An advocate for change: Dr Sarah’s inspirational twenty-year career
“Science is all around us and it’s about finding your bit – what you can contribute – and really following that interest,” says Dr Sarah, our Zoo’s head of conservation advocacy and engagement.
Today is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science or #IDWGIS and we’re sharing the stories of six incredible women (just a fraction of the talented wāhine we’re lucky to have at the Zoo!) to discuss their journey into science in all its forms, and their advice for women and young girls interested in pursuing careers in science.
“What do we picture when we think of a scientist – is it a person in a white coat?”, asks Sarah. In fact, she explains, so many roles have their basis in the sciences. In a Zoo environment we use science and scientific thought in everything from how the animals are cared for; how habitats are designed; how we communicate science through marketing, how we study human behaviour to catalyse wellbeing, learning, advocacy and social changes in people right through to how the water quality at the Zoo is maintained … the list goes on!
Throughout her impressive twenty-year career, Sarah has been at the forefront of exploring the science behind the social and human dimensions of zoos and conservation. A key element of this is looking at the connections between people and animals, and how this can be a catalyst for behavioural and social change. Working and collaborating alongside her contemporaries in zoos and conservation organisations globally is a crucial component of this mahi, and just last year Sarah was named one of Blooloop’s top 10 influencers in the zoo and aquarium community! Though like so many of us, when she first started out, she wasn’t sure where her career would lead her.
