Abstract Submissions

Storytelling has always been at the heart of every ZACC conference. For the past 30 years we have asked you to come and share your experiences. We hoped that by sharing stories of conservation commitment, that by sharing your passion to do good and telling compelling stories of everyday events that shaped you, it would inevitably create a movement of partnerships between zoos/aquariums and our colleagues in the field.  

We believed that your stories would and could inspire people to act themselves - perhaps by creating a NGO or initiating a community-based project, or by conducting a field study or enacting an in situ education program. But as importantly these stories would both inspire and encourage your zoo or aquarium to become actively involved in supporting and partnering with people already in the field.

We hope that by attending the 2024 ZACC Conference, you too will be moved to greater action.  We are at a time of great change that might seem overwhelming, but we at ZACC believe in the power of individuals, of people who are committed to making a difference seemingly against all odds. So with that in mind please see below for the types of presentations we will be accepting for the 2024 ZACC conference.

You are invited to submit an abstract for either:

a poster presentation

Poster presentations allow you to share you work in an informal setting alongside your peers. The ZACC 2024 poster presentation session will be held at Utah’s Hogle Zoo. Please fill out the application below if you would like to present your work via a poster during the ZACC 2024 conference.

applications now closed

A Presentation (15 minutes)

Present to the audience in a more traditional format. You will have 15 minutes to present your topic that fits in one of our highlighted categories:

  • Everyday Sustainability: Leading by Example

  • How Climate Change and a Pandemic Reminded us of our Place in the World: The One Health Approach 

  • Community-based in situ partnerships: Building capacity with local partners

  • Where are Zoos at Now: Adapting, engaging & committing to conservation

  • Technology Tools 

  • Women in Conservation 

  • Behavior Change for a Healthier Planet: Tackling plastic pollution. What are Zoos & Aquaria doing? 

  • The Power of stories as conservation tools

  • Building Capacity with Local Partners: Long-term Commitment and Belief in a Model of

  • Regional Partnerships.

  • Art as a Conservation Tool


Applications now closed


a Panel discussion (1 hour)

Lead or participate in a panel discussion with the audience to tackle some of our bigger conservation challenges in a holistic, hive-mind manner.

applications now closed

Conservation Café (ONE hour & 45 minutes)

We are looking for 5 to 6 topics – that allows people to choose to stay with one topic for a more in-depth discussion or move from one topic to the next. We are still working out the logistics as to how we will be conducting this. If you have a topic that would be helpful to the audience, please let us know.  

applications now closed

DId you know? Utah gets its name from the ute people

The name “Utah” is derived from the Ute people, a Native American tribe. The name means “people of the mountains.” The Ute people have lived in the regions of present-day Utah and Colorado for centuries