Miguel Avila Resident Of Toronto June 9, 2011 Dear Chair and Members of the Toronto Zoo Board: The

purpose of my deputation today is to again present the merits of establishing a Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) for the Toronto Zoo. BACKGROUND Since May 2009 I have presented two deputations to this Board on the idea of establishing a CAC for the Toronto Zoo, both of which were unsuccessful. In Peru, the country of my birth, there is a saying, En la tercera va la vencida, meaning on the third turn is the victory at hand. Given the significant changes to the Board this year, it is my hope that the new Board will be more open-minded and this third attempt will be successful. REPORT Torontonians have an emotional connection to their Zoo, as clearly seen at the last Toronto Zoo Board meeting when supporters showed up en mass (along with 3,000 emails and the media) to deal with the topic of the future of the Zoos elephants. The CAC would be a FREE service to the Toronto Zoo Board, providing stewardship to present and future generations of Zoo visitors on topics such as the future of the elephants. A CAC would bring other benefits to the Zoo and its Board. It would, for example, benefit from different skills sets from its members, connections and feedback. In other words, the CAC would be a committee of various backgrounds representing a diverse group of the Zoo's supporters. Such additional stakeholders could only add goodwill to the Zoo. A request would be made to the Toronto Civic Appointments Committee, with unpaid volunteers chosen through a formal selection process. The CAC would also be nonpartisan, with Zoo staff and

Council members on the Zoo Board given status as non-voting members if they choose to be part of the CAC. Here are two (2) important projects that a Citizens Advisory Committee can undertake to the benefit of the ZOO: 1. Toronto Service Review As a Torontonian, I feel the Toronto Zoo should embark on its own "public consultation in lock-step with the City Managers launch of his own "Toronto Public Service Review". More than 5,000 people have already filled out forms on their preferences (online, on paper and in sessions), a project that began May 24 with meetings at City Hall last Saturday and at Scarborough Civic Centre on June 7. Across the City, individuals, groups and some Councillors in different Wards are holding meetings to fill in surveys requesting consultation on the way the City funds and delivers services to Torontonians. The Toronto Zoo is part of the consultation process. Parks and Recreation are also holding service reviews themselves requesting input from Torontonians. Why not the Toronto Zoo? The Toronto Zoo should consider examining the pulse of the public and not miss an opportunity to hear from Torontonians. At stake is $774 Million dollars, a big hole in the budget for 2012, and, as expressed by the Chair of the Budget Committee Mike Del Grande: Should the city be in the zoo business? (Globe and Mail, June 03 2011). 2. Rouge Valley National Park In previous deputations to the Board I highlighted the importance of the Toronto Zoo being passed onto the future Rouge Valley National Park as savings to the City. Rouge Valley, some 10,000 acres on the border between Scarborough and Pickering, was brought up as an urban national park by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government in its throne speech last Friday. The Park and the Zoo would be a natural fit.

CONCLUSION I would like to conclude with a thought for all of you to consider. Most people own a computer and from time to time our computer freezes up. We become worried, try ideas on our own, despair, panic, and then come to the conclusion that we are powerless and from time-to-time must call a friend for advice or pay an expert for help. You need to make a choice at some point: Either pay the high consultant fees or ask your computer wizard friend for free advice. Sometimes it makes more sense to put aside the consultants and call a friend -- the friends advice may be as simple as rebooting the computer. In the same way, the Toronto Zoo Board over the years tried many alternatives that involved paying high consulting fees and crazy ideas like the Panda Exhibit, but never asked friendly Zoo supporters for free advice. I am sure that if you do a healthy reboot of the way the Toronto Zoo is managed, things will be much improved. The Toronto Zoo may actually blossom again, both healthy and prosperous. Sincerely yours,

Miguel Avila