President and CEO of the Toronto Zoo, Dolf DeJong is passionate about protecting nature. With an understanding of the myriad challenges that face the natural world, DeJong has enjoyed an incredible career in conservation, wildlife protection and education. Before joining Toronto Zoo, DeJong was vice president of conservation and education and general manager at the Vancouver Aquarium.
“An accredited modern zoo is this wonderful interface. It is using its expertise to help animals in the wild, and in building the public’s awareness,” DeJong told blooloop. “One of my real concerns is that environmentalism and conservation, in some cases, has become a little bit elitist. Zoos are these wonderful places where everybody can get together surrounding something they’re passionate about. And something which they agree on: animals and their wellbeing.”
DeJong started his role as CEO of Toronto Zoo in September 2018. He focuses on raising the zoo’s community connections in order to deliver the zoo’s new strategic plan. This aims to save and protect wildlife, deliver exceptional visitor experiences, serve the community and revolutionise technology.
“Right now, we’re musing about what it would look like to be the most technologically advanced zoo in the world in 10 years,” he said. “What would it mean to look into big data and machine learning and artificial intelligence to improve our ability to manage and monitor animal welfare and wellbeing?”
The Toronto Zoo’s mission is to connect people, animals and conservation science to fight extinction. It envisions a world where wildlife and wild spaces thrive. Both a tourist attraction and conservation organisation, the zoo has various leading programmes for helping wildlife and its natural habitats, from species reintroduction to reproductive research. The Toronto Zoo attracts around 1.2 million visitors every year. Toronto Zoo is accredited by Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums (CAZA) and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).