Rafaela Fiúza

Portugal

r.fiuza@eazwv.org

I joined EAZWV in 2011 to attend the conference in Lisbon and absolutely loved it! It felt so inspiring and encouraging that I decided I would do my best to attend these conferences and be part of this culture. I started developing some associative work in Lisbon with FAUNA, and then joined the board of the Student Section of EAZWV in 2015 where I was highly involved in the organisation of the Student Workshop in Lisbon 2015 and the Student Summer School in Paris 2016.

When in 2018 I heard about the board recruiting a Working Group Coordinator, I knew I had to grab the opportunity to once again help our Association deliver its strategy and achieve some of the goals to which it has committed, while working closely with some of its key members. I was very happy and honoured to be selected, and am very excited to work with the Board, the Advisory Board, the Working Groups and all participating members towards a more effective EAZWV.

A bit more about myself, I studied in Lisbon (FMV-ULisboa), spent one year at the IZW in Berlin where I developed my Masters thesis focused on the reproductive management of the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros of Borneo, completed a small animal clinical internship at CHV Porto, and had the opportunity to pursue two periods of post-graduate training at Kolmårdens Djurpark in Sweden and Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. The main career goals to which I am committed are to engage in specialised training in the area of Zoological Medicine, to work in a WAZA/EAZA accredited zoological institution and to achieve board certified veterinary specialisation in Zoological Medicine.

Working Group Coordinator Job Description

The position of EAZWV Working Group Coordinator is an important advance in delivery of EAZWV’s strategic objectives. The  WG Coordinator reports directly for the EAZWV Executive Director and also works closely with the volunteer EAZWV working group chairs on a wide range of strategy delivery projects ranging from EU animal health policy to member service provision. The post is part-time role (aprox 50 hrs/month).

We are thrilled to welcome Rafaela Fiúza to this role and confident that she will be of great assistance to the Working Groups in moving us towards our strategic objectives!