When I was a child, I used to fantasise about introducing a host of exciting exotic species to British farms. Why, I thought, cannot we ride zebras or tapirs, as well as horses? If you could domesticate the ancestors of cattle and sheep, why not all those other marvellous grazing species. A boring old ‘ordinary’ [...]
John Regan Associates Blog
Zoos’ role in domesticating wild species for agricultural use…?
September 7th, 2011Role of zoos and gardens in public engagement in science: Eric Schmidt of Google Inc’s speech on PEIS
August 27th, 2011Liked what Eric Schmidt, Exec Chair of Google said at the McTaggert Lecture. Edinburgh Television Festival – need for UK to involve young people more in science. See:http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/aug/26/eric-schmidt-chairman-google-education More and more reason for the science engagement potential of zoos, botanic site, wildlife parks etc to be encouraged by Governments
Outdoor visitor sites and the weathermen
August 26th, 2011Is there any group that zoo ( and similar sites) decision makers have a problem with more than, say animal rights extremists…? Yes – meteorologists! Heard a good deal of frustration lately as to weather forecasters exaggerating just how bad the weather will be or is likely to be – with a big smile on [...]
Sad news re Malcolm Whitehead
August 25th, 2011I only just heard that Malcolm Whitehead had passed away. Unfortunately I never got to know Malcolm properly – just a couple of chats at various conferences and he used to post on my site. Ironically, I bumped into him at the Wellcome Cafe a few months ago and we agreed we should meet up [...]
The single spectacular zoo exhibit in the middle of town
May 9th, 2011I have often wondered about the potential to have a zoo exhibit or similar actually at the centre of a busy urban area..?- maintained by and owned but separate from the main collection. As an advert, satellite for the organisation and its ethos, but also to differentiate a place, contribute to a distinct and [...]
“Get them into the kitchen”: zoo donors
April 28th, 2011I remember this expression from an American fundraising authority in my first years obsessing on the subject. The idea was very simple: ‘the development process’ is all about gradually turning outsiders into insiders, a process of inviting affluent, influential, talented and/ or well connected individuals to consider our organisation and our cause to be their [...]
The revolving door: why do zoo fundraisers and development professionals not last longer..?
April 17th, 2011There are some (USA) statistics that seem to show that fundraisers tend to change jobs on average every 18 months. Clearly this is not helpful in the zoo world, which must look to long term projects and long term relationships. So why do they jump ship so often? The following thoughts are not intended to be [...]
So, name a famous zoo director…?
April 13th, 2011Well you may be able to name quite a few, if you actually work in the field, but figures that are recognisable at all to the public or the media..? Of course there was one in the past, Gerald Durrell, amongst other things, perhaps the UK zoo world’s most sucessful marketeer. Because he ‘got it’. Ultimately, [...]
Fundraising for zoos and nature venues from affluent individuals: the Pareto principle
April 8th, 2011Finding ways to politely, patiently and appropriately ask high net value individuals to support relevant zoo projects is probably an underused avenue in zoos, especially in the UK and Europe. Which is a shame, because RICH PEOPLE HAVE ALL THE MONEY!!! Those charged with developing external funds for zoos have limited time and resources, so [...]
Zoo and nature venue funding: what is a ‘Gift Schedule’ and how do you use it?
April 2nd, 2011sample gift schedule A gift schedule takes your overall project funding target and breaks it down into manageable chunks. It should allocate a high percentage of the donations required to a few big gifts, because all research shows that that is where most of your funding is going to come from. It is there to concentrate the [...]
