Trust Chair reportLeadership
Industry recognition
The Zoo has had a winning year yet again. Our continued award success underlines our dedication and commitment to be at the forefront of what we do.
The collective efforts of the Zoo team were rewarded with the winning of the first ever Encore Award for Business Environmental Leadership. The Zoo was recognised for leading the way for sustainability and making a demonstrable contribution to environmental restoration, nature and conservation in the region.
The Nest Te Kōhanga, our animal hospital and centre for native wildlife care, continues to add to its list of awards. This year it has won the Wellington area New Zealand Institute of Architects Award, the Registered Master Builders Gold Reserve Award and the New Zealand Zoo Aquarium Association Conservation Award.
Our Chief Executive, Karen Fifield, joined an impressive contingent of winners when she won the award of Wellingtonian of the Year – Environment. This was in recognition of her leadership in the greening of Wellington Zoo. Karen was also recently elected as the new president of the Australasian Zoo and Aquarium Association (ZAA) and was a guest judge for the 2010 HER Wellington Businesswoman of the Year Awards.
One of our young leaders, the Zoo’s Team Leader Life Science – Programmes, was a finalist in the Young Community Leaders Award. This award recognises the contribution of young people working in the not for profit sector.
Wellington Zoo became the inaugural study for the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research Centre (SIERC) at Massey University. SIERC researchers completed a case study of the Zoo, focused on the various factors that contribute to the success of not for profit organisations. Professor Anne de Bruin presented their research paper “Not for Loss: Insights on building a community asset” at a prestigious international conference on social entrepreneurship in New York. “The zoo is an integral aspect of the Wellington region and innovation and entrepreneurial activity is helping it play a more vibrant role in the community,” Professor de Bruin says.
Industry leading
Zoo staff continue to contribute their knowledge and expertise to the wider zoo community. They hold various positions within ZAA as well as with other organisations. As the Chief Executive takes up her ZAA Presidency role, other staff are making their mark outside the Zoo. The Zoo’s Fundraising Manager as Vice President of the Fundraising Institute of New Zealand and the Team Leader Visitor Experience as a member of the national executive of Interpretation Network of New Zealand (INNZ).
Life Sciences staff continue their work as species coordinators for tuatara, pygmy marmoset, nyala, meerkat, African crested porcupine, Auckland green gecko and most recently as temporary species coordinators for cheetah. In addition our General Manager Operations holds the position of husbandry advisory to the ungulate taxon advisory group. The Zoo’s Collection Development Coordinator’s wealth of knowledge and experience means he has also been seconded to the ZAA New Zealand Committee as Australasian Species Management Programme Committee representative, is Co-convenor of the Carnivores and Small Exotic Mammals Taxon Advisory Group and is a member of both the ZAA Accreditation and Animal Welfare Committee and the ZAA Australasian Species Management Programme Committee.
This year Wellington Zoo hosted the annual Interpretation Network of New Zealand (INNZ) workshop, with presentations delivered by both the Chief Executive and Team Leader Visitor Experience. Our visitor engagement research results from The Nest Te Kōhanga were also presented by the Team Leader Visitor Experience at the Interpretation Australia workshop held in Tasmania in November.
In June we hosted the New Zealand ZAA conference and a number of presentations were made by our Zoo team. The conference theme was “Creating the Future – conservation innovation, now and for the future”. Zoo staff gave presentations on corporate volunteering (Volunteer Coordinator), learning from nature (Senior Keeper Reptiles), the Zoo’s sustainable journey (Property Manager), multi-layered visitor engagement (Group Manager Visitor Engagement), and medical care and handraising kākāpō (Manager Veterinary Science).
In October the Group Manager, Visitor Engagement attended the International Zoo Educators conference at Disney Animal Kingdom, Orlando, Florida and presented a case study of The Nest Te Kōhanga and a poster on Bush Builders. She also completed a three week long study trip of other visitor attractions in the US encompassing zoos, museums, aquariums and parks.
Team Leaders of Learning and Visitor Programmes attended the annual Kiwi Hui in Havelock North, representing the Zoo’s views on the importance of advocacy for our native animals.
Industry approval
In early 2011 Wellington Zoo underwent its ZAA Accreditation. This industry peer review programme measures an organisation against the highest standards across all areas of zoo business. The ZAA completed a rigorous review of our policies and procedures and two Accreditation officers conducted a site inspection over three days. We passed with flying colours resulting in our being granted ZAA Accreditation status for the next 5 years, confirming that the Zoo is managed to a high standard across all its operations.