Latest Parrots Podcast Episodes
Episode 219: Positivity and Leadership in a Field of "Cultures of Silence"
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - June 27, 2024 17:57 - 46 minutesOur hosts dig into all forms of media - print, social, and electronic - to discuss the challenge of "cultures of silence" in the zoo field (which, we beg your pardon, involves us repeating a little salty language), and chat about some good advice about how positivity and leadership behaviors can...
Episode 218: Good Luck Getting Rid of Me! (with Brittni Rice)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - June 20, 2024 09:00 - 38 minutesWith Chris stuck in traffic between work locations, Ari is joined by NEI's own Brittni Rice on the eve of her first anniversary with the company! Brittni shares her history in the field, the differences between working as a show trainer and a zoo keeper, the experience of being both a learner an...
Episode 217: Can We Talk About This "Charismatic Megafauna" Thing? (with Jessi Krebs and Greg Lepera)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - June 13, 2024 09:00 - 1 hourAri and Chris are back in the office together and are joined (with the recording gods on our side this time) by Jessi Krebs and Grep Lepera! Jessi and Greg share their paths in the zoo field (we're talking 95 combined years of reptile awesomeness, ya'll), their history with the Crocodilian Biolo...
Episode 216: Recognition, Attention, and the Importance of Being Like Kyle
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - June 06, 2024 09:00 - 41 minutesIt's the return of the two-host podcast! Ari takes some time from her vacation to sit down with Chris to talk about the effects of compliments, recognition, paying attention, and the joy that comes from kindness. Awww! Get in here, everyone - group hug! If you have a suggestion for a question,...
Episode 215: Dispatches from the NEI Expanded Universe (with the Roger Williams Park Zoo Bird Show Crew)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - May 30, 2024 09:00 - 28 minutesWe had so much virtual fun with one out-of-state NEI bird show last week that we decided to send Chris out to visit the other one in person! We are so happy to welcome Morgan Lopes, Josh Sanko, Hunter Peck, and Anthony Rossi to the podcast to talk about the ins and outs of our bird show at Roger...
Episode 214: Opening Weekend Eve! (with the Minnesota Zoo Bird Show Crew)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - May 23, 2024 09:00 - 28 minutesAfter an intro in which Chris demonstrates the evils of AI to an unsuspecting and horrified Ari, we're celebrating "Opening Weekend Eve" with Katelyn, Lucy, Meg, Laurel, Emily, Skyler, Emma, Ian, and Dan from the Minnesota Zoo Bird Show Crew! In this guest-packed episode we discuss the final pre...
Episode 213: When "Helping" Hurts, Revisited (TEC Talk Throwback)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - May 16, 2024 09:00 - 55 minutesAnd lo, the Internet Gods and Goddesses decreed "we shall ruin your recording, thereby preventing this week's uploading of training and behavior content!" But nay, your hosts shall not abide! While Chris and Ari scurry behind the scenes to figure out what the heck went wrong with this week's...
Episode 212: Big Fun at Little Rock (with Hannah Baker, Sydney Byrd, LeeAnn Goette, and Kate Neal)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - May 09, 2024 09:00 - 45 minutesThe state motto of Arkansas is "Regnat populus" - Latin for "the people rule" - and you know what? The people here DO rule! Chris sits down with Hannah Baker, Sydney Byrd, LeeAnn Goette, and Kate Neal from Little Rock Zoo to talk about all the fun training going on during Chris' 10-day consultin...
Episode 211: "Do Science Better": Leadership Growth Through the Lens of Accessibility (with Jennie Janssen)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - May 02, 2024 09:00 - 36 minutesAri and Chris welcome Jennie Janssen (National Aquarium, MIASZ) back to the show to share her take - and a great new initiative from MIAZS (Minorities in Aquarium and Zoos Sciences) - relating to the challenge our field is facing of creating the leaders of tomorrow. References from the episod...
Episode 210: Nuggets of Knowledge from Nashville (with Scott Trauger)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - April 25, 2024 09:00 - 38 minutesAri has The Ick, so Chris is joined by NEI Supervisor Scott Trauger to share our notes - figuratively and literally - from the 2024 ABMA Annual Conference in Nashville, TN! If you have a suggestion for a question, topic, or guest you'd like to hear on a future episode of the show, let us know...
