The career of volunteer Anne Coos

Maartje Pauw (volunteer coordinator) and Anne Coos (volunteer). Photo: Albert Nanning

“There is so much potential here!” says Anne Coos about her volunteer work at ARTIS. Starting as a visitor guide in the garden, then at Micropia, and now training for the ARTIS Planetarium: she couldn’t have imagined it beforehand. “And each has its own challenge.”

Back“ARTIS is an institution, everyone knows it. During my psychology studies, I took the ethology course here in the ARTIS lecture hall. I still remember that the lectures were popular back then, also because the professor could tell stories very vividly. All students made sure to be on time, otherwise the lecture hall would be full and you wouldn’t be allowed in anymore. And all this for a non-compulsory lecture! When I had my selection meeting for ARTIS, over forty years later, it was held in the same lecture hall. And almost nothing had changed. It’s very special to come back to that place after half a lifetime.”From Apenhuis to Micropia“In the garden, I work at Lemurenland, the Apenhuis, the Butterfly Pavilion, and the Bennett wallabies. In addition to working in the garden, I also work at Micropia, the only microbe museum in the world. There, I mainly inform visitors about what kind of museum it is and how they can discover things. Micropia wins many international awards as an innovative museum, which also means that people don’t immediately see what there is to discover. Sometimes I show visitors how something works and answer questions, sometimes I let people explore on their own. It’s a matter of sensing and assessing.”

“I love to see the wonder in visitors when they learn more about microbes, or when they do their own body scan and see how many microbes we as humans carry. Micropia is truly special, both in terms of its theme and its way of presenting, and I enjoy helping visitors get started.”

Soon I have an exam, and that is quite exciting!