Henrique Luís de Almeida: Has a Bachelor’s degree in Oceanology and a Master’s in Development and Environment, as well as additional training courses in zoo enclosure design, animal welfare and ecological systems for water treatment. Technical Manager of the Company Terramare, Consulting, Projects and Construction of Aquariums and technician at the Ubatuba Aquarium since 2005. Auditor of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums of Brazil (AZAB) for Welfare Certification of Zoos and Aquariums, having participated in 14 audits of zoos and aquariums in Brazil. He is currently Director of Communications at AZAB, participates in its Animal Welfare Certification Committee and is a representative of this institution on the Aquarium Committee of the Latin American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (ALPZA). Has experience in designing aquatic enclosures and life support systems for aquariums and aquatic animal rehabilitation centers; technical management of aquariums, aiming at animal welfare, environmental education and sustainability.

Heidi Bissell has worked in the field of zoo nutrition for nearly 30 years, conducting research with giant pandas, domestic cattle, Asian primates, birds, anteaters, marine mammals, and more. She currently leads the animal nutrition program at the Walt Disney Company including Disney’s Animal Kingdom and EPCOT’s The Seas with Nemo and Friends. For the previous decade, she was the nutritionist for the SeaWorld and Busch Gardens parks. She serves on the steering committee of Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) Nutrition Advisory Group and as a nutrition advisor for the Pangolin, Aardvark, and Xenarthran Taxon Advisory Group. She is the author of Zoo Diet NaviGator, a popular free zoo diet management and diet analysis software. She has a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and MS and BS from the University of Florida.

Tammy Burhmester has been involved in some capacity of animal care her entire life. Tammy has worked in the animal care field for over 25+years. She has had the opportunity to spend most of her career working with primates, specifically great apes.
She has been involved with the Orangutan Species Survival plan since 2008. She has been a consultant for introductions, birth plans, births, maternal behaviors, fostering and general husbandry. Tammy participated in the development of the Orangutan Husbandry Manual for China, by writing the chapter on introductions.
Tammy participated and co-chaired in an orangutan conservation program called Pongos Helping Pongos from 2004-2018 which raised funds for Hutan, a conservation program in Borneo.
Currently she is a caregiver and enrichment coordinator at the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Florida, which is a forever home for orangutans and chimpanzees who have been rescued from the entertainment industry, from research, from the exotic pet trade, or from other situations where great apes need rescue and lifetime care.

Kathleen (Katie) Conlee is vice president for animal research issues with The Humane Society of the United States (the HSUS), where she has worked since 1999. Katie is focused on the long-term goal of replacing the use of animals in harmful research and testing, as well as the ongoing development and implementation of non-animal alternatives. Katie, in collaboration with other organizations, led the HSUS’ efforts to effectively end the use of chimpanzees in research in the U.S. She is now focused on facilitating the retirement of chimpanzees from laboratories to sanctuaries. Prior to joining the HSUS, Katie spent several years at a primate breeding and research facility in South Carolina as the behavioral manager for more than 3,000 primates. There, she applied environmental enrichment and other strategies to reduce stress and help emotionally disturbed animals. She also worked as the Supervisor of Care at the Center for Great Apes, a sanctuary for chimpanzees and orangutans. Katie holds a bachelor’s degree in zoology and a master’s degree in public administration, with a specialization in public policy.

Joe Flanagan received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1982. Following graduation, he immediately began his long career at the Houston Zoo where he is currently senior veterinarian. During his tenure at the Zoo, he’s supported countless efforts to enhance animal care and wellbeing, including participating in the pioneering techniques to address hemorrhagic disease caused by Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpes Virus (EEHV), a devastating disease responsible for the deaths of many elephants. He is a member of local, regional, and national professional veterinary organizations, and is actively involved with the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians, serving as section chair for the annual conference and ascending the officer tract to president in 2005. As an active member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accreditation team, he’s inspected dozens of zoos.
Joe’s strong passion for turtle and tortoise conservation led him to a 35-year long partnership with the National Marine Fisheries Galveston Laboratory where he provided veterinary care to captive reared and rehabilitated sea turtles until the program was discontinued in 2020. Since that time, the Houston Zoo has operated the Sea Turtle Hospital at NOAA and provides veterinary care for turtles housed at the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research at Texas A&M Galveston.
Joe’s dedication to the conservation and care of turtles and tortoises doesn’t stop with sea turtles; he also provides support to the Galapagos National Park in the restoration of biodiversity by assisting with the captive production and head starting of land iguanas and giant tortoises, and development of novel methods for elimination of invasive species. These collaborative efforts involve partnering with NGOs including Galapagos Conservancy, Charles Darwin Foundation, Island Conservation, and Re:Wild.
In addition to his regular veterinary responsibilities at the Houston Zoo, Joe is actively involved in the zoo’s regional conservation efforts for the Houston Toad, Attwater’s Prairie Chicken and Brazos water snake among other conservation programs. He considers himself fortunate to be able to assist in animal welfare and rescue efforts by working with the Houston SPCA in numerous exotic animal confiscations with species ranging from invertebrates and tropical fish to great apes, big cats, and bears. These cases typically involve severe neglect and cruelty; animals are in need of immediate relocation from cramped, dangerous, and filthy enclosures to appropriate housing where they may receive professional care.

