The o wants the public to know the role it plays in . So next month it will roll-out a new branding campaign.
The campaign includes a new logo and the catch phrase, 鈥淪ecuring a future for wildlife.鈥�
Dr. Chris Kuhar is the zoo鈥檚 executive director. He says there is a lot for the public to know about the zoo鈥檚 world-wide conservation efforts.
鈥淲e work with gorillas in Rwanda, we work with giraffes in Uganda, cheetah and lions in Tanzania and Kenya. So we have programs with turtles in Southeast Asia. Those core programs involve our staff and involve us growing projects all over the world.鈥�
Kuhar says most people don鈥檛 even know the zoo does this kind of work.
鈥淏ut they expect it. So I think there鈥檚 a little bit of a disconnect in public opinion at least in terms of understanding what we do. So, by putting that out there and talking about conservation a little bit more and making 鈥渟ecuring a future for wildlife鈥� the tagline that goes along with our logo and our campaign, I think that鈥檚 a strong change.鈥�
Kuhar says this year the zoo will spend more than $650,000, mostly from community contributions, on global conservation efforts like the one for .
鈥淪o we not only help train the guards that protect the animals, but we also help graduate students learn scientific techniques for monitoring gorilla populations for learning about that. And that鈥檚 critically important in a country like Rwanda who experienced a genocide 20 years ago and really lacks that scientific capacity.鈥�
Zoo visitors can help with these efforts. The Metropark鈥檚 chief of marketing, Kelly Manderfield, says one way is when they buy something at the zoo鈥檚 guest shop.
鈥淚f you make a purchase you can choose to round up and donate that change to conservation.鈥�
Manderfield says marketing the zoo鈥檚 conservation efforts is good business for the institution itself, because research shows people are more likely to visit if they know about the work.
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