The Change That's Needed To Save Our Zoo - Part One - Current Management

My weekend in, started today.  When I woke up, I dug into this first thing.  I spent over two hours going over all my notes and draft posts, and pulled information from more than a handful, to create one.  I'm having a bit of an issue with flow. Realistically, to avoid this subject from becoming a novel, it may become at least a two-parter.  Now, if only the Zoo can stay out of the news the next few days, I might get somewhere in wrapping-up my posts.  Aspects of this post have been in draft long before the wave of news over the past six months.  As someone who has watched management fails for sixteen years, ways to fix it have been at the forefront of my mind, almost daily, for many, many years.  

The goal of this post, and it's successor, is to put forth what I think is a doable solution to the Management problems. I could go straight to that, but I think there is alot of backstory that should be documented (some reiterated), for stand-alone purposes.  

I think it's important to have a logical plan, or seemingly logical plan, to fix something, if you're going to criticize and critique.  Part of the later is to find solutions, and while those thoughts have entered my mind on endless issues over the last sixteen years, there is a root to all the problems, and that's Director Tanya Peterson, and the Zoological Society.

Two posts in draft after the Society's Board decided to retain Peterson as Director, had these tentative titles, "The Zoo Board May Want Director Peterson, But The Staff Doesn't.  Why Doesn't She Just Resign?" and "Can Our Zoo Be Saved?" ... Since both ask questions, let me briefly answer them.  Peterson will not resign because she is selfish, and Yes, our Zoo can be saved.  How, will be in the later post, or you can just skip straight to it.  There are too many selfish Peterson points to list, but in this current moment, she is allegedly choosing to remain Director, so she has acquiring Pandas on her resume.  Rumor had her and her faux Deputy Director retiring in September, but both deciding to stay til Pandas get here.  So essentially, Peterson wants to play a huge part in bringing Pandas here, then walk away, leaving in her wake of destruction, yet another situation the Zoo will be left to struggle with. 

As I maneuver through the draft posts, I have two goals in combining my thoughts, to put forth the most relevant for what's going on at this moment in time, and to try to be done with this, in the effort that is me trying to step back from it all.  There's alot, and I wish I had always just posted thoughts as they came, but I often believe there's a reason things happen when they do.  We (myself, staff and members) have all wanted Tanya gone for a very long time, well actually since she got there.  At every awful turn, we'd say, "She needs to go".  And yet, with everything that's come out, she's still here.  Why is that?

Well, it's been long needed to look at the management structure and the participants level of attention to their responsibility.   To me, it's been clear a very long time.  I wrote a post September 19 titled, "The San Francisco Zoological Society Is Ill-Equipped To Manage Our Zoo".  It was meant to have a part-two, which I started and never finished.  I made quite extensive notes, that basically listed and expanded on key points of mismanagement over the years.  All of which I've previously documented, some repeatedly.  All of which fell on deaf ears.

Those who have followed this blog, and/or any of my other Zoo related efforts, know that I have well documented many issue points and fails in Tanya Peterson's mismanagement as Director of Our San Francisco Zoo.  I've also documented my personal experiences witnessing the negligence of the San Francisco Zoological Society Board in their responsibility to be the checks and balance cog as a managing entity.  Likewise of the Commissioners of the SF Recreation and Park Dept that also have a responsibility of oversight of the Zoo. 

Tanya Peterson, and every member of the Board and Park Commission, simply do not care about Our San Francisco Zoo.

The Zoological Society has not taken the past sixteen years of mismanagement seriously.  Whether documented by myself, or media.  Whether the words, and often pleas from Animal Care Staff, regarding the Needs of the non-human Beings in their care.  Whether the words of all employees, regarding their concerns about working conditions, and/or fair treatment.  I'm sure I've left some points out, but bottom line is, no matter what grievances, large or small, the voices of those who care, have grossly been ignored. 

The Zoo is run as a dictatorship.  The Director surrounds herself with hand-picked Yes Mam's.  The Society Board is made-up of the same.  Members who were allegedly put on the Board by Peterson, and who are allegedly either her Friends, or Social co-horts.  Even the two Board seats that are supposed to be held by Community Members, essentially bringing an unbiased presence to the team, are held by pro-Tanya Docents. ... There's an annual meeting, called Members Meeting, where the election of Officials allegedly takes place.  I say allegedly as I sought to find out about this meeting years ago when I first heard about.  During this attempt a rewording of the notice to attend appeared in the monthly newsletter.  It newly stated that the Meeting was only open to "Members in Good Standing", a clear attempt to keep me from attending.  It's a protected clique, and it's disgusting.  

