Job opportunities

Research Engagement Subgroup member

BIAZA Research Committee (RC)

BIAZA’s Research Committee is one of six key standing Committees that works to achieve BIAZA’s mission aims.

The RC’s objectives are as follows:

1. To encourage, facilitate and monitor research being carried out in BIAZA member collections and related field research.
2. To promote and communicate research within the zoo and aquarium community, to academic colleagues, the general public and other external bodies
3. To increase both the capacity for and quality of research in zoos, aquariums and in the field.
4. To assist in the prioritizing of research in BIAZA zoos, aquariums and in the field.
5. To achieve realistic growth in conservation research and knowledge in specialist areas.
6. To develop partnerships with higher and further education.

BIAZA’s RC members work together to lead our collections in achieving these principles.

Full members of the Research Committee are those colleagues employed by a zoological collection with BIAZA membership. Co-opted members are those colleagues with specific skills or expertise useful to the running of the Research Committee but who are not employed in a BIAZA member zoological collection. The Research Engagement Subgroup (REG) exists to support the RC in its activities and to specifically work on engagement with the wider zoo sector and academics working in relevant areas. 

Research Engagement Subgroup Role Description

REG members contribute to the objectives of the Committee in the following ways:

• Assisting the RC with running social media, such as generating content for the BIAZA Research Committee Facebook page.
• Pursuing actions related to engaging academia and the wider zoo sector with research and the activities of the Research Committee.
• Attending online Research Engagement Meetings to plan actions.
• Attending the two-yearly meetings of the Committee where possible. The main annual business meeting is usually held online in early December and is used to set objectives and actions for the coming year. A second meeting is held in person in early-mid July, before the annual Research Conference, and mainly consists of a review of progress against the year’s objectives and last-minute arrangements for the conference.
• Assisting in the organisation and running of the annual BIAZA Research Conference where needed. This is a two-day meeting (plus the committee meeting the evening before) and is normally held at a different zoo/aquarium each year.
• Assisting the RC with virtual events as and when required.
• Assisting with tasks following any review of the BIAZA Research Handbook.
• Responding to BIAZA Research Support applications.
• Supporting the BIAZA office, contributing to relevant new resources wherever possible and assisting with responding to queries from BIAZA members and other interested parties.

REG members stand on the group for three years, and may stand for a second term of three years if agreed by the committee, after which they must stand down for at least one year before they may apply for a future vacancy in the group. They are not eligible to vote on RC matters.

We are looking specifically for member(s) to be part of the team running the research social media channels.