Zoo Theory

Close to Chimps

Los Angeles Zoo Chimpanzee Exhibit

Zoo Theory

Materials related to history, theory, big ideas and their evolution.

Zoos and their evolution excite me because they combine so many interesting and interrelated subjects such as the nature of nature – zoology, botany, geology, ecology; human nature – environmental psychology, learning theory, history, culture, community and diversity, scientific enquiry, futurism; ethics – including animal welfare and wildlife and wildland conservation and restoration.

While the global tendency has been specialization, to know more and more about less and less, zoos, while embracing specialist knowledge and experience, are places where we can connect the dots. How can we use these insights to benefit plants, animals, and people?

Links to papers and projects on background theory, history and observations