International Zoo Educators Association
The International Zoo Educators' Association (IZE, short for IZEA) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving the education programmes in zoos and aquariums.
Abbreviation | IZE |
---|---|
Formation | 6th September 1972 |
Legal status | Non-profit |
Purpose | Education |
Headquarters | Gland, Switzerland |
Region served | Worldwide |
Membership | Zoos and aquariums |
President | Kathy Lehnhardt |
Affiliations | WAZA |
Website | IZEA |
Founded in 1972 by a group of European zoo educators, IZE’s aim was to create a forum where zoo educators could meet every two years to discuss and share ideas and common interests. The founding members included those from Frankfurt Zoo, Amsterdam Zoo, Paignton Zoo and Copenhagen Zoo.
The first IZE President was Rosl Kirchshofer, head of education at the Frankfurt Zoo.[1]
Proceedings were produced for the first time at the second international meeting in 1974 at Copenhagen Zoo. To facilitate communication among members the first newsletter was produced in 1977, edited by Jan Hatley, head of education at Paignton Zoo.[2]
The IZE website states that the association's mission is to:
‘[...expand] the educational impact of zoos and aquariums worldwide’, ‘improve the education programs’ and ‘support excellence in animal care and welfare’.
History
The International Zoo Educators Association was established after a meeting of zoo education officers held in Frankfurt/Main, Federal Republic of Germany on September 6th, 1972.
Newsgroup
In November 1999 a group of IZE European members began a European regional internet discussion group to help educators network between conferences. This group started life as the ERNIZE[nb 1] Yahoo Group[3][4] managed by staff at Chester Zoo in England. In June 2007 the IZE Board voted to make the group international and available to IZE members worldwide. The name changed to the IZE Yahoo Group[5] and its management transferred to Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland. Membership of the group is by invitation-only and its primary purpose is ‘to enable discussion, exchange of information and questions etc between zoo educators across the world’[5]. In August 2010 it had 197 members.
Institutional membership and sponsored delegates
IZE offers institutional membership to zoos, aquariums, nature/wildlife centres and wildlife reserves. At least 50% of this annual membership fee is used in a scheme to enable sponsored delegates to attend conferences when they might not otherwise be able to afford to, and supports outreach to zoo and wildlife educators in the developing world.[6]
Sponsored delegates must be qualified to seek full membership and be unable to pay regular membership fees. Sponsored membership applications must be approved by the Regional Representatives and IZE President. Approved members are entitled to all rights and privileges of full membership for two years.[7]
Relationship with WAZA
Every year since 2000, IZE have reported to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) about their achievements to realize the education goals formulated in the World Zoo and Aquarium Conservation Strategy.
In 2002 IZE becomes an affiliate member of WAZA.
In 2004 an IZE Central Office was established after a proposal to WAZA for assistance. It was decided during the 2004 WAZA Conference in Taipei to offer room, equipment and a one day a week staff member in their headquarters at this time in Bern (now in Gland, Switzerland), giving IZE a stable base for all kinds of activities. This also increased the efficiency of the management of IZE membership dues, allowing more sponsored delegates to attend the IZE Conferences. Since 2009, IZE have made a contribution towards the running costs of the headquarters.
Under a MOU, the WAZA's Executive Office provides secretariat support to the International Zoo Educators Association (IZE).
WAZA encourages also zoo and aquarium staff to participate in local, national, regional and international networks such as the International Zoo Educators Association (IZE) and its regional groups.
Formalisation of Statutes under Swiss law in 2006
Under the name "International Zoo Educators Association" (IZE) exists, for an indefinite period of time, an association under the terms of articles 60 to 78 of the Swiss civil code. The association is a non-profit organization with international membership. The association office is located in Switzerland.
The IZE Constitution[8] was adopted and put into force by the General Assembly at the 18th Biennal Conference in Pretoria, South Africa on 13th October 2006. It is revised annually and proposed changes are voted on by the General Assembly during the IZE Conferences.
Website
The IZE's website was first launched in 2001[9] with a major overhaul taking place in 2005. The website is currently maintained by Oregon Zoo, USA
Journals
The first Newsletter of the International Association of Zoo Educators was produced after the third conference in 1976. It was edited by Jan Hatley, head of education at Paignton Zoo, and published in 1977. The aim of the newsletter was to facilitate communication among members between conferences.
