The 1st International Online Conference on Zoological and Botanical Gardens
The IOCZBG 2026 is Now OPEN for Abstract Submission and Registration.
Instructions for authors are available online.
Submit your abstracts HERE.
For any inquiries, please contact us at ioczbg2026@mdpi.com.
the chair
Dear colleagues,
It is our pleasure to invite you to join the 1st International Online Conference on Zoological and Botanical Gardens (IOCZBG 2026). The conference is organized by the MDPI open access Journal of Zoological and Botanical Gardens (ISSN 2673-5636, Impact Factor: 1.6) and will be held online from 2 to 4 December 2026.
The agenda of the conference includes, but is not limited to, the following topics:
S1: Zoo Animals Welfare
S2: Zoo Animals Behaviour
S3: Zoo Animals Health
S4: Biodiversity Conservation at Botanical Gardens
S5: Collections in Botanical Gardens, Arboretum and Museums
S6: Botanical Gardens Sustainability
IOCZBG 2026 will enable you to share and discuss your most recent research findings, with the active engagement of the audience in question-and-answer sessions that will take place online without any registration fee.
The conference committee will review the submitted abstracts. Following the conference, outstanding contributions will be invited to be submitted as a full-length paper for publication in JZBG with a 50% discount on the publication fee.
We hope you will join us, present your work at IOCZBG 2026, and be part of this exciting online event.
Best regards,
Conference Chair
Prof. Kevin Cianfaglione, Université Catholique de Lille, France
Follow the conference organizer on Social Media
Meet the Event Chair
Important Dates
- Abstract submission deadlineAug 04, 2026
- Abstract acceptance notificationSep 01, 2026
- Registration end dateNov 27, 2026
- Registration deadlineNov 27, 2026
Meet Our Speakers
Prof. Dr. Chris Walzer
Wildlife Conservation Society, New York, USA, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria;
Dr Chris Walzer is the Executive Director of Health at the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York. He is a board-certified wildlife veterinarian, tenured professor of Conservation Medicine at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria. Chris has an internationally recognized diverse One Health expertise, working on the human-livestock-wildlife interfaces, in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Prof. Dr. Adrian Tordiffe
Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, Jamnagar, Gujarat, India, Department of Paraclinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, South Africa;
Prof. Adrian S.W. Tordiffe is a specialist wildlife veterinarian with a PhD in biochemistry and a research focus on carnivore nutrition, metabolism and digestive physiology. He is currently based in Gujarat, India, where he works as a senior veterinary consultant at the Greens Zoological Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (Vantara), contributing to the clinical management and conservation of large carnivores and other wildlife species.
He previously served as Associate Professor in Veterinary Pharmacology at the University of Pretoria and as Director of the Onderstepoort Veterinary Academic Hospital. During his academic career he supervised numerous MSc and PhD students working in wildlife health, physiology and conservation medicine.
Prof. Tordiffe’s research has focused particularly on the physiology and health of captive carnivores, especially cheetahs, with an emphasis on metabolic disease, gastrointestinal health and nutritional management. In 2018 he founded WildCat Nutrition (Pty) Ltd, a company dedicated to developing specialised nutritional supplements and feeding strategies for captive carnivores.
His work aims to integrate veterinary medicine, physiology and evolutionary nutrition to improve the health, welfare and management of large carnivores in zoological institutions and conservation programmes.
Dr. Dominik Fischer
Zoo Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany; Bird of Prey Center and Wildlife Park, Hellenthal, Germany;
Dominik Fischer graduated from the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Germany in 2009. Since then, he is the head veterinarian at the Bird of Prey Center and Wildlife Park Hellenthal. From 2009 to 2020 he worked at the Clinic for Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians and Fish of Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. There he completed his doctoral thesis (Dr. med. vet.) and worked on various national and international scientific projects about infectious diseases and assisted reproduction in birds and reptiles. He earned a German national veterinary specialist status in avian medicine, in reptilian medicine, in zoo animal medicine and in wildlife medicine & species conservation by examination. Moreover, he successfully completed a 3-years residency training of the European College of Zoological Medicine (ECZM) and earned the EVBS® Specialist status as Diplomate of the ECZM in Wildlife Population Health by examination. Since December 2020, Dominik is the curator for science and for birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish at Zoo Wuppertal in Germany. He is continuously involved in research and conservation projects around the globe and well known as author of numerous scientific articles and speaker at various scientific meetings and international conferences.
Ms. Claudia Martinez
Adelaide University, Adelaide, Australia, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Texas, United States of America;
Claudia Martinez is a comparative psychologist and applied animal behavior and welfare scientist specializing in primate behavior, stress physiology, and evidence-based welfare practices in zoological settings, with a particular focus on western lowland gorillas. She is currently a PhD Candidate in Veterinary Science at The University of Adelaide, where her research examines how social, environmental, and human-mediated changes influence welfare in zoo-housed primates.
Martinez is a Lecturer II in the Department of Psychological Science at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where she teaches courses in Animal Behavior, Primate Behavior, and Applied Psychology in Animal Welfare. Through close collaborations with Gladys Porter Zoo, she integrates teaching with applied research, providing students with hands-on experience in behavioral observation, welfare assessment, and conservation research. Her work bridges psychology, behavioral science, and veterinary-informed welfare science to support evidence-based management and welfare practices in zoological settings.
Mr. James Brereton
University Centre Sparsholt, Winchester, United Kingdom;
James Brereton is a lecturer at University Centre Sparsholt. He specialises in zoo animal research and has worked with a wide range of zoo collections on topics including enclosure design, nutrition and welfare
- 1. Zoo Animals Welfare
- 2. Zoo Animals Behaviour
- 3. Zoo Animals Health
- 4. Biodiversity Conservation at Botanical Gardens
- 5. Collections in Botanical Gardens, Arboretum and Museums
Sponsors and Partners
Media partner
Ms. Olivia Wong
Ms. Coco Hou
Email: ioczbg2026@mdpi.com
For inquiries regarding submissions and sponsorship opportunities, please feel free to contact us.