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ABSTRACT
Zoos and aquariums are popular visitor destinations, with around 30 million visits made to them annually throughout the UK and Ireland. The role and mission of modern zoos have evolved, with the conservation of world’s remaining biodiversity now being their major purpose. They seek to aid biodiversity through a combination of public education, in situ and ex situ conservation programmes, and applied scientific research. Directly relevant to this paper, they are also institutions that actively recruit, attract and utilise volunteers. However, the impacts of volunteering in zoos and aquariums, on the volunteers themselves, are under-researched. Here we show that, in a survey of more than 500 volunteers at 19 different zoological collections in the UK, zoo volunteers report positive impacts, specifically in relation to increases in their human and social capital. We also found that these benefits were more pronounced in younger volunteers, and with those volunteers who received more initial training. We conclude that while volunteering in UK zoos correlates with significant personal benefits to individuals, zoos could aim higher and should seek to do more to maximise the positive effects of connecting volunteers with the wildlife and nature found in zoo settings, as well as tailoring their volunteer training programmes for different age groups.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Charlotte Smith
Charlotte Smith is the Head of Discovery and Learning at Chester Zoo (UK) where she leads the strategic development of all education, visitor and community engagement activities. Her research interests include increasing our understanding of the factors that influence human behaviour, both in individuals and at a societal level, and in research that enables us to design more effective education programmes for a wide range of different audiences.
Nicola Buckley
Nicola Buckley (Volunteer Manager, Chester Zoo) has over nine year’s experience specialising in volunteer management, conservation education and has a strong research interest in the impact of volunteering on the individual, the organisation and general behaviour change. Nicola manages a large group of volunteers which involves recruitment, assessment, training, and ongoing support for volunteers as well as working with partner organisations. In 2016 Nicola completed a Master of Philosophy in Earth Science and Communication with her research focused on fostering environmentally friendly behaviours through intergenerational learning.
Elinor Bridges
Elinor Bridges is a Social Science intern at Chester Zoo (UK) and undergraduate student at the University of Manchester (UK). Elinor has undertaken extensive research into visitor engagement in immersive zoo exhibits and has presented at national research conferences.
Bethany Pavitt
Bethany Pavitt is a Social Science intern at Chester Zoo (UK) and undergraduate student at the University of Manchester (UK). Bethany has undertaken research exploring the statistical predictors of visitor interest in zoo animals, as well as attempting to quantify the impact of human-animal encounters in a zoo setting.
Andrew Moss
Andrew Moss is the Conservation Social Scientist at Chester Zoo (UK). Andrew has over a decade of social research experience in world zoos and aquariums and has numerous publications in diverse journals such as Conservation Biology, Conservation Letters, the Journal of Environmental Education, Visitor Studies and Nature. Specialising in quantitative social research methods, Andrew has three broad research interests: the educational value of zoos and their role in promoting pro-conservation behaviour change, a better understanding of the interface between zoo animals and visitors, and exploring the potential of ‘big data’ analytical techniques to aid conservation.