Karen Sausman

The Living Desert is deeply honored to present the 2010 Tracks in the Sand conservation award to our Founder and President Emeritus, Karen Sausman who has been the President & CEO since its inception in 1970.

Karen has worked in zoological parks and in conservation since 1964. The Living Desert, dedicated to the conservation and interpretation of the world's deserts, controls 1,800 acres; has over $40 million in capital improvements; a staff of 100; 600 volunteers and over 350,000 visitors a year.

She has been a member of the Board of Directors of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA) for two different terms and has chaired the AZA's Ethics Committee. She has been the international stud book keeper for several endangered species.

Karen is a Steering Committee member of the IUCN/ SSC/ Conservation Breeding Specialist Group. She is also a founding board member for the International Species Information System (ISIS).

She has just completed her two year tenure as the President for the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), a network comprising about 12,000 zoological institutions around the world.

In recognition of Karen's forty years of dedicated service to our organization, we can think of no other individual more deserving.