They were kept in cages with sterile tiles, sterile floor. And we thought our zoo directors and curators back then thought that these were such delicate animals that they had to be kept in these pristine, sterile conditions, and it was the absolute wrong thing to do. Today, the gorilla… Read More
We know that now. And the same with gorillas. Those shifts in management, those shifts in how we maintained those animals almost exclusively occurred to the research that was being done in the wild. And that’s what we’ve learned with elephants, how they communicate, the herd structures. So I hope… Read More
That’s all it was. Great people, I loved them all, but it was sometimes it was like beating your head against the wall. You know, and WAZA was really a club. It was zoo directors only. It started out as IUDZG, the International Directors. I-U, the International Union of Directors… Read More
And they actually, there was a rule. It was never written anywhere, but it was a hard and fast rule that only so many American zoo directors could be involved. It was very much a Europe/Germany-focused organization. I’m glad to say it’s not that way anymore. A lot of, it’s… Read More
Given your experience, what’s your view regarding zoos maintaining elephants and how it should be done correctly?… Read More
What’d you mean by that?… Read More
First of all, I thoroughly enjoyed my membership, and I thoroughly enjoyed the people, the colleagues that I met. Really good friends from all over the world. Smart people. But I was encouraged, when I was chair of the AZA the first time, I created the long-range planning committee, looking… Read More
And it’s particular the Germans, who were very influential in WAZA back then. And change came very slowly, and I’m not a slow person. And, you know, I would talk about, “Hey, we need to do this, we need to do that. You know, let’s change the bylaws and allow… Read More
That’s not a role for the AZA. That’s a role for WAZA, the World Zoo and, World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. And they have been… They have been trying to do that for 30 years. And I don’t know that they’ve made a lot of inroads in that endeavor. Read More
Because you mentioned WAZA, very quickly, the World Zoo Association and Aquariums, you said you were president, and you said it was not so much fun. Read More
We’re experts at it. And I would like to think that there are organizations and there are countries around the world who, if not now, will soon take advantage of the resources that we have. Read More
When the zoo spends multimillion dollars on a gorilla or an elephant or a tiger exhibit and critics ask why this money is not used to help the animals in the wild, you say what?… Read More
I thought you were going in a different direction there. (laughs) I have been challenged, and I think every zoo director has been challenged. “You spent $17 million on five sea lions?” which is basically the last major exhibit I did. And you get asked that question and you go,… Read More
Is the conservation issue so big that it’s an unreasonable request to ask for zoos?… Read More
I would hate to think that any zoo is paying lip service to it. I really would. You know, I was proud of the few little things we did. I always wanted to do more. I never thought we were gonna change the world. I never thought we were going… Read More
And that’s way above my pay grade. Read More
But is it our job, so to speak, to ensure that countries halfway around the world that we have no control over manage their wild places and wild resources in a responsible manner?… Read More
I don’t, I can’t wrap my head around that as someone who was director of a medium-sized zoo, that I could ever have that kind of impact. Doesn’t mean, I guess I should be honest and say it doesn’t mean you don’t try, you don’t look for those opportunities, but… Read More
Financial? Is it still viable?… Read More
I think it’s a great idea. I wish zoos could do more of it, but again, it comes down to resources. And, you know, if you’re struggling to, if you’re struggling to maintain your zoo or to, you know, build new exhibits or pay competitive salaries to your employees, to… Read More