2.2m cash for London Zoo learning centre

London Zoo has received 2.2m towards a 4.4m education centre in the latest round of Millennium Commission grants.

The centre will promote conservation in the natural world. It will be designed by Wharmby Kosdon Architects, and interactive elements for its interior will be created by Event Communications. “We’ll start to think about the logo in a few weeks,” says zoo project manager Barry Edwards.

Event has previously designed graphics for The Children’s Zoo and Wharmby Kosdan is redesigning the World of Invertebrates.

“We couldn’t have done this without the Lottery funding – we can now get on with fund-raising for the remainder,” adds Edwards. The centre will explain why animals have developed in different ways and focus on the work of the Zoological Society.

The Millennium Commission also announced it would hand out 50m to The Earth Centre, a 125m state-of-the-art world centre for sustainable technology in Yorkshire. Its designers are architects Alsop & Strmer and Fielden Clegg Design (DW 23 June).

The centre has since chosen Future Systems to create a Millennium Ark.