The Trustworthiness of Zoos and Aquariums on Climate Change Topics John Fraser Understanding, fostering, and promoting lifelong learning

Trust/Legitimacy/Expectation

Trust as an Information Source Strongly Strongly DisagreeAgree

Institutions as Sources of Information on Climate Change (General Public)

Institutions as Sources of Information on Climate Change (Educators)

Sources of Environmental Information? Educators Educators especially value zoos and aquariums as an information source for endangered animals, as places for educating students about animals and habitats, and as an information source for wildlife conservation and protection.

Educators Educators place the lowest comparative degree of value on zoos and aquariums as information sources for water and energy conservation in homes, as information sources for global climate change, and as information sources for recycling. Sources of Environmental Information?

What’s Going On? Volunteers Compared to the American population, zoo/aquarium volunteers are far more concerned about the environment in general and on specific issues like pollution and global climate change. They are also significantly more likely to: 1) donate more money to conservation causes 2) express willingness to forego some quality of life to protect the environment 3) support taxes and costs to protect nature

Trust?

If the zoo gave you information on global climate change (e.g., global warming), please rate how much you would trust that information:. Urban Zoo

Receptivity? Zoo visitors were still very open to the environmental information presented by the zoo. When asked, “How comfortable do you feel with hearing messages from the zoo about the environmental impact of your behavior”, 93.2% of respondents indicated that they were comfortable with the environmental messages they hear from the zoo. Urban Zoo

Receptivity? Zoos and aquariums are not perceived as primary generators of knowledge. Authority is associated with ability to reliably translate science information in a balanced manner. Media

America and the Ocean 2009 Impact Aquariums are expected to protect the ocean and its species. Youth are more accepting of the concept of climate change. About half of visitors expect to hear messages about climate change.

Legitimate Authority Authority Knowledge about animals in the collections. Translators of environmental information about animals. Trusted collaborators with environmental scientists.

Legitimate Authority Implications

Thank you. John Fraser Understanding, fostering, and promoting lifelong learning