AZA Conference 2009 - Day One

This week I’m attending my first AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquaria) Annual Conference – all 1600 delegates can tell this because on the bottom of my name tag in big gold letters is “First Time Attendee”… apparently that is to help me network, but I learned years ago at conferences that no one usually wants to talk to newbies and so we’ll see how effective that is!
Right below my name tag is another big green badge – “Speaker” – that is because the main reason I am here is to help present a session on Climate Change and Aquaria. That session is the culmination of a process that began last December when I joined Ned Smith to attend a climate change and aquaria summit at the Monterey Aquarium. Since then I have been actively involved in a range of follow up activities such as national webinars and various proposals to help the aquarium community deliver climate change information effectively – polling shows that aquaria are trusted sources of information on such subjects.
My other main reason for being here is to “suss out” AZA accreditation – the Alaska SeaLife Center has never sought AZA accreditation. Reasons for this are not fully clear, but relate to the fact that because of our research orientation, we are not like other aquaria and becasue of costs – apparently accreditation is a complex and cumbersome process. I want to leave Portland with a clear understanding of what is involved and whether the benefits outweigh the costs to the Center.
The conference program looks terrific – see http://www.azaconnect.com/connect/2009annualconf/ - I’m especially looking forward to Jane Goodall’s keynote address tomorrow and the various sessions on climate change and on how to develop more effective institutions. If anyone has a request for me to attend a specific session, please let me know. I just attended the Marine Mammal Technical Advisory Group Meeting at Carrie Goertz and Brett Long’s suggestion and immediately made some great connections – a lot of AZA folks know us and there is tremendous interest in the marine mammals of Alaska.
I’ll be adding daily blog updates, but thought you might enjoy seeing how Portland is positioning itself as a green city – from its terrific public transport light rail system (the Max – only $2.50 from the airport and free in downtown) to increasingly energy efficient urban design in the renewal areas, this city has a lot to offer us to think about.
Stay tuned!