The newsletter was redesigned and edited for economic reasons with the help of the National Zoo’s Judith White and Judith King, and the sixth issue was published in 1981.[10]
In 1986 the newsletter became the Journal of the International Association of Zoo Educators as suggested by Judith King:
To most people, the word ‘newsletter’ implies a brief publication containing job announcements, personnel moves, short program notices, births, etc. What a newsletter does not contain is professional articles like those found in journals. It appears to me that IZE’s Newsletter is more of a journal than a newsletter.
— Judith King, White-Marcellini, J., 1986, ‘From the President’, Journal of the International Association of Zoo Educators, 15, p. 2
The Journal describes itself as a resource for articles on conservation, interpretation, zoo education, methods and techniques, and evaluation.[11] Its publication has been annual since 1999.
List of Journals
Issue No. | Year | Editor | Zoo |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 1977 | Jan Hatley | Paignton Zoological and Botanical Gardens, England |
2 | 1978 | Jan Hatley | Paignton Zoological and Botanical Gardens, England |
3 | 1978 | Jan Hatley | Paignton Zoological and Botanical Gardens, England |
4 | 1979 | Jan Hatley | Paignton Zoological and Botanical Gardens, England |
5 | 1980 | Jan Hatley | Paignton Zoological and Botanical Gardens, England |
6 | 1981 | Judith White; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
7 | 1981 | Judith White; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
8 | 1982 | Judith White; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
9 | 1982 | Judith White; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
10 | 1983 | Judith White-Marcellini; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
11 | 1983 | Judith White-Marcellini; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
12 | 1984 | Judith White-Marcellini; Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
13 | 1984 | Judith White-Marcellini | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
14 | 1985 | Pegi S. Harvey | Zoological Society of San Diego, California, USA |
15 | 1986 | Helen Freeman | Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, Washington, USA |
16 | 1986 | Malcolm Whitehead | Twycross Zoo, Atherstone, Warwickshire, England |
17 | 1987 | Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
18 | 1987 | Pegi Harvey | Zoological Society of San Diego, California, USA |
19 | 1988 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
20 | 1988 | Malcolm P. Whitehead | Twycross Zoo, Atherstone, Warwickshire, England |
21 | 1989 | Judith King | National Zoological Park, Washington D.C., USA |
22 | 1989 | Janet Jackson-Gould | Philadelphia Zoological Gardens, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
23 | 1990 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
24 | 1990 | Juliane Seger | Zoological Gardens, Dortmund, West Germany |
25 | 1992 | Phillip Coffey | Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust, Jersey, Channel Islands |
26 | 1992 | Christopher Cheng | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
27 | 1993 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
28 | 1993 | Stephen McAuley; Juliane Seger |
Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia Zoological Gardens, Dortmund, West Germany |
29 | 1993 | Stephen McAuley; Christopher Cheng | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
30 | 1994 | Stephen McAuley; Kim Stiles |
Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, England |
31 | 1995 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
32 | 1995 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
33 | 1996 | Stephen McAuley | Taronga Zoo, Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
34 | 1997 | Greg Hunt | Melbourne Zoo, Australia |
35 | 1999 | Robert Mindick | SeaWorld, Orlando, Florida, USA |