Angela Gibson, Zoological Manager for California Trail at the Oakland Zoo, holds a B.S. and M.S. in Biology. Specializing in North American species, she focuses on bear welfare, elevating husbandry standards through seasonal life strategy integration. Passionate about teaching those directly caring for wildlife, Angela serves on the Bear Care Group’s Board of Directors, emphasizing behavior-based and holistic husbandry practices. Her commitment extends to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums Bear Taxon Advisory Group and involvement in the Jaguar and Bison SAFE Programs.

Caroline Griffis has worked with captive primates for over 25 years. After completing her Bachelor’s degree in sociology and French, she earned a diploma in animal care and a Master’s in psychology with a specialization in primate behavior.
Early in her career, Caroline worked in the behavioral management unit at a national primate research center. It was there that she learned what defined good welfare and how to ensure and promote it within the confines of research. From there, she changed her focus to sanctuary work. Since 2012, she has been consulting at primate sanctuaries across Africa, advising them on methods for improving the
welfare of primates confiscated from the bushmeat trade. She has served as an instructor for the Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA) primate care training program since its inception in 2016, training staff at various sanctuaries on enrichment, positive reinforcement training, behavioral data collection and other methods to promote individual psychological wellbeing as well as social group management.
Caroline is currently the Chimpanzee Behavior Manager at Save the Chimps in Fort Pierce, Florida, which is a sanctuary housing over 220 chimpanzees that were rescued from research, entertainment and the pet trade. She oversees welfare assessments, the enrichment and operant conditioning programs and social introductions. She continues making annual trips to support the Fernan-Vaz Gorilla Project in
Gabon. In addition to chimpanzees and gorillas, Caroline has worked with bonobos and over a dozen monkey species.

Linda King is the Associate Curator of Mammals at the Dallas Zoo. She has over 33 years of experience in animal care including 25 years in managerial positions. Has a B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Science. Has worked with a wide variety of species from tropical tigers to ASC otters. Main focus has been with primates and some carnivores. Passion for habitat design and renovation.
Has been involved with promoting environmental enrichment and welfare for most of her career. Participated in a number of ICEE conferences starting in 1993.
Also involved in promoting professional development and mentoring of animal care staff through involvement with the American Association of Zoo Keepers (AAZK). While serving on the BOD, oversaw Enrichment Committee and publication of AAZK Enrichment Notebook, 2nd ed. Since 2011 has served as a voluntary trip leader of Kenyan safaris to observe community-based conservation initiatives partially funded by AAZK.
Linda currently serves on AZA’s Prosimian Taxon Advisory Group (PTAG) steering committee and Ring-tailed lemur SSP management group.

Marci Kurtz: I began caring for aquariums with my father when I was young and had my own fish tanks in my bedroom as a young teenager. My love of fish carried me through an undergraduate degree from Ball State University in Aquatic Biology & Fisheries Management. I began working with more exotic animals during this time at Indianapolis Zoo as an Aquarist and Zookeeper. For 5 years I worked in the Aquarium at Moody Gardens with saltwater fish and invertebrates and during that time I went back to school at Texas A&M Galveston to get a degree in Marine Resource Management. I then transferred to the Rainforest at Moody Gardens for 13 years as a Zookeeper primarily on Herps and Aquatics. Most recently I have moved into the Animal Wellbeing Manager for all animals at Moody Gardens.

