AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE & NATURE RECOVERY FUND

The WWF Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund was launched to address the catastrophic impacts of the 2019-2020 Australian bushfire season, which killed an estimated 1.25 billion native animals and burned over 42 million acres. The fund reached its AUD$30 million goal, with AUD$9 million contributed from the US. As of May 2020, 80% of these funds were allocated to urgent wildlife care, supporting 64 projects including veterinary services and the use of drones and detection dogs. The fund's strategy is divided into three phases: immediate response (Phase I), habitat protection and restoration (Phase II), and long-term future-proofing (Phase III), which includes influencing the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act review and promoting the transition to renewables. Specific initiatives include koala rehabilitation at Healesville Sanctuary and the Phillip Island Nature Parks, and a collaboration with the Jali Local Aboriginal Council for species detection in the Ngunya Jargoon Indigenous Protected Area.

• The 2019-2020 bushfire season was unprecedented in its devastation, resulting in 33 human deaths, the destruction of over 3,000 homes, and the burning of more than 42 million acres. A conservative estimate suggests that 1.25 billion native animals were killed.
• The WWF Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund successfully raised AUD$30 million, including AUD$9 million from the United States, to support wildlife response, habitat restoration, and future preparedness.
• By May 2020, 80% of the fund's resources were dedicated to urgent wildlife care, financing 64 approved response projects that utilized veterinary services, food, shelter, drones, and detection dogs.
• The fund's long-term 'future-proofing' strategy (Phase III) focuses on strengthening climate policy, facilitating a transition to renewables, and influencing the review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
• WWF-Australia collaborated with the Jali Local Aboriginal Council to provide equipment for rangers to survey the Ngunya Jargoon Indigenous Protected Area, where over 85% of the land was devastated by wildfires in November 2019.

APA

WWF International (2020). AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE & NATURE RECOVERY FUND. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1729/Australia_Bushfire_Report.pdf

Chicago

WWF International. AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE & NATURE RECOVERY FUND. 2020. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1729/Australia_Bushfire_Report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=WWF International |title=AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE & NATURE RECOVERY FUND |date=June 2020 |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1729/Australia_Bushfire_Report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wwfinternational2020australian, author = {{WWF International}}, title = {{AUSTRALIAN WILDLIFE \& NATURE RECOVERY FUND}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2020}, month = jun, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/1729/Australia_Bushfire_Report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }