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Dr Marissa Parrott, Reproductive Biologist, Wildlife Conservation and Science, Zoos Victoria Speaking on "Zoos Victoria: Fighting Extinction" Described as one our Superheroes, by Australia's Chief Scientist, Dr Alan Finkel, Marissa completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Melbourne and University of Pretoria, South Africa, and later her PhD from University of Melbourne. Marissa has published 18 papers and is internationally acclaimed for her conservation work on endangered species. Marissa's post-doctoral research examined assisted reproduction and novel techniques to maximise breeding success in captive breeding colonies of marsupials across Australia. She has more than fifteen years’ experience in field work, five years in molecular genetics laboratories, and fifteen years in research and zoo captive breeding programs. Marissa has experience with a variety of wildlife and conservation programs in Australia, Asia, Africa and the Americas. She has a particular interest in the wildlife of South East Asia, having worked with conservation programs in Borneo and Cambodia, where she assisted with capacity building and wildlife research with Zoos Victoria’s international partners. In 2007, Marissa started working at Zoos Victoria on the breeding program for the critically endangered Mountain Pygmy Possum. She joined Zoos Victoria’s department of Wildlife Conservation and Science as their Reproductive Biologist in 2009. Marissa now works across Healesville Sanctuary, Werribee Open Range Zoo and Melbourne Zoo to improve sustainable zoo populations, reproductive research, and captive breeding and reintroduction success, particularly in threatened species. Marissa has recently been named one of National Geographic’s Global Wildlife Talents, and this year was showcased as an Australian Science Hero by the Office of the Chief Scientist. She sits on a number of Threatened Species Recovery Teams and has a strong focus on endangered native marsupial, rodent and frog species to aid Zoos Victoria’s commitment that no Victorian terrestrial vertebrate species will go extinct.