Upcoming Presentations

Saturday, February 16, 2013
AAAS 2013 - The Untapped Potential of Zoos in Conservation Science

On Saturday, February 16, 2013, Dr. John Fraser will be presenting "The Untapped Potential of Zoos in Conservation Science" at the AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2013 Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts. The presentation will focus on an integrated approach to zoo species selection based on the conservation priority of serving the needs of biodiversity through primary species preservation research. The presentation will summarize the research undertaken by the Wildlife Conservation Society in development of their Global Species Strategy in 2007-2008. Dr. Fraser will explore the implications of a new framework for moral discourses about the role of zoos in a more sustainable society.

Past Presentations

October 24 - 27, 2012
AMERICAN EVALUATION ASSOCIATION (AEA) CONFERENCE Ð EVALUATION IN COMPLEX ECOLOGIES: RELATIONSHIPS, RESPONSIBILITIES, RELEVANCE

On Friday, October 26 at 8:00 - 9:30 am, Dr. John Fraser will be participating on the panel: "Tri-Agency Efforts Toward a Common Evaluation Framework for Climate Change Education Projects: Discussion in the Context of 2012 Recommendations for the Evaluation of Federally Funded STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Education Initiatives," and "More and Fuzzier Logic Models: Research and Online User Tools."

On Saturday, October 27 at 9:50 - 10:35 am, Dr. Fraser and NKO colleague Dr. Rupu Gupta will host a session titled "More and Fuzzier Logic Models: Research and Online User Tools." Dr. Fraser and Dr. Gupta will present an interactive freeware that can generate logic models for program evaluation, exploring how user-generated practical change theories can be created through naturalistic data entry of a program's operational attributes. The conference will be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Detailed information can be found here

September 30 - October 5, 2012
ECOSUMMIT 2012 - ECOLOGICAL SUSTAINABILITY: RESTORING THE PLANETÕS ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

On Friday, October 5, 2012 at 9:30-12:30, Dr. John Fraser will be presenting "Kinda-Fuzzy-Logic Models: Understanding Competing Mental Models for Environmental Education Programs," at the 2012 EcoSummit on Ecological Sustainability. The conference will be held in Columbus, Ohio. Detailed information can be found here

September 8 - 12, 2012
ASSOCIATION OF ZOOS & AQUARIUMS (AZA) ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Dr. John Fraser will make two presentations at the AZA 2012 conference: "A New Theory on Cross Cultural Collaborations" and "Educator Know-how, Emotional Literacy & Social Relationships: Impacts of Multi-Institutional Collaboration on Interpreters' Agency." The first presentation will focus on results from research into the contrasting learning pedagogies represented by science center exhibit developers and their counterparts in zoos, highlighting one model of zoo-science museum collaboration on dolphin cognition. He will offer insights into how collaboration may enhance professional development and discuss the ways in which blended program design may lead to a new theory of public engagement with conservation and the cultural sector. The conference will be held in Phoenix, Arizona. Detailed information about the conference can be found here

June 30 - July 3, 2012
INTERNATIONAL INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Dr. John Fraser presented "Discomfort: The Passion of Environmentalists," in which he discussed the ways in which the changing natural environment is an emotionally charged experience. Reflecting on the results of a five-year effort to describe the emotional dimensions and resilience strategies of environmentalists, Dr. Fraser will offer a psychological perspective on how we come to terms with living in a world of accelerated environmental deterioration. He will offer insights into how transdisciplinary approaches to these topics may offer salvation from our own psyches. The conference was held in Portland, Maine. Detailed information can be found here

June 22 - 24, 2012
SOCIETY FOR THE PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDY OF SOCIAL ISSUES CONVENTIONn

On Saturday, June 23, 2012 at 3:20 - 4:30 pm, Dr. Rupu Gupta presented "The Relationship between Beliefs and Attitudes about Southern California Vegetation," at the 9th Biennial Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues Convention. Dr. Gupta will discuss two studies linking southern California residentsÕ attitudes and beliefs about native vegetation. The first study suggested a relationship between specific beliefs about native landscaping and more general beliefs about the human/nature relationship. The second study indicated that preferences for native landscaping have a basis in values prioritizing human and environmental welfare. The convention will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina. Detailed information about the convention can be found here