I wrote a brief description of the Pyramid of Power in this post from five years ago.  There was a long ago post in draft with that title, that detailed the responsibilities of each managing entity. The mention in this post was to notate how the Orangutans got acquired, when there was no enclosure for them in the Zoo.  That single point, is a clear illustration of how the Joint Zoo Committee, comprised of RecPark Commissioners and Society Board Members, are ignorant of what's going on at the Zoo, and negligent in their care and responsibility to the Zoo.

https://iamnotananteater.blogspot.com/2019/11/understanding-how-orangutan.html

After all these years, I think the catalyst for me trying to get all these thoughts combined, and what I think is a doable plan and start to Saving Our Zoo, is definitely the current Zoo climate.  There has never been a clearer picture painted than now.  

Additionally, after that report last week, where many criticisms were put forth, I didn't hear solutions.  I heard, fix everything, but not where the money was coming from.  There were some notations about outlining oversight responsibly, yet in my opinion, nothing that seems to lend to a strong fix.  I have long documented the negligence of the Zoological Society, the RecPark Dept, and the Joint Zoo Committee.  Each Member of those entities has had the thirteen years I've been complaining, to start fulfilling their responsibility to the Zoo and they haven't.  The Members of each of those entities has let the Zoo down and allowed it to downward spiral and that is due to one thing and one thing only.  They just do not care. 

In my opinion that needs to change.  There needs to be a complete overhaul of Management.  The only way that can seemingly be a complished is with the Mayor (whoever that may be) pulling rank over the Zoological Society and making changes.  The Zoo is owned by The City and it's time that is recognized and that The City takes an interest in what's going on there and how it's thriving at optimum into the future.  Delegating oversight to the RecPark Dept, has not worked out one bit.  

The RecPark can't even keep the sprinklers in the Bison Paddock working.  They have proven to have no care for the Zoo.  They do not participate in anything Zoo related, including being awake for the Joint Zoo Meetings, or lend any help to the Zoo.  I'm specifically referring to the RecPark's official Fence Project, which I became aware of in February 2021.  The RecPark had installed a new perimeter fence to the Botanical Gardens, which like the Zoo, is also independently managed.  I contacted the Project Manager and inquired about the Zoo being included in this department project.  He responded and said he'd check with his higher-ups.  They said No.  So while new fences were built throughout the Park, the Zoo got shit, even though it's part of the Park Dept.  The Bison and the Fence are just two points of the lack of care the RecPark has shown the Zoo.  This needs to change.  

So, I have mentioned the Mayor, but I must note the Board of Supervisors, as in the wake of the recent report, they have stated they want an audit.  What role in the hierarchy of The City they play, I don't know.  Politics has never been of interest to me, so I have no idea what can be the outcome of their audit.  Maybe it's not the Mayor with the power but the BOS?  Regardless, some entity in San Francisco Government needs to take action, to Save Our Zoo.

Who will have the Care and Balls to do that?  That's yet to be seen.  Whoever it is, needs to get on it, as Tanya Peterson is ruining the Zoo with every passing day and the Zoological Society is supporting her.  

Related Posts: Part Two to this post...

https://iamnotananteater.blogspot.com/2024/10/the-change-thats-needed-to-save-our-zoo_19.html

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I used to use (search) labels, but too often forget.  I started noting "Hot Topic" in title, but fell lax on that.  Now I'm just going to add labels, keywords, etc., here at the bottom with hashtags.  Does it help in searches, who knows.  

#SanFrancisco , #SanFranciscoZoo , #Zoos #SanFranciscoZoologicalSociety , #SanFranciscoZooDirectorTanyaPeterson , #SanFranciscoRecreationAndParksDept , #SanFranciscoMayorLondonBreed ,  #AssociationOfZoosAndAquariums , #AZA , #SpeciesSurvivalPlan , #SSP , #Animals , #Wildlife , #Nature , #AnimalWelfare , #AnimalCruelty , #AndeanBear , #KomodoDragon , #Chimpanzees ,  #PatasMonkey , #Fossa , #Orangutans , #Barriers , #PerimeterFence, #Pandas #Bison