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Staff at the 2010 Zoo and Aquarium Association Conference
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The Zoo and Aquarium Association staffs two science and administration offices. The Executive Office is located in Sydney, and is hosted by Taronga Zoo. The NZ Office is hosted by Auckland Zoo in Auckland.
The staff provide the following expertise to the association:
- Conservation and population biology
- IT and database management
- Program management and facilitation
- Policy development
- Education and training
- Member services
- Publication review and editing
- Data analysis
- Accreditation program development and implementation
- Administration
| Sydney Office |
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 Martin Phillips is an experienced leader with a diverse background with particular expertise in organisational development and executive management. Martin joined the Association as Executive Director in March 2008.
Martin started his career as an Officer in the British Army and later the Australian Army; Martin completed twelve years of service reaching the rank of Major and active duty around the world.
After starting a family Martin changed career paths working for several years as a senior manager in the telecommunications sector; realising that he needed more fulfilling work he took up the CEO position with Surf Life Saving Sydney Northern Beaches. Over four and a half years Martin worked with the twenty-ones Surf Clubs and 15,000 members to successfully complete an ambitious change program to modernise the organisation. This work received 6 Federal and State Industry awards.
Martin holds a BSc Physical Science from Oxford Brookes University, is a graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, and the Junior Command and Staff College, Shrivenham University. Martin has studied at the post-graduate level in Disaster Preparedness and Management, Cranfield University and Change Management at the University of Technology Sydney. Martin also holds professional qualifications as a Certified Professional with the Association of Project Management [UK] and a Certified Mediator with the Institute of Arbitrators and Mediators [Australia].
In his spare time and in between his family's travelling adventures Martin can be found surfing on Sydney's Northern Beaches or sailing with his wife Angela and daughter Emily.
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 Kevin has over 28 years experience working in the zoo community, in a variety of roles. In 1981, he began working as a keeper in the veterinary department at Melbourne Zoo. Four years later he moved to the Native Mammal department at the zoo, and then in 1989, took on the role of computerising the zoo’s paper animal records system.During the four years that Kevin was the animal records officer at Melbourne Zoo, he developed some additional reports for the ARKS software, and also helped with the development of the computerised animal collection planning software, REGASP.Kevin has worked at the Zoo and Aquarium Association office in Sydney since 1993, and is still responsible for the support of REGASP. Kevin’s current role in the Association includes providing training and user support for the animal records programs distributed by the International Species Information System (ISIS) to users throughout the region. For the past five years, Kevin has been heavily involved in the development of the next generation of ISIS software, ZIMS (the Zoological Information Management System).
Kevin joined the staff of the IUCN/WAZA/CBSG Amphibian Ark in 2007, as a half-time Taxon Officer, involved in the amphibian extinction crisis.
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 Hayley Findlay, formerly of Western Plains Zoo, started with the Zoo and Aquarium Association in June 2007 and has taken on the role of Accreditation Program Coordinator.
Hayley has been working in the zoo community for the last ten years, primarily as a keeper. Hayley also coordinated the volunteer program at Western Plains Zoo for most of her time there and had more recently taken on the responsibility of implementing environmental management strategies in all areas of land management and natural resources.
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Claire joined the Zoo and Aquarium Association team in May 2001 as Office Manager. Since completing a degree in Science (Zoology) in 1998 she has worked for the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of New South Wales assisting with science outreach activities; the Australian Geographic as store manager; and Questacon as exhibition coordinator.
In her current position as Species Management Officer Claire is part of the species management team and is responsible for overseeing the Zoo and Aquarium Association Wildlife Conservation Fund and specialist advisory groups.
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 In January 2010 Andrea Reiss was appointed to the part time role of Regional Veterinary Officer hosted by Perth Zoo and funded by Taronga Conservation Society Australia, Zoos Victoria, Australia Zoo, Zoos South Australia and Perth Zoo.
Andrea joins the team with a wealth of expertise and experience. Andrea graduated from Sydney University vet school in 1989. After working in mixed practice and travelling in Africa, she began work at Melbourne Zoo in 1993. She received her Masters in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine from Melbourne University in 1996. In 2001 she spent a year in southern Africa assisting with field conservation programs. Upon her return to Australia, she worked for 4 1/2 years at Taronga, then moved to Perth Zoo in 2007, where she has been involved in clinical work, final year vet student teaching, and management of special vet projects within and outside the zoo including regional conservation medicine programs.
The focus of the role will be a series of strategic initiatives in the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry’s portfolio. Much of the work will address the recommendations from the Beale Review which will impact on the industry as the new Biosecurity Legislation is developed.
