Directors from six AZU member zoos attended the international ZOOFanatika meeting held at the Lubin Zoo (Poland) from April 11-13, 2025.

The Ukrainian zoo community was represented by:

• Volodymyr Topchiy (AZU President, Director of Mykolaiv Zoo)
• Yevheniy Van (Cherkasy Zoo Roshen)
• Oleh Pavlyuk (Rivne Zoo)
• Ludmila Denysenko (Lutsk Zoo)
• Serhiy Kostiv (Limpopo Zoo)
• Ihor Bilyakov (Odesa Zoo)

This year's ZOOFanatika was dedicated to supporting Ukrainian zoos.

“Ukrainian zoos are in an extremely difficult situation. The initial wave of solidarity in Europe has significantly decreased, and the financial state of Ukrainian zoos is worse than at the beginning of the war,” the organizers of ZOOFanatika noted.

On the first day of the meeting, Volodymyr Topchiy delivered a presentation titled “Ukrainian Zoos in Times of War.” The Lutsk, Mykolaiv, and Cherkasy zoos showcased videos demonstrating how their teams faced the challenges of wartime.

A traditional auction at ZOOFanatika features artifacts related to zoo operations. This year, all proceeds from the auction were donated to support Ukrainian zoos. One of the auction lots included a fragment of a cassette warhead that hit the territory of Mykolaiv Zoo.

During the meeting at Lubin Zoo, Volodymyr Topchiy presented a commemorative award for the “120th anniversary of Mykolaiv Zoo” to Warsaw Zoo Director Andrzej Kruszevic, who has been one of the founders of the PANDA fund supporting our institutions since the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

Meetings with Czech Colleagues

After the meeting, representatives of Ukrainian zoos met with their Czech colleagues.

In the Prague Zoo, Volodymyr Topchiy awarded the “Order of Leontovych” to Zoo Director Miroslav Bobek. Our colleagues had the opportunity to view the new gorilla exhibit and learn about the construction of the large Arctic Exhibit (budget — €50 million).

At the end of their visit to ZOOFanatika, AZU zoo directors visited and conversed with their colleagues from the Safari Park “Dvur Kralove.” At the famous zoo, the directors learned about the okapi exhibit. Zoo Director Mr. Přemysl Rabas shared experiences from “Dvur Kralove” regarding the conservation and reintroduction of white rhinos.

At the conclusion of the meeting, AZU President Volodymyr Topchiy presented a commemorative award for the “120th anniversary of Mykolaiv Zoo.”