How I Made It: Aquarium of the Pacific CEO drives bold vision in climate change-focused expansion

Jerry Schubel, the president and CEO of the Aquarium of the Pacific, stands in front of the aquarium’s new 29,000-square-foot wing in Long Beach. “I came knowing that I wanted this to be an aquarium that would be operated at the interface of science and society and that would combine art and science and telling stories,” Schubel said. “The most important things in nature and in society happen across interfaces.” New direction In 2005, the aquarium weighed three options for an expansion: a traditional expansion with more exhibit space, one that would allow visitors to swim with marine life, and a Pacific Visions concept that would capture human impact on the planet and its oceans. “There’s no other aquarium, science center or museum anywhere in the world that attempts to tell this really big story of people and the ocean,” Schubel said. “So we’ve got our fingers crossed that people are going to like it.” Staying flexible Schubel said the project has been one of the most challenging, but also most rewarding, of his career.