Celebrating World Wildlife Day 2023
On March 3 we celebrate World Wildlife Day
It is a United Nations International day to celebrate all the world's wild animals and plants and their contribution to our lives and the planet's health.
Why March 3rd?
This date was chosen as it is the birthday of CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, signed in 1973, which this year turns 50. In recognition of the work CITES does and the collaborative work for conservation that is going on globally, the theme for World Wildlife Day this year is "Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation".
Billions of people, in developed and developing nations, benefit daily from the use of wild species for food, energy, materials, medicine, recreation, inspiration and many other vital contributions to human well-being.
The accelerating global biodiversity crisis, with a million species of plants and animals facing extinction, threatens these contributions to people.
World Wildlife Day (WWD) is an opportunity to celebrate the many beautiful and varied forms of wild fauna and flora and to raise awareness of the multitude of benefits that their conservation provides to people. At the same time, the Day reminds us of the urgent need to step up the fight against wildlife crime and the human-induced reduction of species, which have wide-ranging economic, environmental, and social impacts.
How are we managing the protection of Australia’s threatened species?
The Threatened Species Action Plan 2022-2032 maps a pathway to protect, manage and restore Australia’s threatened species and important natural places.
Below are some of the areas of focus that the action plan proposes to solve some of the challenges identified in the State of the Environment (2021) report,
- An objective to prevent new extinctions
- An additional 10 threatened species that are at imminent risk of extinction added to the 100 priority species list
- 14 new priority places announced in addition to six islands
- Commitment to protect and conserve more than 30% of Australia’s land mass
- Increased participation of First Nations Peoples in the management and recovery of threatened species and threatened ecological communities
- Contemporary fit for purpose conservation planning approaches.
- And continued focus on actions that can most benefit threatened species such as:
- Tackling the impacts of feral cats, foxes, and gamba grass as key threats to many endangered species
- Educating and empowering the community to participate in and lead recovery efforts
- Improving the resilience and adaptive capacity of priority species to climate change.
Objectives and targets
This Action Plan has four 10-year objectives that will be met through consecutive 5-year targets and actions.
The 22 targets under this first 5-year plan will help recover threatened species and ecological communities across Australia. Each target is backed up by real actions with timeframes and will be reviewed in 2027.
The new Action Plan complements the Australian Government’s regulatory responsibilities under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 but does not introduce any new obligations to individuals, organizations, or governments.
CLICK HERE to learn more about Australia's biodiversity and action plans