36 | 2000 | Robert Mindick | SeaWorld, Orlando, Florida, USA |
37 | 2001 | Robert Mindick | SeaWorld, Orlando, Florida, USA |
38 | 2002 | Stephen McKeown | Chester Zoo, Cheshire, England |
39 | 2003 | Stephen McKeown | Chester Zoo, Cheshire, England |
40 | 2004 | Stephen McKeown | Chester Zoo, Cheshire, England |
41 | 2005 | Martin Serafini | Edinburgh Zoo, Scotland |
42 | 2006 | Natasha Silva | Royal Zoo Amsterdam, Netherlands |
43 | 2007 | Natasha Silva | Royal Zoo Amsterdam, Netherlands |
44 | 2008 | Natasha Silva | Royal Zoo Amsterdam, Netherlands |
45 | 2009 | Natasha Silva | Royal Zoo Amsterdam, Netherlands |
46 | 2010 | Natasha Silva | Royal Zoo Amsterdam, Netherlands |
List of Conferences
Number | Date | Host | Host Location |
---|---|---|---|
1 | September 6th 1972[nb 2][12] | Frankfurt Zoo | Frankfurt, Germany |
2 | 1974 | Copenhagen Zoo | Copenhagen, Denmark |
3 | June 1976 | London Zoo | London, England, UK |
4 | September 26th - 29th 1978 | National Zoological Park | Washington D.C., USA |
5 | September 30th - October 3rd 1980 | Tiergarten Schoenbrunn | Vienna, Austria |
6 | September 25th - 29th 1982 | Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum | Tucson, Arizona, USA |
7 | September 2nd - 6th 1984 | Edinburgh Zoo and Peebles Hotel Hydro | Edinburgh, Scotland, UK |
8 | October 26th - 31st 1986 | Melbourne Zoo | Melbourne, Australia |
9 | October 2nd - 7th 1988 | Metro Toronto Zoo | Toronto, Canada |
10 | September 9th - 15th 1990 | Antwerp Zoo | Antwerp, Belgium |
11 | August 23rd - 28th 1992 | Taronga Zoo | Mosman, Sydney, Australia |
12 | September 25th - 30th 1994 | Los Angeles Zoo | Los Angeles, USA |
13 | 1996 | Copenhagen Zoo | Copenhagen, Denmark |
14 | 1998 | Taipei Zoo | Taipei, Taiwan, China |
15 | October 1st - 6th 2000 | Guadalajara Zoo | Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico |
16 | August 17th - 22nd 2002 | Tiergarten Schoenbrunn | Vienna, Austria |
17 | September 4th - 9th 2004 | Ocean Park | Hong Kong, China |
18 | October 9th - 14th 2006 | National Zoological Gardens of South Africa | Pretoria, South Africa |
19 | October 19th - 23rd 2008 | Adelaide Zoo | Adelaide, Australia |
20 | September 28th - October 2nd 2010 | Disney's Animal Kingdom | Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USA |
List of Presidents
Rosl Kirchshofer (Frankfurt Zoo, Germany; 1972 - 1976)
Han Rensenbrink (Amsterdam Zoo, Netherlands; 1976 - 1980)
Jan Hatley (Paignton Zoo, England; 1980 - 1984)
Judith White (National Zoo, United States; 1984 - 1988)
Lars Lunding Andersen (Copenhagen Zoo, Denmark; 1988 - 1992)
Robert Ollason (Edinburgh Zoo, Scotland; 1992 - 1996)
Pegi Harvey (San Diego Zoo, United States; 1996 - 2000)
Annette Berkovits (Bronx Zoo, United States; 2000 - 2004)
Chris Peters (Rotterdam Zoo, The Netherlands; 2004 - 2006)[1]
Stephen McKeown (Chester Zoo, England; 2006 - October 2010)
Katherine Lehnhardt (Disney's Animal Kingdom, United States; October 2010 - onwards)[13]
Notes
- ^ ERNIZE - the European Regional Network of IZE - was established as a means of structuring communications between European zoo educators who, it was felt, had little opportunity to do so in between conferences.
- ^ No proceedings were produced in 1972; the International Zoo Educators' Association was established after a meeting of zoo education officers held in Frankfurt/Main, Federal Republic of Germany on September 6th, 1972.
References
- ^ a b Lunding Anderson, L., Edited by Bell, C. E., 2001, Encyclopedia of World Zoos, Vol. 2, p. 615 – 616
- ^ Hatley, J., 1977, Newsletter of the International Association of Zoo Educators, 1
- ^ ERNIZE Yahoo Group
- ^ BIAZA Manual
- ^ a b IZE Yahoo Group
- ^ IZE Become a Member
- ^ IZE Constitution - Article 9 – Sponsored Members
- ^ IZE Constitution
- ^ IZE 2001 website cache via Wayback Machine
- ^ IZE History and Milestones
- ^ IZE Journal
- ^ IZE Constitution - Article 1 - General Provisions
- ^ IZE website