My name is Josianne Rea Romasco, and I am a keeper aquarist at the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I graduated with a BS in Marine Biology from James Cook University in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. Together, my husband Kevin and I have a 15 month old daughter, Ainslie, who provides our constant source of entertainment! Currently at the aquarium my job responsibilities lie in the Quarantine Department as well as cross-training with our polar bears and sea otters, but I have also spent two years working in the Cold Marine Gallery and spent the majority of my internship working with penguins. I absolutely love to scuba dive, and the fact that I get to mix work with pleasure every single time I don a wet (or dry) suit is something I feel very fortunate to be able to do.
By representing the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium at the PBI Leadership Camp, it is my hope that through this experience, I can return home with a strategic plan on how we can initiate programs which spread awareness about the threats our polar bears face. Millions of people visit our zoo on an annual basis, and through our outreach programs, thousands of school children can also be exposed to the effects of climate change on our wild animal populations.
We animal keepers have the unique privilege of “bridging the gap” between what the general public sees in pictures and on television, and letting them get up close and personal with these creatures—sending a much clearer message. So while five years may not seem like much time to make a difference, I feel that we keepers have the ability to gain the much needed public support to ensure that programs such as Polar Bears International's continue to thrive and protect our wild polar bear populations.
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