WCS has launched a petition campaign to save the Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium from draconian cuts to its city funding. The campaign aims to build massive community support behind efforts to convince City Hall to restore funding to the city’s cultural institutions, which employ New Yorkers and help bolster the local economies in the Bronx and Brooklyn.

In the Fiscal Year 2010 adopted budget, the Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium received a total of $9.3 million. If the proposed cut is accepted, the zoo and aquarium face a $3.9 million cut, bringing down city support by 42 percent to $5.4 million. This major cut in support comes after a more than 100-year public private partnership between the city and the zoo and aquarium.

“When you cut culture in New York City, you are hurting New Yorkers and New York, especially during a time of high unemployment in our state,” said John Calvelli, WCS Executive Vice President of Public Affairs. “We need to let our elected officials know that these institutions are important to us for the jobs they provide to our communities and for all their services, including their education programs for our children.”

WCS’s Bronx Zoo and New York Aquarium – along with all New York City cultural institutions – are important economic drivers for the city and their surrounding communities. The Wildlife Conservation Society alone pumps more than $416 million into our economy. More than four million guests visit WCS facilities each year, buying from local merchants in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and across New York. In addition, these institutions provide a much needed educational resource for children.

WCS is asking all New Yorkers, families, businesses, community and political leaders to join us as we stand up for a strong New York City economy. If this cut of 42 percent is implemented, the devastation will be immediately felt in communities across all five boroughs.