Volunteer Updates and Opportunities:
Wild About Wine Volunteer Opportunity
We are just under 6 weeks away from our second Toast to the Wild Event, WILD ABOUT WINE! We are now accepting Volunteers for the August 10th Event. If you are interested, please click the link below. I will be sending follow up e-mails in 2 weeks with additional information!
Click Here to Sign Up to Volunteer at Wild About Wine
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Donna Mancini’s 90th Birthday…Shhh, its a Surprise!
Many of you know and have volunteered with Donna Mancini at some point in her time Volunteering here at the Cincinnati Zoo over the past 23 years. Donna has volunteered in multiple departments and been a positive influence to all of us with her fun laugh and fabulous personality.
Her friends have gathered together to host a surprise birthday gathering at the Zoo to celebrate her 90th Birthday! If Donna has touched your life and you would like to come wish her a Happy Birthday and have a slice of cake, please join us for the celebration!
What: Celebrate Donna Mancini’s 90th Birthday Party
When: June 30th, 1:00pm-3:00pm
Where: Treetops
Hope to See you There! RSVPs are not REQUIRED, but if you would like to RSVP to the event, feel free to Click Here! If you RSVP for the event, I will send you an e-mail reminder before the event!
Zoo Updates:
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ZooTales
Did you know you could go to high school at the Zoo? Hear more about Nhy Aire’s unique experience at the Cincinnati Zoo’s Zoo Academy program.
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Cincinnati Reds + Zoo = Fun
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Featured Article in Cincinnati Magazine! Planting for Pollinators.
Check out this wonderful article, Down to Earth, featured in the June edition of Cincinnati Magazine (Page 36-49.)
It highlights our P4P program and CREW.
Plant & Animal Updates:
Our New Baby Sloth is Here and Has a Name:
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Kip Update:
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Bowyer Update:
Bowyer propagation techniques:
Most of the plant species that are propagated at Bowyer are done from seed but a few are done from a process called mist propagation or summer cuttings. Plant tips, or cuttings, can be taken from the mother plant. After it is dipped in a rooting hormone, the cutting is inserted into a tray with a porous, fast draining media. It is then placed on a mist bench where it will be misted with water until rooting takes place and the plant is ready for a larger container! (Photo and words by: Bowyer Farm volunteer Philip Sommer)
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Elephant Yoga:
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Bat-Eared Fox Kits
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Amiry
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New Fishing Cat:
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Manatee Update:
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New Komodo Dragon
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Kesi’s New Role
In bonobo society, females are in charge! Zanga has been the matriarch at Cincinnati for quite some time, with a very laid-back leadership style. On her own accord, Zanga decided a leadership role was not for her and stopped demonstrating matriarch
behaviors. This left no clear leader for a little bit! After some time, other bonobos began treating Kesi as the matriarch. Kesi is the mother to the youngest bonobo, Amali. Over the past few weeks in particular, Kesi seems to be more aware of her new status and
showing matriarchal behaviors. We’re excited for this development and are curious to see how Kesi grows in her new role!
Just For Fun:
Bonobos:
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Calling All Taylor Swift Fans:
We have quite a few Taylor Swift Fans (aka “Swifties”) at the Zoo and they have been preparing for her arrival in style. Keep a lookout during the week of June 29th-July 2nd for visitors in town for the concert! They might even be wearing their Taylor Swift Gear to purchase discounted tickets!
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Elephant Sunscreen:
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June 8th – National Insect Appreciation Day!
Our World of the Insect building is celebrating its 45 anniversary this year. In 1978 it was the first exhibit building devoted to insects in any U.S. zoo and was awarded the American Zoo and Aquarium Association’s (AZA) Exhibit Award. Many significant achievements in husbandry, breeding and display of particular species, including the bullet ant, Peruvian fire stick and giant water bug, have received special awards over the years.
Conservation Corner:
Elephant Trek & Water Conservation
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Cincinnati Zoo Scientists Advance Non-Surgical Contraceptive Alternative for Cats
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Highlighting LGBTQIA+ Conservationists!
As PRIDE Month continues and we celebrate everyone in the LGBTQIA+ community, we wanted to highlight some conservationists and environmentalists who have been paving the way for a safer, more inclusive, and just world.
Rikki Weber
- Rikki Weber is a queer BIPOC activist and Legal Practice Manager and Litigation Assistant II at EarthJustice, the largest nonprofit environmental law organization in the United States.
- Defends clients free of charge through EarthJustice
- Started an LGBTQ+ group at the organization and serves on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team.
