Association of Zoos and Aquariums announces 2026 Honors and Awards winners
10/1/2026Silver Spring, Md. (September 30, 2026) — The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) is pleased to announce the winners of its 2026 Honors and Awards. Out of the 96 applications submitted across all award categories, 42 projects were selected for recognition at AZA’s Annual Conference in Portland, Ore., from September 26 to October 1.
“This year’s award recipients represent the very best of the AZA community,” said Dan Ashe, president and CEO of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. “From advocacy to research to education, our members are advancing the field through innovative programs and meaningful collaboration with local communities, researchers, policymakers, conservation partners and one another. Their achievements not only strengthen our profession but also advance our shared mission of saving species and inspiring people to care for the natural world. Congratulations to this year’s honorees!”
AZA extends special thanks to Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Wild Futures for sponsoring this year’s Education Award, recognizing organizations that create meaningful opportunities for youth to engage in conservation and connect with the natural world. Through the Wild Futures Grant Program, Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom and AZA are helping empower the next generation of conservation leaders through hands-on learning and wildlife experiences.
“The depth and breadth of achievement represented in this year’s set of awards is truly impressive,” said Chief Mission Officer at the North Carolina Zoo and Chair of AZA’s Honors and Awards Committee, Dr. Rich Bergl. “AZA institutions across the country and, indeed, across the world are really making a difference for their guests, their communities, and wildlife conservation.”
Each of AZA’s Honors and Awards recognizes the excellence, innovation and impact of AZA-accredited members across the zoo and aquarium community. Every year, at the AZA Annual Conference, facilities are recognized for their outstanding achievements in animal care and wellbeing, education, conservation, research, diversity and more.
The 2026 Honors and Awards recipients are as follows:
Advocacy Impact Award
- Top Honors — Saving the Horseshoe Crabs of Long Island Sound
The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, Conn. - Significant Achievement — Collaborative Reform of Michigan’s Large Carnivore Act
Detroit Zoological Society, Royal Oak, Mich.
Binder Park Zoo, Battle Creek, Mich.
John Ball Zoo, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Potter Park Zoo, Lansing, Mich.
Saginaw Children’s Zoo, Saginaw, Mich. - Significant Achievement — Hello Pollinators, Goodbye Pests!
Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, Wash.
Angela Peterson Excellence in Diversity Award
- Top Honors — Transforming Conservation Through Employee Experience, Guest Experience, and Community Engagement
Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance, Denver, Colo. - Significant Achievement — Super Family Sundays
Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo, Palo Alto, Calif. - Significant Achievement — Senior Outreach
The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, Palm Desert, Calif.
Earned Media Excellence Award
Under 1 Million Guests Per Year
- Top Honors (Project) — Celebrating 50 Wild Years: Northwest Trek Marks Half a Century
Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, Eatonville, Wash. - Top Honors (Campaign) — Rising to the Challenge: Record Sea Turtle Admissions and Lifesaving Outcomes
The Florida Aquarium, Tampa, Fla.
1 Million Guests or More Per Year
- Top Honors (Project) — Brookfield Zoo Chicago & The New York Times: Building a Blood Bank for Zoos
Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Brookfield, Ill. - Top Honors (Campaign) — Geriatric Penguin Island
New England Aquarium, Boston, Mass. - Significant Achievement (Campaign) — Here, We Save Sea Turtles: Transforming the Mediterranean Coastline into a Citizen Rescue Network
Oceanogràfic Valencia, València, Spain - Significant Achievement (Campaign) — Philadelphia Zoo’s Oldest Animal, Mommy the Western Santa Cruz Galapagos Tortoise, Becomes a First-Time Mom
Philadelphia Zoo, Philadelphia, Pa. - Significant Achievement (Campaign) — A Legacy of Care: Communicating Compassion, Loss, and Renewal Through Grizzly Bear Care
Wilder Institute’s Calgary Zoo, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Education Award
Operating Budget Under $12 Million
- Top Honors — Bilingual Youth Program
Oregon Coast Aquarium, Newport, Ore.
