 50th anniversary, but the brand hasn’t had much to celebrate recently, coming under heavy criticism in the wake of the controversial documentary Blackfish,
Read Attractions Management online
attractionsmanagement.com/digital
If legislation passes, SeaWorld will not be able to hold Orca shows in California
which led to a significant drop in share value and proposed legislation for California, which would mean SeaWorld could no longer host orca shows in that state. Big name sponsors have also been withdrawing their support for SeaWorld, with Virgin America the most recent firm to cut ties with the under-pressure attraction.
SeaWorld has actively
fought back against the criticism, recently revealing plans for a $100m (£62m, €78m) redevelopment that would double the volume of the orcas’ tanks to 10 million gallons at the San Diego park for 2018, with similar upgrades to follow at parks in Orlando, Florida, and San Antonio, Texas. Details:
http://lei.sr?a=D7g5j_A
AM 4 2014 ©Cybertrek 2014
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