Page 14 - Gateways_Fall2021

FROM UNSUSTAINABLE TO SUSTAINABLE

When Strahl joined the Chicago Zoological Society in 2003, a financial crisis
was looming that threatened the future of the institution. Capital maintenance
had been deferred for many years and the zoo’s aging infrastructure was in dire
need of repairs. In five years, CZS would have to repay millions of dollars it
had received through a bond issuance by the Forest Preserves of Cook County.
Running a large, complex nonprofit like CZS is challenging, even in the
Stuart has worked to conserve the natural best of times. The organization raises nearly 70 percent of its gross operating
world outside the confines of our park. Many revenue and revenue for capital needs. About half of this comes from paid
people don’t realize how much of a difference
he’s made in helping to keep significant parts memberships and ticket sales. Revenue can be unpredictable, particularly
of the natural world intact. during periods of bad weather.

Bill Kunkler When Stuart took over his responsibilities here, I was treasurer

DEPUTY CHAIR AND PAST CHAIR OF and we were in an interesting position financially. Stuart’s
THE CZS BOARD OF TRUSTEES been highly focused on fiscal responsibility. He moved forward
with financial modifications that put the organization on a
proper longer-term financial trajectory.

A CONSERVATION LEADER Michael Emmert
IN THE MAKING TREASURER OF THE CZS BOARD OF TRUSTEES

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C o n w a y , t h e w o r ld - f a m o u s d i r e c t o r o f t h e N e w officer and a manager to lead Development, the Society’s fundraising arm.
York Zoological Society Bronx Zoo (now the Wildlife
Y o r k Z o o l o g i c a l S o c ie t y B r o n x Z o o ( n o w t h e W i ld l i f e He expanded the Board of Trustees. “Stuart spent hundreds of hours courting
C o n s e r v a t i o n S o c ie t y ) b e c a m e h i s n e w n e i g h b o r i n and finding new donors,” said Emmert, which is difficult in an area replete
Conservation Society) became his new neighbor in
P e l ham , N e w Y o r k . with cultural institutions vying with each other for donors and contributions.
Pelham, New York.
C o n w a y r e g a l e d S t r a h l w it h e x c it i n g s t o r ie s a b o u t “Stuart understood the challenges we had with the need for capital
Conway regaled Strahl with exciting stories about
fi e ld w o r k w it h w i ld a n i m a l s i n f a r - o ff p l a c e s a n d investment in an old facility, and that spawned a very strong commitment to
field work with wild animals in far-off places and
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t took the awestruck boy behind the scenes at the master planning,” said Grube. He worked with staff, board members, and
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Bronx Zoo to meet the animals.
B r o n x Z o o t o m e e t t h e a n i m a l s . volunteers to develop a Master Plan that identified major new exhibits for
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a Ph.D. in the subject from the State University of
a P h . D . i n t h e s u b je c t f r o m t h e S t a t e U n i v e r s it y o f In 2004, CZS published its first 5-year Strategic Plan, which defined the
New York at Albany. He did his doctoral research
N e w Y o r k a t A l b a n y . H e d i d h i s d o c t o r a l r e s e a r c h institution’s mission, values, vision, and goals for the future. “Stuart translated
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and ornithologist working for the Wildlife staff,” said Grube. “This ensured there would be significant and meaningful
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Conservation Society.
C o n s e r v a ti o n S o c i et y . accomplishments against those goals to advance the institution.”
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He conducted field surveys of wildlife including Under Strahl’s management, CZS went from being unsustainable to
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cr a ci d s , a f a m i l y o f l a r g e g a m e b i r d s t h a t w e r e sustainable. The bond was repaid in three instead of five years.
cracids, a family of large game birds that were
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i increasingly difficult to find in the rain forest. . During Strahl’s tenure, attendance records were broken, the number of zoo
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B e i n g fl u e n t i n S p a n i s h , S t r a h l w o r k e d w it h l o c a l memberships doubled, and innovative new programs were initiated.
Being fluent in Spanish, Strahl worked with local
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in remote villages.
in r e m o t e v il la g e s . INSPIRING CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP
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" "I was trained that the world would be a better Strahl inserted the phrase “to inspire conservation leadership” into the
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place if we go out, work with people, and engage
p l a c e i f w e g o o u t , w o r k w it h p e o p l e , a n d e n g a g e Chicago Zoological Society’s mission statement. He believes that building
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t them . . . and then set up vast conservation areas human capital —inspiring, educating, and training people to become
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in wild areas and protect them with the local l conservation leaders—is the key to saving wildlife and the planet. To focus
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people’s support ." the Society’s efforts on this mission, he launched the Center for Conservation
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Leadership in 2006.
14 GATEWAYS | THE LEGACY OF STUART STRAHL