bio park society

What bio park society does

The New Mexico BioPark Society (NMBPS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit support organization, founded with its Conservation Fund in 1987, that raises money and runs ancillary revenue programs on behalf of the city-operated ABQ BioPark in Albuquerque, which comprises a Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden, and Tingley Beach. NMBPS is a separate legal entity from the City of Albuquerque, governed by a volunteer Board of Directors, with a 17+ person staff led by Executive Director Julie Miller Rugg and including directors of Development, Finance, Events, Marketing & Communications, Programs, and Business Operations, plus Species Survival Officers in a Center for Species Survival New Mexico program. Its core product is the ABQ BioPark experience itself, which attracts over 1.5 million visitors annually and serves as the funnel for the organization's membership, donation, sponsorship, and retail activity.

NMBPS generates revenue across at least eight streams: recurring household and individual memberships (19,157 households / 78,434 individuals), direct donations and fundraising campaigns, corporate sponsorships (including exhibit, animal/plant, and event sponsorships), signature special events such as Run for the Zoo, Boo at the Zoo, and River of Lights, on-site paid attractions (pedal boats, carousel, animal feeding experiences), e-commerce sales of Art Gone Wild animal paintings, jewelry, and crafts, planned giving through a Legacy Society, and grant funding combined with state-level lobbying. Pricing on tangible sponsorship and merchandise items is publicly disclosed, ranging from $15 animal-painting keychains to $5,000 large penguin silhouette sponsorships and $1,000 dragonfly mosaic tribute tiles, while membership tiers are not publicly disclosed.

The technology stack is conventional and non-differentiated: a WordPress/WooCommerce online store, email-based donor engagement, and no mobile app, public API, or disclosed integrations. Distribution is anchored to the four physical ABQ BioPark facilities in Albuquerque, supplemented by an e-commerce storefront, direct membership and corporate sales teams, mobile education outreach (BioVan, Rio Ranger, Zoo to You), and minor digital channels including AmazonSmile. Customers span individual families, schools and educators, corporate partners, donors, and legacy planned-giving participants, with the primary segment being New Mexico families and visitors who rely on the BioPark as their primary access point for global wildlife and plant experiences.

Name

bio park society

Legal name

New Mexico BioPark Society

Website

https://bioparksociety.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The New Mexico BioPark Society is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that fundraises, runs memberships and events, and operates retail and education programs on behalf of the city-run ABQ BioPark Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden, and Tingley Beach in Albuquerque, serving 1.5 million annual visitors and 19,157 member households.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Zoo and Conservation Support Services

NAICS

Zoos and Botanical Gardens (71213), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Zoos, Aquariums & Botanical Gardens (Educational Collections) (THAJADAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Nature, Biodiversity & Ecosystem Conservation (BPADALAE)

Keywords

• Nonprofit fundraising
• Wildlife conservation
• Zoo membership programs
• Conservation education
• Corporate sponsorships

Headquarters

HQ city

Albuquerque

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Memberships: Household and individual memberships providing access and benefits at ABQ BioPark facilities. Currently 19,157 households representing 78,434 individuals.
2. Donations and Fundraising: Direct donations from private foundations, individuals, and businesses; annual appeals; memorial/honorarium gifts; special fundraising campaigns such as capital campaigns.
3. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate partnership opportunities including exhibit sponsorship, animal/plant sponsorship through BioPark Parents program, event sponsorship, and corporate membership.
4. Special Events: Revenue from signature events including Run for the Zoo, Boo at the Zoo, and River of Lights, plus Girl Scouts Roar & Snore.
5. On-site Operations: Operating revenue-generating attractions including Pedal Boats, Endangered Species Carousel, Lorikeet and Giraffe Feeding, and ATM/fountain coin donations.
6. E-commerce Sales: Sales of Art Gone Wild animal paintings, jewelry, crafts, and commemorative items through the online store and on-site.
7. Planned Giving: Legacy donations, bequests, and planned giving arrangements through the Legacy Society program.
8. Grants and State Lobbying: Grant funding and state-level lobbying efforts for conservation and education initiatives.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The New Mexico BioPark Society is the nonprofit support organization for the ABQ BioPark complex (Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden, and Tingley Beach). It raises funds and provides programs through memberships, individual donations, corporate sponsorships, special events, planned giving, and an online store to enable conservation, education, recreation, and capital improvements at the BioPark.

