Editor’s Word: The Particular Species Symposium is a three-day occasion hosted by Cornell College Faculty of Veterinary Medication’s Zoo and Wildlife Society (ZAWS) biannually. The weekend-long symposium consists of lectures and labs centered on wildlife conservation, One Well being, aquatic, and zoological drugs. The occasion attracts a whole bunch of scholars, veterinarians, and animal well being professionals and presents intensive networking and studying alternatives.
Second-year DVM pupil Claire Chiang is a co-chair of the 2025 Particular Species Symposium.
Claire Chiang and Katie-Ann Fu are second-year DVM college students serving because the 2025 Particular Species Coordinators. WildLIFE spoke to them about their expertise planning this thrilling occasion.
Registration for the Symposium is open! Go to the 2025 Particular Species Symposium web page to register.
Are you able to inform us slightly bit about who you’re, your profession targets, and what led you to get entangled in ZAWS?
Claire: I’m a second-year veterinary pupil at Cornell thinking about avian and unique drugs. I’m initially from Monmouth Junction, New Jersey and went to Carnegie Mellon College in Pittsburgh for undergrad. Throughout my time in Pittsburgh, I gained veterinary experiences on the Nationwide Aviary and a small family-run common apply that noticed principally birds and different unique species. By these experiences I developed an curiosity in drugs of non-traditional species and took that keenness into veterinary college. ZAWS was a good way for me to satisfy those that have related pursuits as me and to even be part of the group to coach these on the significance of drugs for wildlife and unique species.
Katie-Ann: My title is Katie-Ann Fu, and I’m from Nice Neck, New York on Lengthy Island. I went to Penn State as an undergrad. After going overseas to Costa Rica to work with their native wildlife and to partake in conservation initiatives, my profession targets lie inside wildlife drugs and pathology. I additionally noticed a whale shark there and completely fell in love! I obtained concerned with ZAWS not solely due to my curiosity in zoo and wildlife drugs but in addition due to my need to serve the group by constructing a close-knit group and offering alternatives for college students to study extra about this area of veterinary drugs and methods they will get entangled.
What precisely is the Particular Species Symposium?
Katie-Ann Fu is a second-year DVM pupil and co-chair of the 2025 Particular Species Symposium.
Claire: Each two years, ZAWS hosts the Particular Species Symposium at Cornell the place we invite veterinary professionals from all over the world to talk and lead moist labs for a major viewers of veterinary college students. By the symposium, college students are capable of meet veterinarians which might be profitable in facets not historically seen in veterinary drugs and be impressed to pursue such fields. The symposium is a good way to carry collectively the wildlife and exotics veterinary group with college students coming from veterinary faculties all over the world.
Katie-Ann: Attendees can discover alternatives to advance the animal, human, and environmental well being interface, and the hands-on moist and dry labs assist present sensible experiences whereas broadening college students’ understanding of profession prospects in veterinary drugs.
We all know you’ve got been very busy because the Particular Species Symposium Coordinators! What has it been like planning and making ready for such a big occasion?
Claire: Planning the symposium has been slightly little bit of organized chaos. There’s something that we have to do day-after-day and certainly one of our largest challenges was undoubtedly elevating sufficient cash to host our audio system and to have the provides for participating moist labs. I’ve had a lot enjoyable working with Katie-Ann and our subcommittee who’ve helped make the planning for the symposium potential!
Katie-Ann: There have been undoubtedly some difficult moments of feeling overwhelmed whereas making ready for the symposium as a consequence of sorting all of the logistics, managing funds, reaching out to sponsors and audio system, and arising with inventive methods to fundraise. This place has opened my eyes to the immense and collaborative efforts required to plan such a grand-scale occasion, however it has additionally been very enjoyable and rewarding to see the items coming collectively!
What has been the very best half about serving as a Particular Species Coordinator?
Claire: The very best a part of being the Particular Species Coordinator has undoubtedly been the individuals I’ve gotten to work with and meet alongside the best way. We have now gotten the chance to work with our wonderful audio system, lots of whom will journey lengthy distances to come back to our symposium. It’s inspiring to listen to their tales and the eagerness they maintain for instructing our technology of veterinary college students. I’ve additionally gotten near these engaged on the symposium collectively.
Katie-Ann: Whereas planning for such a big occasion has been no simple feat, it has really been a blessing. Serving as a Particular Species Coordinator has offered me with alternatives to develop in methods I had by no means anticipated–from studying find out how to fundraise on a big scale to successfully speaking with my group, audio system, and lab leaders to fostering creativity, adaptability, and a focus to element. There have been many challenges but in addition many joys, particularly cultivating new and previous relationships with pre-vet college students, my friends, and professionals within the veterinary area. It has been really inspiring to witness the joy among the many college students, audio system, and lab leaders and to acknowledge how this area of veterinary drugs can create an atmosphere the place everybody can develop and study from each other.
What classes have you ever realized engaged on the Particular Species Symposium? Is there something that has stunned you?
Claire: Engaged on the Particular Species Symposium has taught me the quantity of labor and energy that goes into conferences and the necessity for an efficient group that’s prepared to work collectively to unravel issues. I used to be stunned as to the amount of cash that goes behind such conferences and the quantity of communication essential to coordinate the variety of audio system and moist labs that we are going to be internet hosting.
Katie-Ann: Because the Particular Species Symposium is such a big occasion, it’s simple to really feel overwhelmed and pressured to guide and carry out properly, in the end falling right into a state of burnout. So, speaking with my co-chair, different E-board members, symposium subcommittee, and college in addition to delegating tasks has been so necessary in addressing these points. Quite a few intricate particulars and shifting elements can typically be neglected through the planning section. Collaborating as a group helps deal with this subject by bringing collectively various views and concepts, enabling us to leverage our strengths to offset one another’s weaknesses.
What side of the Particular Species Symposium are you most wanting ahead to?
Claire: I’m most excited for the scholars to have the ability to join with our audio system and for them to have the ability to develop expertise throughout our moist labs which might be onerous to amass in any other case. Having the ability to meet different college students and veterinary professionals thinking about non-traditional species will have the ability to encourage the subsequent technology of veterinarians to make a big influence on the fields of wildlife and unique drugs.
Katie-Ann: I’m very excited to satisfy the audio system and attendees! It’s a pleasure to be a part of a group so captivated with wildlife and particular species, and I’m wanting ahead to seeing how the symposium will present a platform for constructing new relationships that will result in future collaborations on the forefront of zoo, wildlife, and conservation drugs.