Andrea is looking forward to working closely with her colleagues within the Veterinary Specialist Advisory Group who are also keen to see this work progress. We look forward to keeping you informed as this work develops.
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 In 1998, Ramona completed a degree in biology from Western Washington University in the USA. After moving to Australia, she worked for seven years as a landscape draftsperson/project assistant/PA to the managing director of a Japanese landscape company in Sydney.
Adding to her experience, Ramona recently worked as a project manager at a website company where she managed a production team and assisted clients with their website needs.
Ramona began work with the Zoo and Aquarium Association in October 2008, and she is excited to join the team and the zoo community.
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 Chris Hibbard has worked in the zoo industry for the past eighteen years, commencing in New Zealand at the Auckland Zoo native fauna department. Since moving to Australia in 1997 he has held a variety of positions at Sydney's Taronga Zoo including the management of both the bird and herpetofauna departments and more recently as the Precinct Manager - Exotic Fauna. Chris has also taken time out to work in South-East Asia as curator for the Bali Bird Park (Indonesia) and has consulted to the Jurong Bird Park (Singapore).
Chris has held the position of TAG Convenor, Non-passerine Birds for the past eight years and also holds the position of Species Coordinator for Sumatran tiger, red panda, regent honeyeater and Tasmanian devil. Chris holds a Diploma in Endangered Species Management gained from study at the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust.
He has recently joined the team (April 2009) in the position of ASMP Manager and is primarily responsible for the coordination and development of the ASMP staff and species management strategies. This forms the basis of implementing the ASMP Future Directions project which is focused on delivering the highest quality species management outcomes to the Association membership into the future.
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 Carolyn Hogg has worked as a research scientist in Australia, the USA and Canada for the past eighteen years. Carolyn comes to the team with a wealth of experience and expertise in both in-situ and ex-situ research. Carolyn graduated from the University of Western Australia in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree (anatomy/marine biology). During her degree Carolyn worked for the local aquarium in WA before moving overseas to work with humpback whales in Hawaii and Alaska before moving to Canada in 1998.
Carolyn worked for three seasons with the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale in Canada before returning to Australia in 2002 to do a PhD with the Australian Marine Mammal Research Centre (University of Sydney/Taronga Conservation Society Australia). Carolyn’s doctorate developed a non-invasive technique to determine hormones in free-swimming whales and her PhD was awarded in 2005. Since the completion of her PhD, Carolyn worked at the Australian Marine Mammal Research Centre until 2007 before moving to the Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, UNSW in 2008.
She has recently joined the ASMP team (May 2010) and is primarily responsible for the strategic development and review of ASMP policy & procedure in line with the objectives of the Future Directions Project.
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Ros began her career in zoos in 1989 when she was appointed Animal Records Officer at Western Plains Zoo. She worked at Western Plains Zoo until 1995, and during this time, she was responsible for converting all the paper records to the new ARKS system, setting up a rehabilitation database and looking after the zoo library.
Since then, Ros has worked on a contract basis, assisting a number of zoos in the region with their animal records, including the National Zoo and Aquarium, the Australian Wildlife Park at Wonderland, Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve and Mogo Zoo. She completed the Graduate Diploma in Captive Vertebrate Management in 2005.
Ros joined the office in May 2006, and is part of the Species Management team. She also holds the position of Species Coordinator for Cheetah, Przewalski’s horse and Scimitar oryx.
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| New Zealand Office |
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 Several New Zealand member institutions have responded to the current challenges in regional species management by funding a new Association species management position which is now hosted at Hamilton Zoo, and Suzy Barlow was appointed to this position in mid-2007.
Suzy is well known in the region through her work at Association member zoos in Auckland, Perth, Adelaide, Dubbo and Melbourne. She has extensive experience with species management and the ASMP, including serving for several years on the ASMP Committee. She is also the current species coordinator for hippopotamus and black-and -white ruffed lemur in the region.
Suzy will provide a significant boost to species management in the region and the Zoo and Aquarium Association acknowledges the significant contributions of Wellington, Auckland and Hamilton Zoos, and Orana Wildlife Park, that have made this appointment possible.
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 Steph joins us from Auckland University. Steph returned to study as a mature student and completed a BSc in Biology and then a Post Graduate Diploma in Environmental Management.
She went on to complete her MSc in Biology which was awarded with honours, 1st class.
Prior to her studies Steph worked for ten years in the publishing industry holding senior positions both at home and abroad. She is based at Auckland Zoo.
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 About the Zoo and Aquarium Association
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Contact Zoo and Aquarium Association
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