Academic ‘incredibly honoured’ to win Chester Zoo conservation education award
A University of Chester academic has spoken of her joy at earning a top Chester Zoo accolade.
Uná Meehan, Deputy Head of Childhood, Education and Professional Development (CEPD) and University-wide Knowledge Exchange Champion, has been honoured with the Significant Contribution to Conservation Education Award.
Judges at the zoo’s National Conservation Education Awards nominated Uná for “her exceptional and long-standing commitment to conservation education, and her clear passion for improving outcomes for young people and the planet.”
A valued partner of Chester Zoo for many years, Uná has led and collaborated on numerous joint initiatives, from Summer School projects directly benefiting pupils through to supporting trainee teachers to incorporate conservation themes into their teaching using the arts.
Most recently, she worked closely with the Chester Zoo team to develop the University of Chester’s pioneering PGCert in Conservation and Sustainability Education, creating one of the first dedicated qualifications for conservation educators. A tireless champion for young people’s voices and for inclusion, Uná is known for her optimism, integrity and ability to bring partners from across the education, creative and conservation sectors together to achieve ambitious goals.
Uná said: “I was completely taken by surprise and feel incredibly honoured to receive this award. Coming from an arts and education background, I think I initially felt slightly like an imposter in the conservation space.
“But through working with the extraordinary team at Chester Zoo over the past 14 years, my knowledge and understanding have grown, and I have slowly come to realise that the challenges facing nature and our planet are not problems for someone else to fix, they are for all of us to address, drawing on our different disciplines, experiences and ways of seeing the world.
“That journey has led me to undertake my current PhD, exploring nature connectedness and the role the arts can and should play within it. It is also what makes our PGCert in Conservation and Sustainability Education so special. It brings together colleagues from conservation, education and the arts to explore how we can support learning and action, both in schools and across the many wider settings in which conservation and sustainability education happens.
“Working as part of such a generous and genuinely interdisciplinary partnership has been one of the great joys and privileges of my career.”
University Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation Paul Bissell said: “At the University of Chester, we recognise the importance of conservation. It has been gratifying to see the development of our PGCert in Conservation and Sustainability Education, so that current and future generations are inspired to care for nature and our planet. This programme has been made possible thanks to the tireless efforts of Uná and her collaborative efforts with valued partners.
“We are delighted Chester Zoo has recognised Uná’s hard work for this, and her many other conservation-themed initiatives, with this richly deserved award.”
For more information on the PGCert in Conservation and Sustainability Education, visit: https://www.chester.ac.uk/study/course-search/conservation-and-sustainability-education-pgcert/.
Image: Charlotte Smith, Chester Zoo’s Director of Conservation Education, presents Uná Meehan with the award.