'Global Conservation Centre' being built at Twycross Zoo

It is the biggest single Government grant ever given to a UK zoo.

Twycross Zoo has announced it is going to create a Global Conservation Centre, following an £18 million investment from the UK Government.

It will be a hub for the zoo’s expanding global conservation work, cutting-edge scientific research, and education programmes.

Alongside the development of the Global Conservation Centre, Twycross Zoo has announced it will be creating a brand new Indonesian themed land, joining directly into the conservation campus.

This brand-new land will include a new, world-class Bornean orangutan habitat, as well as new habitats for several other threatened Indonesian species which the zoo will begin to care for as part of its ex-situ conservation work.

Dr Rebecca Biddle, Chief Conservation Officer at Twycross Zoo and Vice Chair of EAZA (European Association of Zoos and Aquaria) here:

She said: “The unrelenting pressure that we face from the dual climate and biodiversity loss crises, pose a serious threat to the survival of our planet. Our conservation efforts need to be bigger, bolder and more united. Zoos are being called on to do more in this mission, and the Global Conservation Centre is our answer to that call.

Uniquely designed and positioned to allow international conservationists to work in connection with the natural world, we believe that being alongside the species we are working to save will offer unrivalled opportunities to study, learn and develop real-world solutions for endangered wildlife.

We are truly grateful to Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and our local MP, Dr Luke Evans, for their continued backing of this project, supporting us for the last few years to secure this staggering £18million of Government funding for our charity.

Twycross Zoo has been a pioneering organisation since it opened its gates in 1963, but we know that we cannot solve the biodiversity crisis by ourselves. The Global Conservation Centre will facilitate collaboration to accelerate innovation, multidisciplinary research and applied conservation action for the species who need it most.”