Episode 209: She Wanted a Sticker, She Got on a Podcast (with Lauren Vieira)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - April 18, 2024 09:00 - 1 hourWith Chris in Nashville to listen to other people talk into a microphone at the Animal Behavior Management Alliance (ABMA) Annual Conference, Ari keeps the show going with the help of future animal care professional Lauren Vieira! Lauren emailed us to say that she was a listener who would love a...
Episode 208: Chopping Floors and Sweeping Fish (with Marty MacPhee)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - April 11, 2024 09:00 - 1 hourWell, it took us over 200 episodes to get our act together and make it happen, but it was worth the wait because we're finally joined by our favorite "Queen of Team," Marty MacPhee! Marty shares her background as a member of the "NEI Extended Universe," her training and behavior background at Br...
Episode 207: A New Model for Ambassador Animal Welfare (with Steve Martin)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - April 04, 2024 09:00 - 47 minutesAri and Chris welcome back NEI President and CEO, Steve Martin, back to the show to talk about his recently published journal aritcle, "A Reexamination of the Relationship between Training Practices and Welfare in the Management of Ambassador Animals"! Steve talks about how the article came abou...
Episode 206: So...Are We Promoting Rob Parson Or Not???
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - March 28, 2024 09:00 - 34 minutesCourtesy of the fine folks at the HBR on Leadership Podcast from Harvard Business Review, Chris brings a challenge for discussion to the table: what do you do when a top performer on your team that is up for promotion is also known for treating their collegues badly? We share the ins of outs of...
Episode 205: Magical Moments Over Breadsticks (2024 Podcast Summit with Jon Rossi and Elizabeth Johnson)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - March 21, 2024 09:00 - 1 hourZoo podcasters of the world, unite again! Join Chris on his "exciting first date" with Jon Rossi of the Rossifari Podcast and Elizabeth Johnson of the Mothering Wildlife Podcast to discuss the ins and outs of our shows! With Jon as host and ringleader, we talk about why our shows got started, ho...
Episode 204: Coaching for Coaches Who Coach Coaches
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - March 14, 2024 09:00 - 43 minutesAri has feedback on the brain - shout out to The Sea Stories Podcast (Apple Podcasts | Spotify) - so she sits down with Chris to talk about the ins of and out of how it applies to coaching people on how to coach others. We discuss the difference between coaching coaches you work with versus coac...
Episode 203: We 'People' All Day Long (with Kaitlyn Bohnet and BJ Rice from North Sky Raptor Sanctuary)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - March 07, 2024 10:00 - 43 minutesThe TEC Talk Podcast is proud to welcome Kaitlyn Bohnet and BJ Rice from North Sky Raptor Sanctuary to the show! We chat with Kaitlyn and BJ about how they got involved with their current roles, their team's epic track suits that stole the show at the IAATE Icebreaker, why it's a strength to com...
Episode 202: Fly-Offs and Shutdowns and Evals, Oh My!
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - February 29, 2024 10:00 - 35 minutesChris sits still while Ari flies down the road in order to talk about a wild week at That Theme Park show that started with an epic flyoff and rolled right into a new show experience AND a new staff evaluation process - just a Totally Normal Week Where Nothing Remarkable Happened. :-) If you h...
Episode 201: They Understood the Assignment (Recap of the 2024 IAATE Annual Conference)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - February 23, 2024 01:29 - 32 minutesAri is back in Florida to regale Chris with tales from the 2024 IAATE Annual Conference in Eugene, Oregon! If you have a suggestion for a question, topic, or guest you'd like to hear on a future episode of the show, let us know at [email protected]! ------------------------------...
Episode 200: Thanks For Nothing, Spain! (with the NEI Podcast-iversary Super Group)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - February 15, 2024 10:00 - 50 minutes200 episodes, how is that possible! Ari and Chris are joined by land and by sea by Steve Martin, Amy Fennell, Scott Trauger, Cori Dawson, Brad Moore, Michael Van Horne, Adam Geltz, Shayna Gruman, Natalie Sunray, Hunter Peck, and Kevin O'Brien to celebrate a very special podcast-iversary! We shar...
