The ABQ BioPark is excited to announce the hire of Bob Lee, who started work this week as the new associate director. This important hire completes the newly formed leadership team at the ABQ BioPark.
“We are thrilled to welcome Bob Lee to the City of Albuquerque,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “His experience makes him an asset to the BioPark and our community.”
Lee has more than 20 years of experience serving animals and the community in the Pacific Northwest. In his most recent position as the interim program director of animal care and conservation at the Oregon Zoo, Lee led a team of zookeepers, curators, and research scientists focused on advancing animal welfare throughout the zoo. His passion is connecting the community with the natural world.
Lee has extensive animal management experience, with a career-long focus on elephants. He served as the Association of Zoo and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan coordinator and studbook keeper for Asian elephants and as a steering committee member of the AZA Elephant Taxonomic Advisory Group. Due to his leadership and conservation work in Malaysian Borneo, Lee has been invited by the Government of Sabah, Malaysia, to serve on the working group tasked with creating the Captive Elephant Management Plan for the region.
Lee has a bachelor’s degree in field studies, emphasizing psychology and zoology from the Wichita State University in Wichita, Kan.
