Our Biggest Capital Campaign Ever.
Supporting Our Zoo | Our Community | Our World
Together We Built Something Wild
Your generosity helped complete the Zoo’s largest capital campaign in history. It brought to life the Penny & Jock Fortune International Chimpanzee Complex, presented by Central Indiana Honda Dealers, transformed the Zoo’s welcome experience and advanced global conservation through the Global Center for Species Survival. Because of you, every visit inspires action to protect the natural world. Explore each project below.
Penny & Jock Fortune International Chimpanzee Complex
The Fortune Complex was designed to encourage the fission-fusion social dynamics observed in wild populations through a unique exhibit design combined with innovative husbandry.
The exhibit offers Zoo guests an opportunity to observe these apes in a one-of-a-kind experience that mimics their natural environment. The Fortune Complex supports the Functional Naturalism principle that a habitat designed to reflect wild environments can foster species-typical behavior within a zoo setting. Since opening, The Fortune Complex has transformed the guest experience, provided an excellent home for this community of chimpanzees and allowed for the further study of these primates in a zoo setting.
The Fortune Complex spans a large portion of the Zoo’s campus and provides and enriching, functional forest. This innovative exhibit recreates important aspects of chimpanzees’ natural habitat, allowing them to thrive. The exhibit includes four unique spaces:
- The Rollie & Cheri Community Hub highlights the unique social behaviors of a chimpanzee community. The Hub features lush greenery, a towering structure the chimpanzees can use for climbing and observing and plenty of glass for up-close viewing by guests.
- The Harlan/Shriver Families Cognition Center explores how chimpanzees think and learn. Here, chimpanzees use interactive touchscreens, and visitors can take the same tests to see how their results compare. It also includes the Chen Family Cognition Yard, where chimpanzees gather to forage and socialize.
- The Deborah J. Simon Culture Center provides chimpanzees with a large community space and indoor climbing structure. This is where guests discover the rich cultures of chimpanzees and what humans can do to help the survival of the species.
- The buildings and yards are all connected by the 1,325 linear-foot Chimpanzee Trail, which allows chimpanzees to explore their space, decide where they want to spend their time and with whom.
New Welcome Experience
The Zoo welcomes more than a million visitors each year, and the new entryway establishes an expectation for the entire guest experience. With this campaign, we have created an entrance befitting the Indianapolis Zoo—a global conservation leader and a beloved city icon. The new welcome experience has reframed what our Zoo can offer.
The new welcome experience is more than convenient and efficient—it’s inspirational. Guests leave the outside world and step into nature via a grand Visitor Services Center connected to the White River Gardens. They set their own pace, proceeding through landscaped archways, past fountains and playful sculptures on their way to the Zoo they know in love. Guests may even encounter an ambassador animal along the way!
The new welcome experience includes:
- New Visitor Services Center
- Reimagined White River Gardens
- Repurposed parking lot
Global Center for Species Survival
Your investment has transformed an indoor space of the White River Gardens into the Global Center for Species Survival—an immersive indoor experience highlighting the diversity of life on earth. The Global Center for Species Survival inspires and educates guests, surrounding them with multi-sensory technology and engagement.
At the core of the Global Center, a groundbreaking international headquarters is now on display. A dedicated team serves a global network of more than 10,000 science-based experts in view of Zoo visitors. The Global Center advances the Zoo’s mission to protect nature and inspire people to care for our world. It also solidifies the Zoo’s reputation as a hub for species conservation efforts while making conservation science relatable, entertaining and actionable for all.
The Indianapolis Zoo is more than a place. It’s a place with a purpose. Thank you to all who have joined us in this mission to inspire, educate and save species. The results from this campaign will delight Zoo guests for generations and create a better world for animals and humans alike. Together, we have the power to protect the natural world.
