Ep48 with Craig Saffoe on the Association of Minority Zoo and Aquarium Professionals

Craig Saffoe is the Curator of Large Carnivores at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park located in Washington DC. Overall, he has over 27 years working with animals within zoos.

Craig started his career thinking that the only career available in the animal industry, is to become a veterinarian. As such he went to get a degree in Animal Science with a pre-vet track at North Carolina State University.  Whilst there he was inspired by a single professor to explore animal husbandry careers. She also helped him to get an internship at the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Zoo in 1994. From here, he got hired as an animal keeper and moved through the ranks becoming a curator. Throughout this process, Craig says he “cannot stress enough to the people with whom I work that the most fun part of this career field in my mind is that I feel like I have never stopped learning”.

Craig highlights that during his career he has noticed that the zoological and aquatic industry has minimum ethnic minority representation. He observed that black people are perceived as volunteers through an unconscious bias. He even noticed it in himself when observing others whilst at a conference, which mortified him. Craig said it was this moment that seeded the origins of the Association of Minority Zoo and Aquarium Professionals (AMZAP).

Craig goes on to say that although COVID-19 has caused a lot of devastation, it gave him time to develop AMZAP further as the zoo was closed down. It also allowed him to drum up more support among different zoo professionals including the deputy director of the Smithsonian National Zoo and the Secretary of the Smithsonian, which gave him confidence with his idea. From here, for Craig, ‘I’ became ‘we’. It allowed him to move the idea of AMZAP forward.

Craig divulges the importance of remembering that ‘We Weren’t the First’, by sharing the stories of those who paved the way for the racial and ethnic minorities within the zoological industry. He emphasises that they must have faced so much just getting into the field. They can act as inspirations, encouraging others to express their heritage and be comfortable in themselves to climb the career ladder. AMZAP aims to give advice and tools to help achieve this, in the form of resources and a professional mentor. These mentors are from accredited zoos, aquariums and sanctuaries, which are selected from AMZAPs professional memberships. He further reveals that you do not have to be working in an accredited establishment or be a minority to be an affiliate member. Additionally, AMZAP gains support from organisations by allowing their staff to participate, which in turn gives AMZAP traction.

Craig concludes by saying that it became apparent that AMZAP was working when he received an email from a retired black female animal keeper thanking him for establishing AMZAP, wishing that it was present when she was a keeper. 

Learn more about the Association of Minority Zoo and Aquarium Professionals HERE

Learn more about “We Weren’t The First” HERE

Learn more about AnimalConcepts supporting AMZAP HERE

Listen on your favourite player or directly HERE

Become a member of PAWS HERE