Opened in 1977, the Seattle Aquarium was owned and operated by the City of Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation until 2010, when the nonprofit Seattle Aquarium Society assumed its management—a model used by most leading zoos and aquariums across the country. In 2007, the Aquarium opened a major expansion that added 18,000 square feet of space to the facility, including an impressive 120,000-gallon exhibit, a gift shop, café, meeting/event space and more. The Seattle Aquarium operates as a nonprofit 501c3, through a long-term operating agreement with the City of Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation.

Mission

Our mission, Inspiring Conservation of Our Marine Environment, is reflected in everything we do—exhibits, events, conservation and education programs, research activities and more. This important work wouldn’t be possible without support from our community, members, staff and volunteers.

The Seattle Aquarium is the ninth largest aquarium in the U.S. by attendance and among the top five paid visitor attractions in the Puget Sound region. Since our opening, we’ve hosted over 27 million visitors and provided marine conservation education to two million school children. We’re proud to be accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

What We Stand For

We view diversity as a strength and recognize that we can only achieve our mission by including the skills and varied perspectives of all people. We understand that environmental burdens and benefits are not equitably distributed and that we have a responsibility to foster inclusive conversations about our marine environment. We strive to create a welcoming and equitable culture as we work together to fulfill the Aquarium’s mission.

OUR SALISH VALUES

• SUSTAINABLE: Adopting and promoting, internally and externally, practices that improve ocean health.
• AWE INSPIRING: Creating captivating experience for all audiences.
• LEARNING & IMPROVING: Fostering, evaluating and applying knowledge and discovery.
• INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY: Recognizing that diversity is critical to achieve our mission.
• SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY: Ensuring our credibility with evidence-based practices.
• HONORING PLACE: Using our location and history as a lens for larger understanding.

DIVERSIFYING THE CONSERVATION MOVEMENT
For too long, the people most impacted by environmental harm have been marginalized when crafting solutions, unable to lend their expertise and ensure their needs are met. The Seattle Aquarium is aiming to change this with a new fellowship program specifically for people from marginalized communities. Fellows will be paid a living wage as they develop new programming to engage groups and organizations who have historically not been well-served by the Aquarium.

This fellowship program will further our mission of Inspiring Conservation of our Marine Environment while building cohorts of future leaders from diverse communities who can support one another, first at Seattle Aquarium and ultimately at aquariums and conservation organizations across the globe.

HONORING PLACE
The Seattle Aquarium honors our location in the traditional and contemporary territories of the Coast Salish people, who have stewarded these lands and waters since time immemorial.

Guided by our mission and values, the Aquarium is committed to developing a strong foundation for long-lasting and mutually beneficial partnerships with Coast Salish and Urban Native peoples as well as other Indigenous communities so we can conserve our one world ocean.

THE SEATTLE AQUARIUM'S COMMITMENT TO ANTI-RACISM
The Seattle Aquarium respects and celebrates the vitality and strength of the ethnic and cultural diversity that thrives in our neighborhood and surrounding communities. We recognize that we can only achieve our mission of Inspiring Conservation of Our Marine Environment by including the skills and varied perspectives of our entire community. To include the entire community, we must be a welcoming and inclusive organization making the conscious decision to identify and challenge racism daily. This requires ongoing self-awareness and self-reflection as we move through our daily operations and plan for the future.

Careers

The Seattle Aquarium is much, much more than the exhibits, animals, activities and experiences that bring hundreds of thousands of people to our facility each year—our passionate staff members are a key element of what sets us apart. We're firmly committed to hiring highly skilled, talented and motivated people who genuinely want to contribute to our shared success. We seek out employees who lead by example, acting with truth, sincerity and fairness in all decisions. We have a positive, visionary view of our organization and its future, and hope you will join in our commitment to our mission, service and quality.

The Seattle Aquarium is a progressive, equal-opportunity employer that values a diverse workforce. As we move forward, we are committed to making the Aquarium a diverse, inclusive and welcoming space for our staff, partners, audiences and community as a whole.