A zoo that began as a society

ARTIS was founded in 1838 by G.F. Westerman, J.W.H. Werlemann and J.J. Wijsmuller as the Natura Artis Magistra Zoological Society. The Latin name roughly means that nature is the teacher of art and science, and it soon shrank to just Artis. The society opened with a small collection of birds, monkeys, an otter and a Surinamese forest cat. Membership was expensive and meant for wealthy Amsterdammers, and it still reached 500 members within a year. ARTIS calls itself the first public zoo in the Netherlands and one of the five oldest in the world.

The grounds grew with the city. The Aquarium was completed in 1881, and ARTIS describes it as an unparalleled success that set an international example. In 2014 ARTIS-Micropia opened on the new Artisplein, which ARTIS calls the first museum in the world devoted to microorganisms. In 2022 the Groote Museum reopened after being closed to the public for 75 years.

A keeper in an ARTIS vest talking with guests

The game

In the business game teams take the roles of rival zoos, safari parks and media empires. They trade animals, strike deals and make decisions that have consequences, and the game is built on strategy, negotiation and teamwork. Along the way participants see how their own team works together and how its members communicate.

A business board game being played on a table

Laughter and sharp thinking come together here: the exercise is playful on the surface and shows how an organisation behaves underneath. Playing a game about trading animals inside a zoo gives it a setting that is hard to fake.

Practical

• Location: ARTIS, Amsterdam.

• Format: a team game in which each team plays a zoo, a safari park or a media empire.

• Good for: teams that want a lighter way to look at collaboration and communication.

• Availability and access depend on the ARTIS schedule; we confirm in advance and never promise what the venue has not agreed.

Sources

• ARTIS, History of ARTIS (artis.nl): the founders and the name, the first members, the Aquarium, Micropia and the Groote Museum, and the claims ARTIS makes about itself.

• Endless Minds programme description: Business Game in ARTIS.