Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund: Respond, Restore, and Build a Resilient Future

Australia’s unprecedented 2019 – 2020 bushfire season devastated the nation. Across the country, approximately 47 million acres were burned, with 31 million acres primarily in forest and bushland habitats. Tragically, 34 lives were lost and close to 2,700 homes were destroyed.

In January we estimated that 1.25 billion animals may have been killed by the fires. We now know that the actual number is shockingly higher. Six months after the fires, we published a report, Australia’s 2019-2020 Bushfires: The Wildlife Toll, which estimated that nearly 3 billion animals perished or were displaced by the fires, pushing many threatened species to the brink of extinction.

Thanks to your generosity and the generosity of other supporters around the world, we raised $45 million for the WWF Australian Wildlife & Nature Recovery Fund. With your help, we were able to act quickly and at scale to deliver emergency funds to the frontline, mobilize resources to help Australia’s wildlife, support Indigenous fire managers and local communities adapt and recover, and prepare for the road to greener and safer recovery.

At the peak of the fires, during our first phase of the WWF Australian Wildlife & Nature Recovery Fund, we responded by providing emergency support to our partner organizations on the frontlines that were rescuing and caring for the wildlife impacted by the fires. We now are shifting to the second phase of recovery, working to restore landscapes and protect wildlife. We are also laying groundwork for the third phase of our plan, building resilience for the future of Australia by cultivating multi-year, high impact investments in nature through government, business, and community partnerships.