A past president of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, Ron Forman began his tenure with Audubon Park and Zoological Garden in 1972 as City Hall liaison. Made Deputy Director in 1973 and Executive Director in 1977, he led the effort of the major transformation of Audubon Zoo from an "urban ghetto" to an "urban Eden”.

During the 80's, the Audubon Nature Institute, Inc. evolved from the Friends of the Zoo organization and assumed operation of Audubon Park and Zoo. Plans were made, with overwhelming voter support, for a downtown park and aquarium. Woldenberg Riverfront Park opened in 1989 and was followed in 1990 by the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas.

The Freeport-McMoRan Audubon Species Survival Center on the West Bank of the Mississippi River opened late in 1993. An important component of it, the Audubon Center for Research of Endangered Species, opened in 1996.

The Audubon Louisiana Nature Center, located in Eastern New Orleans, merged into the family of Audubon facilities in 1994. The Nature Center was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and rebuilt in 2017 with new boardwalk trails and a planetarium.

The Entergy Giant Screen Theatre, adjacent to the Audubon Aquarium, opened in October of 1995, while phase II of the Aquarium, a changing exhibits gallery, opened in the spring of 1996. The most recent renovations to the Aquarium included the addition of the Audubon Insectarium and opened in summer of 2023.

Forman is currently on the Board of Directors for New Orleans & Company. He is formerly a member of the Executive Committee of the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau and the New Orleans Business Council. He is a past member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Museums and the Advisory Committee of Chimp Haven. Forman is also the past Chairman of Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District.
Forman is a New Orleans native and a graduate of Louisiana State University. Married to the former Sally Gelpi, he is the father of three and grandfather of three.