Gail Laule has a Masters in Behavioral Science from California State University. Through her zoological consulting company, Active Environments, she has been an animal trainer, behaviorist, and workshop instructor for over 30 years, working with zoos, aquariums, sanctuaries, rescue centers, and research facilities internationally to enhance the care and welfare of captive animals. During her career, she co-developed innovative and progressive techniques including the concept of behavioral management, which integrates positive reinforcement training and environmental enrichment into a comprehensive systems-based approach to optimal care for all species. She also co-developed Protected Contact, a positive reinforcement-based method for managing elephants which has been recognized as the safest and most humane elephant training and management system and now implemented in facilities throughout the world.

Gail is a co-founder of Ocean Adventure, an open-water marine park in Subic Bay, Philippines, and is president of a US-based non-profit, Wildlife in Need that operates the WIN Rescue Center in the Subic Bay Forest Reserve. She is co-founder and director of the Philippine Marine Mammal Stranding Network, providing training in the rescue and rehabilitation of sick and injured whales, dolphins, and dugongs.

She is currently Vice President of Animal Behaviour & Programmes at Mandai Wildlife Group and leads the development and implementation of a behavioral management program for all animals.

Emily McCormack is the Animal Curator at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge (TCWR) in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, a non-profit sanctuary that provides a permanent home for about 100 big cats and bears. Since 1992, TCWR has aided law enforcement and the court system in rescuing over 500 animals nationwide, providing them with lifelong care. Originally from upstate New York, Emily attended the State University of New York at Oswego where she obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology. For more than 25 years, Emily has participated in national rescues, including recent federal confiscations by the USDA and US Department of Justice. Along with her Curator duties, Emily manages TCWR’s reputable internship program, completed by more than 350 graduates who have successfully obtained animal care careers. Emily has years of experience with habitat design for multiple species, including a new 13.5-acre expansion of the facility. Due to the enormity of the big cat crisis in the U.S., it has become Emily’s lifelong goal and passion to make a difference in hopes that one day sanctuaries will no longer be needed. Emily serves on the Steering Committee for the Big Cat Sanctuary Alliance, of which TCWR is a founding member. She is also a member of the BEAR Alliance, comprised of colleagues who monitor bears in need of rescue in the U.S.

At 6 years old, Debbie Ng knew she wanted to be a zookeeper. After receiving her B.A. from University of Toronto and her diploma in Animal Care from Sheridan College, Ontario, Canada, she began working with Asian elephants. In 2002, she returned to her home country of Singapore when she was offered a position with the Singapore Zoological Gardens’ Veterinary Department. Debbie’s interest in behavioral enrichment led her to become the first Enrichment Officer for both the Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, a brand new position whereby she kick-started and developed the Environmental Enrichment and Animal Training Programs for both wildlife parks.

Debbie later moved to Hong Kong to work at Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden. She is currently the Senior Curator in the Fauna Conservation Department and oversees all the animal programs and display exhibits, with a dedicated focus on ensuring the highest level of captive animal welfare standards. As Senior Curator, she manages all operational aspects of long-term rescued residents, as well as providing supportive care for newly rescued, native wildlife. Debbie is also a part-time vet nurse with the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation, working to mitigate human-animal conflicts with wild macaques. She assists veterinarians in the field with surgical and non-surgical procedures for the Monkey Contraception Project.

As one of the Zoologic Training & Consultancy’s Training Directors, Debbie puts her expertise to work both in the field and classroom, training zoo staff from South-east Asia and China in captive wildlife husbandry and behavioral management techniques. She presents regularly at conferences and teaches at various international workshops. She is also an instructor for the SHAPE of Enrichment. Debbie’s passion for animal welfare and behavioral management continues to grow and she strives to make it an integral part of all captive wildlife management.

Dr. Valarie Tynes is a native Texan and received her DVM from Texas A&M University. She worked in
private practice for 14 years before beginning her residency in clinical animal behavior at the University
of California at Davis in 2000. She has been a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary
Behaviorists since 2003 and is also Board Certified in Animal Welfare. Her special interests are the
behavior and welfare of pet pigs, exotic pets and zoo animals. She has been actively involved in the Fear
Free initiative since its inception and serves on the Fear Free Speakers Bureau. She is a frequent speaker
at veterinary meetings around the world and author of numerous articles and textbook chapters. She
currently serves as the Shelter Veterinary Behaviorist for the SPCA of Texas in Dallas