Roger Germann

Roger Germann is the president and CEO of the Florida Aquarium in Tampa, Florida, home to over 20,000 aquatic plants and animals. He is a internationally-known marine conservation expert, with the Chicago Tribune describing him as "one of the world’s foremost authorities in animal care, conservation and education."

Prior to the Florida Aquarium, Germann was the executive vice president of the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago for 16 years, "widely considered one of the best aquariums in the country and, perhaps, the world." Both aquariums ranked in the 12 best aquariums in the United States, with the Shedd Aquarium at #4 and the Florida Aquarium at #10.

Roger Germann is also contributing author to the Huffington Post. In addition to running the Florida Aquarium, he is currently building a sports museum in Chicago.

Education and early career

Germann attended the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he graduated with a degree in communications in 1991. In 2015, the Chicago Tribune wrote that Germann became a member of the UIC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) Board of Visitors.

Before his career shifted to aquariums, Germann was a freelance production assistant, producer and production assistant at ABC Channel 7 in Chicago, an assistant press secretary and television coordinator for the Illinois House of Representatives, and a press secretary for the Illinois state treasurer’s office.

U.S. aquarium leadership

Florida Aquarium

On June 5, 2017, Roger Germann began as the president and chief executive officer of the Florida Aquarium. The chairman of the board of directors of the aquarium announced Germann’s selection on May 8. One of the Germann’s mandates was to use his position to increase marine conservation through the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean.

Shedd Aquarium

When he was executive vice president at Shedd Aquarium, Germann was a part of the leadership team responsible for business strategies. He increased the aquarium’s annual operating budget from $28 million to $58 million. He was able to get the aquarium on Good Morning America, The Today Show, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, National Geographic, Animal Planet, ESPN, and the BBC.

On his biography page, the Huffington Post writes, "Since joining the organization in 2000, Shedd has ranked as one of the top attended aquariums in the country and the best-attended cultural attraction in Chicago, welcoming more than two million visitors annually. The Aquarium has also consistently met or exceeded revenue and attendance projections throughout Roger’s tenure."

Aquarium, animal and museum leadership

Germann has held the following leadership positions within the aquarium and museum industry:

• AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums) Aquarium Affairs Committee, Chair
• AZA SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) Steering Committee, Member
• AZA Public Relations Committee, Past Chair
• AZA Animal Welfare Committee
• AZA National Awareness Campaign
• AZA Government Affairs Committee
• Museums in the Park, Public Affairs Committee, Past Chair
• Museums in the Park, Operations Committee
• Museum in the Park, Legislative Task Force, Co-Chair

Government and non-profit boards and commissions

EPA Great Lakes Advisory Board

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Great Lakes provide drinking water to over 30 million Americans and "underpin a multibillion-dollar economy." In 2009, then-President Barack Obama proposed the creation of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, “the largest investment in the Great Lakes in two decades.” Federal funds designated for the initiative are used to do cleanup work among 29 different initiatives identified by the United States and Canada under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

On March 13, 2013, the EPA announced that it along with the White House appointed Germann to serve as a board member of the U.S. EPA Great Lakes Advisory Board, which supports implementation of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. He was responsible for creating a strategic plan for the initiative, which is the federal government’s program to address issues affecting the Great Lakes. Ultimately, he was among an appointed delegation that provided advice to the federal government on how to restore and protect the Great Lakes.

Association of Zoos and Aquariums and related associations

Germann serves as the chairman of the Aquarium Affairs Committee in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). He was also a founding member of the Aquarium Conservation Partnership, a national group of aquariums that advocates for marine issues. Additionally, he was the founding member of AZA’s Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) Steering Committee.

He is also a member of the Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) Steering Committee, Nominating Committee and Cetacean Task Force.

Other activities

For a time, German served as the vice president of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Chicago Citizens Academy Board. At one point, he was appointed to the Illinois State Treasurer’s Economic Development Task Force.

Federal and state policy advocacy

Magnuson–Stevens Act

On May 28, 2015, Germann along with leaders from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, New England Aquarium, National Aquarium, and Seattle Aquarium wrote a public letter to House Speaker John Boehner and Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi urging them to oppose H.R. 1335, legislation which would reauthorize and amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). The Magnuson–Stevens Act is the primary federal law that oversees marine fisheries management in United States federal waters.

In the letter, Germann and the other leaders argue that "H.R. 1335 threatens to derail this progress by undermining the Magnuson-Stevens Act’s science-based management program and rolling back effective measures, including rebuilding timelines, annual catch limits and accountability measures, that have set U.S. fisheries on the road to recovery."

United States Commission on Ocean Policy

On July 22, 2004, the United States Commission on Ocean Policy printed “An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century.” The Oceans Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-256), which created the commission, directed it to make recommendations for a coordinated and comprehensive national ocean policy. The blueprint was a product of that mandate. Germann helped the commission research and edit the blueprint.

American Museum of Sports

After Chicago failed to secure the George Lucas museum, Germann and businessman Mark Lapides decided to build the American Museum of Sports in Chicago. According to Chicago Architecture, the museum is "envisioned as a multidisciplinary institution . . . It would be a museum for all sports, and explore the ways that sports impacts society." Some examples of exhibits are the physics of corked bats, the evolution of Super Bowl commercials, and the physics of a spiraling football.

Personal life

German lives in Tampa, Florida with his wife and two children. In his spare time, he volunteers as a coach and community leader.

See also

• Aquarium
• Fishery

External links

• "Great Lakes, Amazing Connections: The Power of Urban Parks". Huffington Post. By Roger Germann (9/29/15).
• Roger Germann on Twitter