- “Environmental justice is for all people and achieved by the people. As a queer woman of color, as a person whose layered identities are often pulled apart, compartmentalized and marginalized, I have made it a point to insert my whole identity into my work. I hope that my visibility and the visibility of other LGBTQ+ identified people helps strengthen the environmental movement by allowing us to express our differences and use them to find the commonalities in the ways that we can disrupt the systems that were built to oppress us.”
Dr. Tiara Moore
- Dr. Tiara Moore is a pansexual researcher and science communicator. Dr. Moore is currently a postdoctoral scholar at The Nature Conservancy where her research focuses on application of environmental DNA (eDNA) to develop a forest biodiversity census. She previously worked in Bali, identifying the diversity and abundance of meiofauna in marine sediments across the coral triangle.
- Tiara also dedicates her time to mentoring minority women in science. Dr. Moore founded A WOC Space – a consulting and training company focused on changing the cultural climate for Women of Color (WOC) in the workplace – and Black in Marine Science, which is an organization aimed to celebrate Black marine scientists, spread environmental awareness and inspire the next generation of scientific thought leaders.
- Tiara also combines her experiences as a WOC Scientist with her upbeat personality in her Academic Standup Shows, both communicating science and the struggles of being a minority in STEM.
Dean Jackson
- Dean Jackson is a Black, queer, trans, and non-binary farmer who created an organization called Hilltop Urban Gardens (HUG) in Tacoma, WA. over a decade ago, a food sovereignty and racial and economic justice organization
- Works with surrounding communities to garden and grow fresh produce, while encouraging local youth and neighbors to organize for social justice matters
- “They seek to inspire our community to live with abundance while understanding and interrupting the root causes of economic poverty & wealth accumulation and systems of oppression. HUG believes growing their own food independence is an important strategy in this process.”
Jamie Margolin
- Jamie Margolin is a 19-year-old queer author and activist. She co-founded and served as the co-executive director of the organization Zero Hour, which encourages younger generations to organize and fight against climate change, and ultimately advocate for a better future. In 2020, Margolin wrote her first book titled Youth To Power, which guides and teaches young readers to fight for causes they believe in.
- “Jamie Margolin is among the powerful and inspiring youth activists leading a movement to demand urgent action on the climate crisis. With determined purpose and moral clarity, Jamie is pushing political leaders to develop ambitious plans to confront this existential threat to humanity. Youth To Power is an essential how-to for anyone of any age who feels called to act to protect our planet for future generations.”
— Former Vice President Al Gore
Queers X Climate
International organization Queers X Climate invites members to pledge a 50 percent reduction of their carbon footprint by 2030, part of a six-step process that combines personal change with community advocacy. The pledge is the centerpiece of the organization’s work to raise environmental awareness in the LGBTQI community. In 2019, Queers X Climate joined the United Nations Secretary-General Climate Action Summit, where founder Diego de León presented the organization’s pledge. One of the main things that the LGBTQ+ movements and Climate Change is the word CHANGE. For the first, it means changing unjust social and political norms that halt the equal treatment of a vulnerable community; while for the second it refers to preventing an irreversible change in our plant´s atmosphere with irreversible consequences for humanity. Although different contexts, the end goal of both movements is to promote positive change towards a more just and sustainable society.
https://www.queersxclimate.org/about
https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/check-out-these-4-lgbtqi-environmental-organizations
Out for Sustainability
Providing a platform for climate and environmental work in the LGBTQI community, the Seattle-based nonprofit Out for Sustainability has mobilized queer activists for a greener future since 2008. Today, Out for Sustainability is working to expand an initiative, called Qready, that promotes disaster preparedness and resilience among LGBTQI communities, especially queer and trans Black and Indigenous people of color. Past initiatives included Earth Gay service projects around the United States, which brought I volunteers and allies to local parks, community gardens, and food banks. Its Greener Pride project raised awareness about the need for carbon-neutral, zero-waste Pride celebrations worldwide. We’re proud to announce our new focus: providing a platform for co-creating climate resilience and environmental justice by and for LGBTQIA+ communities.
https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/check-out-these-4-lgbtqi-environmental-organizations
Additional Updates:
We are Hiring Americorps Members:
If you know anyone looking for a wonderful opportunity as an Americorps Service Member here at the Zoo, now is the time to apply!
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AZADV Conference
We have several Volunteers who are members of the AZADV Organization and attend the annual conferences. If you are interested in learning more about AZADV, or the upcoming conference, click on the link below.