Operating Budget of $12 Million or More
- Top Honors — Be Outside with Brevard Zoo
Brevard Zoo, Melbourne, Fla. - Significant Achievement — Wildlife Research Scholars
Nashville Zoo, Nashville, Tenn. - Significant Achievement — Advancing Conservation through Empathy for Wildlife Network
Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle, Wash.
Edward H. Bean Population Sustainability Award
- Top Honors — Madagascar Flat-tailed Tortoise SSP
Zoo Knoxville, Knoxville, Tenn.
Bronx Zoo (Wildlife Conservation Society), Bronx, N.Y. - Innovation — Blue Death Feigning Beetle program
Topeka Zoo, Topeka, Kan.
Exhibit Award
Operating Budget Under $12 Million And Project Budget Under $10 Million
- Top Honors — Virginia R. Bartak Red Panda Passage
Zoo Boise, Boise, Idaho - Significant Achievement — Fantastic Asia: Journey to Another World (Asia Fantástica “Un viaje a otro mundo”)
Fundación Zoológica de Cali, Cali, Colombia - Significant Achievement — Lagunas y Pastizales autóctonos
Fundación Temaikèn, Escobar, Argentina
Operating Budget Over $12 Million Or Project Budget Over $10 Million
- Top Honors — Elephant Trek
Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, Cincinnati, Ohio - Significant Achievement — Aline W. Skaggs Wild Utah
Utah’s Hogle Zoo, Salt Lake City, Utah
Facility Award
Operating Budget Under $12 Million And Project Budget Under $10 Million
- Top Honors — New Headquarters Complex at Zoológico Guadalajara
Zoológico Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Jalisco, México
Operating Budget Over $12 Million Or Project Budget Over $10 Million
- Top Honors — San Antonio Zoo New Entrance
San Antonio Zoo, San Antonio, Texas - Innovation — Shedd Aquarium: Enhanced Accessible Entrance
John G. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago, Ill.
Green Award
- Top Honors — Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium
Kansas City, Mo. - Significant Achievement — Seattle Aquarium
Seattle, Wash.
Marketing Excellence Award
Campaign Budget Under $250,000
- Top Honors — Dino Park Zoo
Blank Park Zoo, Des Moines, Iowa - Significant Achievement — Adam R. Scripps Living Seas Gallery
Birch Aquarium at Scripps, La Jolla, Calif.
Campaign Budget of $250,000 or More
- Top Honors — Amazing All Around
Indianapolis Zoo, Indianapolis, Ind. - Significant Achievement — San Diego Zoo Safari Park – Join The Herd
San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Escondido, Calif.
North American Conservation Award
- Top Honors — Saving Sierran Amphibians: A Decade of Conservation Action and Recovery
San Francisco Zoo and Gardens, San Francisco, Calif. - Significant Achievement — Fort Wayne Zoo: Help the Hellbender Project
Fort Wayne Zoo, Fort Wayne, Ind.
Indianapolis Zoo, Indianapolis, Ind.
Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden, Evansville, Ind.
Research Award
- Top Honors — Advancing recovery of the extinct-in-the-wild ‘Alalā through evidence-based management
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, Calif. - Innovation — ZooAI: An AI-Enhanced Framework for Automated Behavioral Monitoring in Zoos and Aquariums
Toronto Zoo, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Volunteer Engagement Award
Operating Budget Under $12 Million
- Top Honors — ZooTeen Volunteer Program
Seneca Park Zoo Society, Rochester, N.Y.
Operating Budget of $12 Million or More
- Top Honors — Urban Wildlife Monitoring at Lincoln Park Zoo
Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Ill. - Significant Achievement — Restore Our Shores: Restoring hope to Brevard County waterways through volunteer and community engagement
Brevard Zoo, Melbourne, Fla. - Significant Achievement — OKC Zoo Wild Guides: A Modern Methodology for Interpretive Volunteer Engagement
Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden, Oklahoma City, Okla.
William G. Conway International Conservation Award
- Top Honors — Kenyan Rangelands Program
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, San Diego, Calif.
