Education as a Bridge Between Communities

Hello Jerusalem Biblical Zoo supporters!

Since we last reported to you, our regular education programming came to an end at the end of June and special summer educational activities took place during July and August. Our summer activities included:

- special “Meet the Keeper” talks

- guided tours, including evening and night tours

- animal enrichment activities both for the benefit of the animals and to educate visitors about animal welfare

- the living classroom at the Children’s Zoo and petting zoo

- information stations – this year we focused on invasive species (using the northern palm squirrel as an example) and the impact of man on species with limited distribution (using the iguana as an example).

- tours of the new Israel Aquarium, Jerusalem focusing on the protection of our precious marine habitats

- reintroducing indigenous species (such as birds of prey, diving ducks and fallow deer) back into the wild and using these events as an educational tool to raise awareness about wildlife conservation

In addition, we had a bumper summer camp registration and hundreds of children used the summer opportunity to learn more about animals, science and nature conservation.

Thank you for being a part of our efforts to educate our community in an atmosphere of inclusion and tolerance.

The Education Team at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo

Hello loyal supporters!

Since we last reported to you, we have continued our regular education programming as well as special programs for holiday periods which attract people to visit the Zoo, mingle and learn together about wildlife conservation in a spirit of acceptance and co-existence.

In April, during the Spring school holidays, we piloted a new and very special interactive family activity that connected our visitors to the wildlife conservation work we do here at the zoo. Visitors were provided with a map of the zoo and had to follow the clues and complete tasks and activities throughout the zoo in order to complete the mission. The tasks and activities included hands-on experiences included watching nesting birds of prey through powerful binoculars; and ziplining down a steep incline to save an endangered species, to name a few.

The activity was incredibly popular and we were pleased that we were able to connect so many families to the wildlife conservation efforts of the zoo – this raises awareness of the challenges faced by local species and encourages people to work together to save them and their habitats.

Currently we are taking registrations for our summer camp and look forward to another season of fun and learning.

We are also running a campaign asking visitors to recreate their childhood photographs at the zoo which will be displayed later in the year. We hope that this will make people aware of how all of Jerusalem’s diverse communities have grown together at the zoo.

Thank you for continuing to support our important community education work here in Jerusalem!