Giraffe & Okapi Conference

January 20 – 24, 2025
The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, Palm Desert, CA

The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe, in collaboration with The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, presents The Giraffe and Okapi Conference. This conference serves as a platform for the global giraffe and okapi community to unite, share insights, and collaborate on innovative approaches to care and conservation.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe - Cheyenne Mountain Zoo The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens logo

To Register

- Capped at 100 attendees.
- Registration closes once full.

- Registration deadline: Dec. 1, 2024.

Please Read and Agree

I understand that by purchasing a CMZoo membership, advance ticket reservations are required to visit the Zoo for Individual, Family, Grandparent and Family Plus members, and my preferred ticket date or time may not always be available. I also understand that memberships are non-refundable after purchase.

If free member tickets for my chosen day/time are not available, and I choose to purchase non-member tickets, they will not be refundable/reimbursable and cannot be applied to my membership renewal.

I also understand that the Zoo cannot accommodate an earlier entry time than my ticket start time. (For example, a 10:30-11 a.m. ticket cannot be scanned in earlier than 10:30 a.m.)

Please be courteous to your fellow members by not over-reserving tickets and returning tickets you can’t use. To release your tickets, email [email protected] prior to your ticketed date.

MEMBER CODE OF CONDUCT

We believe we can create a feeling of family by treating each employee, guest, member and donor with the respect they deserve. Treating each other like we would want to be treated is just the right thing to do. There is no room at the Zoo for profanity, harassment or threatening behavior.

Our animals are family and we love and respect them not only for their beauty, but for all the joy they bring so many guests every year. We believe our animals deserve the best homes and care we can provide. Please join us in treating our animals like you would treat your own family members. Crossing barriers is dangerous, as they are in place to keep both you and our animals safe. Like your friends and family, our animals do not like to be harassed in any way.

We believe we should never take our site’s beauty for granted. Our mountain is something we hope you will enjoy and actively admire. Join us in preserving our amazing site by feeling at home while you are here and leaving our grounds “without a trace.”

Our staff strives to make the world a better place every day. We will always work hard to make your experience the best it can be as well as assist you when things might not go as planned. When having difficult discussions, mutual respect is always expected and appreciated.

“If you are unable to comply with this Code of Conduct, we reserve the right to revoke your membership and/or ask you to leave the Zoo. Thank you for understanding.

I agree to the information above.

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Conference Details

Call for Abstracts: Share your research and ideas to advance the welfare of giraffes and okapis. We will be accepting both poster and presentation submissions. Please send your abstract, with your intent to present either a poster or a paper, to [email protected]. Abstracts should be 250 words or less. Abstracts will be sent to a peer review committee overseen by the International Center for the Care and Conservation of Giraffe. The deadline for submissions will be August 31, 2024.

Networking Opportunities: Engage with professionals and enthusiasts from diverse backgrounds, including field partners, Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) facilities, Zoological Association of America (ZAA) facilities, and private owners.

Informative Sessions: Attend presentations and discussions led by experts in the field, covering a wide range of topics relevant to giraffe and okapi welfare and conservation.

Icebreaker Event: Kick off the conference with a fun and interactive icebreaker session, fostering connections and camaraderie among participants January 20, 2024 at 6 p.m.

Optional Browse Working Session (capped @ 50 individuals): Browse for browsers! This year the Giraffe and Okapi Conference will have an additional Browse Program, for those interested. Join staff from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens for a dive into topics related to creating robust and sustainable browse programs. Participants will learn and practice techniques for browse approval processes, sustainable trimming, various storage/preservation techniques, as well as an open browse topics discussion. The Browse Workshop will run from 9 am-1 pm on the conference’s zoo day, Friday, 24 January 2025. The Program will be capped at 50 participants.

Join us from January 20-24, 2024, as we elevate our efforts to improve the lives of giraffe and okapi around the world.

For more information,

email [email protected]