Product overview

The New Mexico BioPark Society operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit support organization for the ABQ BioPark, which comprises the Zoo, Aquarium, Botanic Garden, and Tingley Beach. The organization provides a unified platform for visitor experiences, memberships, donations, and conservation programs. The product portfolio centers on the ABQ BioPark as the core attraction, supported by membership programs, event fundraising (Run for the Zoo, Boo at the Zoo, River of Lights), and various experiential add-ons including birthday parties, tours, and the Wild About You video message service. The Art Gone Wild program sells animal-created artwork, while the store offers jewelry and crafts. Major fundraising initiatives include Penguin Chill exhibit sponsorship, BioPark Parent animal sponsorship, Dragonfly Mosaic tributes, Planned Giving programs, and a Conservation Fund supporting global species protection efforts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Art Gone Wild: Animal painting program where animals create artwork that is sold to support the BioPark. Includes paintings by primates, Komodo dragons, elephants, penguins, and other animals.
• Conservation Fund
• BioPark Parent Sponsorship
• Run for the Zoo
• Boo at the Zoo
• River of Lights

Products and services

• ABQ BioPark Support Program
• BioPark Memberships
• Birthday Parties at the Zoo
• Tours
• Run for the Zoo
• Boo at the Zoo
• River of Lights
• Art Gone Wild
• Jewelry & More
• Penguin Chill Exhibit
• Penguin Silhouettes Sponsorship
• Penguin Chill Sponsorship
• BioPark Parent Sponsorship
• Dragonfly Mosaic
• Wild About You
• Planned Giving & Legacy Society
• Corporate Sponsorships
• Conservation Fund
• Save the Tasmanian Devils
• Education Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1.5 million visitors served annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• AmazonSmileminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAmazonSmile charitable giving program allows shoppers to support NMBPS by selecting them as their charity. Amazon donates 0.5% of eligible purchases to the organization at no cost to the shopper.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Friends of the National Zoo (FONZ): FONZ is the dedicated support and membership nonprofit for the Smithsonian's National Zoo, functioning as a direct peer to NMBPS in operating a fundraising society that drives memberships, sponsorships, and donations for an AZA-accredited zoological park.
• San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is a nonprofit conservation organization supporting the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park through memberships, donations, and conservation grants — closely analogous to NMBPS's structure of fundraising on behalf of a multi-site zoological attraction.
• Wildlife Conservation Society: WCS operates the Bronx Zoo and other NYC wildlife parks as a global conservation nonprofit, combining zoo operations, memberships, and international conservation funding — directly comparable to NMBPS's combined zoo/aquarium/botanic garden and conservation mission.
• Denver Zoo (support organization): Denver Zoo is a mid-sized AZA-accredited zoo with a similar membership, sponsorship, and conservation fundraising model serving a comparable mid-market U.S. city footprint to ABQ BioPark.
• Houston Zoo (support organization): Houston Zoo operates a large-scale membership and donor program supporting conservation, education, and a multi-attraction park experience, closely mirroring NMBPS's diversified revenue approach with a comparable mix of memberships, events, and corporate sponsorships.
• Saint Louis Zoo (support organization): The Saint Louis Zoo operates as a nonprofit zoological park with strong membership and donor programs, conservation grantmaking, and educational programming — a closely analogous operating model to NMBPS and its ABQ BioPark.
• Chicago Zoological Society / Brookfield Zoo: Chicago Zoological Society operates Brookfield Zoo as a nonprofit with memberships, conservation grants, and education programs — directly comparable to NMBPS as a society-organized zoological park with a similar multi-stream fundraising approach.
• Zoological Society of London (ZSL): ZSL operates London and Whipsnade Zoos as a conservation-focused nonprofit combining zoo operations, memberships, scientific research, and global conservation grantmaking — comparable to NMBPS as a zoo-supporting society with a strong conservation mission.
• Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium (support organization): Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium is a mid-sized combined zoo and aquarium with a member/donor-supported operating model and conservation programs, structurally very similar to NMBPS's combined zoo/aquarium/botanic garden support role.
• Audubon Nature Institute: Audubon Nature Institute operates a family of zoo/aquarium attractions as a nonprofit with memberships, education programs, and conservation funding — directly analogous to NMBPS's multi-attraction zoo, aquarium, and botanic garden footprint and fundraising structure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/new-mexico-zoological-society

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about bio park society