About Us

The ACE for Wildlife Network brings professionals together to create, use and evaluate practices that foster empathy. We use empathy to inspire our peers and the communities we serve to join us in taking conservation action.

Empathy is a stimulated emotional state that relies on the ability to perceive, understand and care about the experiences or perspectives of another person or animal.

Empathy for Animals: A Review of the Existing Literature, Young et al., 2018

Vision

We envision a conservation-minded community, motivated by empathy for animals and the environment that sustains them.

Mission

The Advancing Conservation through Empathy for Wildlife (ACE for Wildlife) Network facilitates the sharing of knowledge, experiences, and data to drive conservation change through fostering empathy for animals and the environment that sustains them.

Values

What do we do?

Strengthen

Strengthen through capacity building, utilizing new tools and skills and a network-wide spirit of collaboration.

Practice Assessment

Create, use, and evaluate practices by leveraging research, field-testing and on-the-ground experiences, supported by critical thinking and evaluation practices.

Foster Empathy

ACE for Wildlife Network will measure success through agreed upon metrics to measure increases in empathy.

Our Partners

Explore the 29 zoos and aquariums that are Partner Organizations with the ACE for Wildlife Network. From small to large, rural to urban, non-profit to government-run, our Partners bring a diversity of knowledge and practice to this work. ACE for Wildlife Network Partners must be accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).

ACE for Wildlife Network bylaws

Meet Our Team

The Advancing Empathy team at Woodland Park Zoo is the backbone support for the ACE for Wildlife Network. Meet the passionate individuals behind the Network, each of bringing unique expertise and a shared commitment to wildlife conservation to the work. In addition to this team, the Network is driven and led by our committee members.

Marta Burnet

Director of Advancing Empathy

Marta (she/her) discovered the power of empathy for wildlife at a bat talk at a campsite in a Montana state park and has been passionate about this work ever since. She has spent the last five years focused on fostering empathy for wildlife first at Seattle Aquarium and now at Woodland Park Zoo, where she leads the Advancing Empathy team. Marta has a PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Washington, where she focused on the diffusion of innovations, and an MA in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University. She got her start in grant development and management over 20 years ago in international community engagement and advocacy, then higher education, and has truly found her home in wildlife conservation. In her free time, you can find her attending musicals or walking in the woods…where she is probably (quietly) singing musicals.

Emily Bernhardt

Empathy Network Strategist

Emily (she/her) has always been interested in exploring the “why” behind behavior. After studying how spotted hyena behaviors were influenced by the environment, Emily shifted her focus to humans. As a muddy and sunburnt outdoor educator in the salt marshes of South Carolina, she realized the importance of connecting people to nature for individual and collective wellbeing. From there, she pivoted to working in zoos and aquariums; starting as ZooMontana’s Education & Social Media Coordinator and has been in her current position at Woodland Park Zoo for over four years. Emily grew up in southwest Michigan among coastal sand dunes and dappled forests, and has a B.S. in zoology from Michigan State University. Outside of work, she can be found throwing pottery, baking sourdough, or enjoying the natural wonders of the Pacific Northwest.

Sarah Panciroli

Advancing Empathy Coordinator

Sarah (she/her) moved from North Bend to Seattle in 2017 to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Biology at the University of Washington. During her schooling, she developed a deep passion for sea creatures while working at the Burke Museum fish collection as a lab assistant. Prior to joining the zoo, Sarah worked as an Environmental Educator and discovered her love for connecting people to nature and promoting environmental stewardship in communities. Outside of work, Sarah volunteers as a Habitat Interpreter at the Seattle Aquarium, and enjoys spending time in her garden.

Michele Kahrs

Empathy Grants Specialist

Michele (she/her) has always fostered a deep connection with animals and nature – and cannot remember a time without animal companionship. She migrated to the PNW from California after earning her B.A. in American Studies and Ethnicity from the University of Southern California. With over a decade of experience in program development and grants, Michele is dedicated to building opportunities to explore and improve our world through collaborative partnerships. Outside work and family, she can be found with her equine companions, exploring fiber arts or chaos gardening.

Theo Bamberger

Evaluation Specialist

Theo (they/them) chased a love of big trees and cloudy weather from Southern California to Seattle where they earned their M.Ed. in Science Education at the University of Washington. They love studying how people think, learn, and come to care about the environment and have explored the topic through various social science research projects, primarily with the Social Ecology Lab at Stanford University where they earned their B.S. in Earth Systems. As an Evaluation Specialist at Woodland Park Zoo, Theo explores how empathy is being implemented both at the zoo and across the Network, and they are always excited to talk about data. When they’re not geeking out over a good graph, Theo is often playing sousaphone in one of their two brass bands, creating nature-themed art, or hanging out with their goofball cat, Gizmo.

Laurel Abbotts

Grants Manager

Laurel (she/her) manages the Learning & Innovation department’s portfolio of grant funded projects. She started out as a process engineer with a degree in Materials Engineering from the University of Washington but quickly transitioned to focus on project management, specifically at organizations working to make the world a better place. She has 10 years of experience overseeing projects in manufacturing engineering, zoos/aquariums, and public health research. She’s excited about learning and complex problem-solving. When she’s not building a spreadsheet for work, she’s probably making one to help her plan out next year’s garden or she’s trying to teach her 12-year-old dog new tricks.

“I'd like to say that as someone at a small zoo, I appreciate that the Network has given me the opportunity to learn and connect with other people from small zoos in my region who have similar structures, similar projects, and face similar challenges. But I also love learning from those from larger zoos who have more specialized roles, as it allows me to dream bigger about what our small zoo can achieve.”

Network Member

Engage with Our Community

Your voice matters. Share your thoughts, insights, and feedback to help shape our collective efforts. Together, we can make a real difference for our planet’s precious wildlife.