The United Nations Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 is a key initiative within global efforts to halt and eventually reverse the loss of biodiversity. The very first target of this plan states that "by 2020, at the latest, people are aware of the values of biodiversity and the steps they can take to conserve and use it sustainably." Zoos and aquariums worldwide, attracting more than 700 million visits every year, could potentially make a positive contribution to this target. However, a global evaluation of the educational impacts of visits to zoos and aquariums is entirely lacking in
Lincoln Park Zoo will upgrade and make freely available ZooMonitor, a scientific data collection tool, which currently exists in a pilot version, for monitoring the behavior of animals in zoos and aquariums, . ZooMonitor will contain modules for tracking animal behavior and body condition and for conducting data analysis. The zoo will also integrate a platform for securely storing an institution's data. With these modifications, ZooMonitor will be rigorously tested by industry partners, translated for both Apple and Android devices, and made available for free public download. ZooMonitor will enable any zoo or aquarium, regardless of collection size, budget, or number of staff, to develop a routine monitoring program—improving the lives of hundreds of thousands of animals across the country and around the world.
NNOCCI is a collaborative effort led by the New England Aquarium with the Association for Zoos and Aquariums, the FrameWorks Institute, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Monterey Bay Aquarium, the New Knowledge Organization in partnership with Penn State University and the Ohio's Center for Science and Industry. With support from the National Science Foundation Climate Change Education Partnership program, NNOCCI's goal is to establish a national network of professionals who are skilled in communicating climate science to the American public.