BiodiverCity Podcast

A Collaboration between the Gottlieb Native Garden and the Los Angeles Zoo

The Zoo has partnered with the Gottlieb Native Garden on a new podcast focusing on urban conservation. Hosted by Dr. Jake Owens, the Zoo’s Director of Conservation, BiodiverCity looks at the boundaries between humans and nature—and how local scientists, including our own Zoo experts, are helping to save animals from around the world.

Listen to the trailer:

First Episode

“A Tale of Two Birds”

Go behind-the-scenes of the Zoo’s Avian Conservation Center and meet Star, a rare bird who survived a harrowing journey inside a smuggler’s suitcase … and who might be the key to saving her species. Meanwhile, at the Gottlieb Native Garden, we learn how one person’s backyard became a haven for thousands of hummingbirds, and what scientists are learning from these tiny, jewel-toned birds.

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About the Host

Dr. Jake Owens is an international conservationist and researcher with a BS in biology from Stockton University and a PhD in experimental science from Drexel University. For his PhD, Jake performed the first focal study on the behavior and ecology of the Bioko Island drill, a highly endangered monkey found only in Equatorial Guinea. He later spent more than five years in China co-developing a novel release program for giant pandas at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. In 2019, Jake became the first Director of Conservation at the Los Angeles Zoo, where he is leading the expansion of the Zoo’s conservation impact through new partnerships in Los Angeles and around the globe to help create a just and sustainable world where people and wildlife thrive, together. Jake is an active member of the Los Angeles Biodiversity Expert Council and multiple IUCN Species Survival Commission Specialist Groups.

A Message from Our Partner

“For most of my adult life I have been involved in environmental causes, but meeting and having the support of my husband, Dan, made my efforts in these activities much more effective. Together we developed the Gottlieb Native Garden and opened the G2 Gallery for nature and wildlife photography. We brought people together through our garden tours, the Bird LA Day initiative, and many other activities at our home. We did not want our work to be stopped by the pandemic, and a podcast seemed like the perfect way to continue our education efforts. We hope you find the episodes in this series entertaining and educational. We also hope they inspire you to see Los Angeles in a new way—as a place full of nature and hope.”

–Susan Gottlieb, Garden Creator, Gottlieb Native Garden