Episode 199: Balancing Wellbeing for Animals (with Margaret Rousser)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - February 08, 2024 10:00 - 54 minutesFor our final show before we pass the 200 episode mark (wow!), Ari and Chris are joined by Margaret Rousser, former Conservation Manager at Oakland Zoo (and all-the-time awesome advocate for animals), to talk about the legacy of her groundbreaking talk, "Making Time for Psychological Wellbeing"!...
Episode 198: Neurodivergence in the Animal Field (with Aaron Rose)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - February 01, 2024 10:00 - 57 minutesChris is at the Ranch for our Professional Contemporary Animal Training and Management Workshop, so Ari is hosting alongside a very special returning guest, NEI's own Aaron Rose! Aaron and Ari talk about how to navigate the animal care field when you are neurodivergent. Aaron shares his personal...
Episode 197: Show Day with the Next Generation
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - January 25, 2024 10:00 - 51 minutesChris and Ari discuss their day with the visiting students of Drake University's Animal Behavior Program and Sante Fe Community College's Zoo Technology Program before answering some questions from r/Zookeeping, the subreddit dedicated to folks interested in the professional animal care field! ...
Episode 196: 3-2-1...Ambush!
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - January 19, 2024 01:36 - 40 minutesChris gives Ari some "daywork" by challenging her to follow the format of the "3-2-1 Thursday" weekly newsletter from James Clear, author of Atomic Habits (a great book that Chris reviewed in Episode 177) and come up with the following to share with our listeners: three short ideas, two quotes f...
Episode 195: Surprise Pocket Walnuts, and Other Ways to Connect (TEC Talk Takeover with Lucy Rutt and Adam Geltz)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - January 11, 2024 10:00 - 1 hourFor this week's episode of the show, forget about Chris and Ari: tune in for the Adam and Lucy Takeover! Our special guest hosts discuss what makes a good mentor, admirable leadership qualities, how to get into leadership, and the importance of enjoying what we do! Whether you have the title of ...
Episode 194: Setting S.M.A.R.T. Goals for 2024
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - January 04, 2024 10:00 - 28 minutesHello, 2024! You are 4 days old and full of hope, and will be using you as an opportunity to make New Year's Resolutions. If you find yourself in this boat, Ari shares a few ideas in this episode to help you on a path to succeed at whatever goal you set for yourself through the use of positive r...
Episode 193: Bye Bye, 2023! (TEC Talk Throwback featuring The End of 2020)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - December 28, 2023 18:42 - 58 minutesAri and Chris wrap up the year by sharing how our holidays have gone so far and looking back at how we ended the first year of our show: 2020 (aka "The Year That Nothing Big or Interesting or Weird or Devastating Happened). We hope everyone had a good 2023 and we look forward to being back for m...
Episode 192: A "Dichotomous Key" for Control Inputs and Welfare Outputs
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - December 21, 2023 10:00 - 54 minutesAri and Chris are back in the office to discuss the following question that Chris posed on the ABMA Community online forum: does more control in an animal's life equal objectively better welfare?Joins us as we explore what one might generously call a dichotomous key (does it count if each questi...
Episode 191: Kreepin' on ZooKreepers (From Two Continents!)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - December 14, 2023 10:15 - 41 minutesAri is in Florida and Chris is in Austria, but through the magic of editing they chat "together but apart" about the NEI holiday party and some challenges we're having with our pets before tackling a few questions Ari pulled off the Facebook ZooKreepers group. Thanks for listening, join us again...
Episode 190: Give Them the Tools, Don't Be the Tool! (with Tim Sullivan)
The TEC Talk Podcast: Presented by Natural Encounters, Inc. - December 07, 2023 10:00 - 50 minutesOn this episode, Ari chats with Tim Sullivan (Director of Behavioral Husbandry at Chicago Zoological Society's Brookfield Zoo) about how to grow great keepers and animal care staff into great leaders. They discuss "that sticky spot" when your peers become your direct reports, how to manage expec...