- The Thirteenth Annual Conference of SEAZA (South East Asian Zoos Association) was hosted by Ocean Park, Hong Kong. The theme was “Inspiring Stewardship Through Conservation Education In A Multi-cultural And Intergenerational Approach”. The Opening Ceremony of the Conference was held at Panda Hotel, Hong Kong on 4 September 2004 at 8.45 am.
- In her opening speech, Ms Suzanne Gendron, of Ocean Park and Organising Committee Chair, extended a warm welcome to all the delegates to Hong Kong. She was happy to note that a total of 95 delegates from 15 countries and territories registered this year. She thanked the various sponsors and partners of the Conference, Leisure & Cultural Services Department, Panda Hotel, WWF, Kadoorie Farm & Botanic Garden, Studio Hanson Roberts, AldrichPears Associates and Ocean Park Conservation Foundation. Suzanne then invited Mr Tom Mehrmann, Chief Executive of Ocean Park Corporation to make his welcome speech.
- Mr Mehrmann welcomed everyone to Hong Kong and said that it was Ocean Park’s great pleasure to host the SEAZA Conference in Hong Kong. This year was particularly significant as it was the first time that both SEAZA and IZE Conferences were overlapping in the same city. This provided an excellent opportunity for zoo directors, veterinarians, professionals and educators from around the world to meet and exchange ideas and best practices with each other. He said that visitors to Hong Kong come from all over the world, which makes it important for everyone to adopt an international approach to meeting the guests’ needs and conveying significant educational and conservation messages. He cited the example of Ocean Park staff taking Chinese classes so as to better meet the needs of mainland China visitors as they form more than 60% of visitors to Ocean Park. He said that SEAZA and IZE Conferences provide an exceptional platform for the communities from the East and West to generate exciting collaborative opportunities, shared experiences and rediscover the adventure of life. He wished everyone an enjoyable stay in Hong Kong.
- Mr Daniel Wan, Chief Leisure Manager from the Leisure & Cultural Services Department of Hong Kong, was invited to the stage to receive a memento from Ocean Park. Mr Bryan Ko, Resident Manager of Panda Hotel, was then invited on-stage. Mr Ko extended a warm welcome to all the delegates to Panda Hotel and said that the Panda Hotel team was very proud to one of the sponsors for the SEAZA Conference. Since their launch over 12 years ago, Panda Hotel staff have been highly active and have sponsored numerous environmental, civic institutions and charities, with a primary focus of giving back to the Hong Kong and international community. As SEAZA’s values paralleled theirs, this was the reason that they were happy to donate their facilities to host the event. He wished the delegates a successful event ahead.
- Mr Pisit na Patalung, President of SEAZA, was next invited on-stage. He said that on behalf of SEAZA, he warmly welcomed all the delegates to Hong Kong. He said that it was good to see old friends and make new friends. The SEAZA Conference helped bring together zoo professionals from around the world and a number of distinguished speakers would be sharing their experience and expertise in the plenary sessions and workshops. This year, there will be a range of topics from genetics to enrichment, education and marketing. The overlapping of the IZE and SEAZA was an excellent opportunity to gather new ideas for educational programs and the interpretation pf exhibits, both verbally and written. He said that conservation is an important aspect of the zoo business and education is the first step to changing hearts and minds of the communities. He thanked everyone for making the long trip to Hong Kong and he looked forward to the sharing and learning.
- The keynote speech was made by Mr Bernard Harrison of Harrison & Friends, a zoo design consulting firm. The topic of his speech was “Zoos of the Future Will Need A Good Dose of Creativity”. He traced the major developments and paradigm shifts in design in zoos in the 20 th century and challenged the zoo community to develop a zoo exhibit on extinction, which has traditionally been handled by museums. He suggested that the stage be set, the story line be formulated, a cast of appropriate animals selected and pros and special effects be borrowed from other industries such as museums, theme parks and the film industry.
- The Conference was attended by 96 delegates representing the following 15 countries and territories: Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States of America and Vietnam.
- During the scientific sessions, 27 papers were presented on various topics of animal welfare and ethics, enrichment, conservation, education, veterinary medicine, captive breeding and husbandry.
- There were four participatory workshops, which ran simultaneously. These were:
- In-situ Conservation Workshop Co-Chaired by BP Jansen Manansang and Dr Ratnakumar Duraisingam;
- Institutional Records Keeping Workshop Co-Chaired by Mr Syed Hassan and Ms Loretta Ho;
- Animal Ethics & Welfare Workshop Chaired by Prof G. Agoramoorthy;
- Conservation Education Workshop Chaired by Ms Suzanne Gendron and Ms Joyce Kwok.
- The delegates were treated to a Pre-Conference visit at Mai Po Nature Reserves and lunch on 3 Sept. This was followed by a visit to Hong Kong Park and then Hong Kong Zoological & Botanical Gardens. In the evening, Ocean Park hosted the Icebreaker for SEAZA delegates to meet and socialize.
- On the morning of 6 Sept, the last day of the Conference, delegates were treated to a Tai Chi session at the Middle Kingdom of Ocean Park; followed by Yum Cha or breakfast at the Middle Kingdom Restaurant. Delegates could also participate in various workshops conducted by Ocean Park staff. The workshops were on:
- Leadership & Management
- Veterinary
- Marketing
- Exhibit Design
- The SEAZA General Assembly was held in the afternoon of 6 Sept in the Middle Kingdom Restaurant of Ocean Park. The agenda for the General Assembly sessions covered the following: (1) President’s report, (2) Reports by the various Chairs, (3) Amendments to the Constitution and the Bylaws, (4) Presentation by Melbourne Zoo on the hosting of the 2 nd Joint SEAZA/ARAZPA Conference (14 th SEAZA Conference) in May 2005 in Melbourne, Australia (5) Theme of the 2005 Conference.
- At the General Assembly, Pisit na Patalung announced that he would be stepping down as President and that BP Jansen Manansang has kindly agreed to take over as President & Chair (Conservation), This was rectified by the voting members. A new secretariat would be hired to help the President in his duties and to enable the Board to better serve the members. The rest of the Board is as follows: Vice President, Sophon Dumnui; Founding President, General D Ashari; Immediate Past President, Pisit na Patalung; Secretary/Treasurer, Wong Hon Mun; Chair (Constitution & Bylaws & Fund Raising) Richard Tenaza; Chair (Animal Ethics & Welfare), G Agoramoorthy; Chair (Conservation Education), Suzanne Gendron; Chair (Training) Chen Pao Chung; Members, Lukito Daryadi; Bernard Harrison, Phan Viet Lam and Nawayai Yazak.
- The venue for the 14 th SEAZA Annual Conference was confirmed to be Melbourne Australia. Ms Laura Mumaw, CEO of Zoos Victoria, Melbourne, Australia extended an invitation to all delegates to attend. The Conference is scheduled for 1-5 May 2005 and will be the 2 nd Joint SEAZA/ARAZPA Conference. The theme for the Conference is “The Art and Science of Zoos and Aquariums”.
- The 2006 Conference would be hosted by Vietnam and is tentatively scheduled for September 2006.
- On the same evening, at the Closing Ceremony, delegates tucked into a sumptuous dinner. As part of the great SEAZA tradition, the delegates from each country or territory put up original skits, which had everyone in stitches and a memorable time.
- See you in Melbourne, Australia in 2005.