What We Do
Chester Zoo’s mission is “To be a major force in conserving biodiversity worldwide” – but how do we achieve this?
Chester Zoo invests a vast amount of funds, time and technical support into a wide variety of conservation activities in the wild around the world.
Conservation Breeding
Most of the species at Chester Zoo are part of breeding programmes. These programmes help to manage species spread between 
different zoos as a self-sustaining population. This is important for species that are very close to extinction in the wild, and provides an “insurance” population. Zoos can also provide individuals for re-introduction projects – providing plants or animals to put back into the wild.
Education & Awareness
Each year Chester Zoo has over one million visitors, and throughout the Zoo there is a wealth of interesting information for them. The wide range of signs and activities around the Zoo provide species facts and highlight threats in the wild and the conservation projects we support.
Each year Chester Zoo also provides lessons and talks to over 20,000 people, ranging from school children to postgraduates.
Zoos provide a unique opportunity to study animals up close. Around 200 research projects are conducted annually at Chester Zoo by staff and university researchers. The knowledge this 
research provides leads to improved animal husbandry and better understanding of animal behaviour and ecology, and can often assist conservation activities in the wild. It also helps train tomorrow’s conservation scientists.
Environmental Management
Chester Zoo is the first UK Zoo to have been awarded the environmental standard ISO14001. This award shows our commitment to the environment and we are continually looking for ways to reduce our environmental impact.
Technical Support
Chester Zoo staff have specialised skills and knowledge which can help conservation in the Zoo and in the wild. Staff are also strongly involved in advocacy roles, helping steer decision-making groups and implementing conservation strategies nationally and internationally.
Explore the website to find out more…..and don’t forget:
By supporting Chester Zoo you are directly contributing to our conservation work at home and abroad and helping us save species from extinction.