Today the Oakland Zoo turns 100-years-old and it’s had quite a history. Starting in downtown Oakland, moving around several times. It grew and thrived until the late '70s, then fell on hard times with low funding. In 1983 the Humane Society of the United Statesnamed the Oakland Zoo among the 10 worst zoos in America.Then things picked up in 1985 when a man named Dr Joel Parrot took charge, and changed the core philosophy of the zoo- changing its focus from entertainment - to a mission of conservation, preservation, and education. He headed the Zoo for 36 years.
Filling his shoes was Nik Dehejia, the current CEO of the Zoo. Hana spoke with him and asked him to reflect on the zoo today, how the pandemic has affected it, and what he sees is the future.
