Zoos and safari parks help visitors connect with nature and learn about wildlife conservation. Every visitor, from school children to day trippers, encounter some kind of educational experience, be it a formal classroom workshop, reading a sign or something in between. But how effective are these experiences? Are our visitors really being educated? Can we provide educational experiences so effective that a visit can have long term positive consequences for conservation efforts? These are the questions we are trying to address with our social science research programme.