How can we help save the koalas?
The 2020 NSW Parliamentary inquiry found that without serious intervention, koalas could become extinct in this state by 2050. That's a horrifying thought, and it's time to do something about it.
Support the Great Koala National Park initiative
"By combining 52 State forests and State conservation areas with 42 national parks, the protected area will connect hundreds of thousands of hectares of habitat at risk of fragmentation and create the largest and only koala protected area in Australia. That protected area has been the dream of many ecologists, activists and community members for many years. Incredible amounts of time and effort have gone into the creation of the protected area to ensure that the Bill will deliver the greatest good for koalas. The proposed protected area, which comprises land across the North Coast, contains 44 per cent of all identified koala hubs." – Cate Faehrmann, Greens MP.
The Great Koala National Park will protect habitat, create sustainable employment, reduce carbon emissions and help slow climate change. Together we can make it happen. Show your support by signing up as a supporter (it's free),volunteering or buying merchandise.
Donate to a Koala Conservation Charity
Many wildlife rescue groups around Australia work to care for injured and sick koalas and restore their habitat. Here are some that are nearby our headquarters.
Port Macquarie Koala Hospital. Established in 1973 and is a licensed wildlife rehabilitation facility. Koala Conservation Australia (KCA) manages the Koala Hospital. This not-for-profit organisation has the broader mission to lead the world in caring for and conserving wild koalas, increasing knowledge and understanding of the species, and working collaboratively to ensure their survival.
Bangalow Koalas. Bangalow Koalas is a community group devoted to protecting the village's special koala population. A handful of concerned neighbours founded this community group in 2016 because they were determined to preserve a 400-metre stretch of 30-year-old koala food trees. They planted 157,000 trees in 3 years, with the ultimate goal to plant 500,000 trees by the end of 2025.
Adopt a koala
Adopting a koala is a fun way for kids to get involved in koala conservation.
Koala Gardens. While the world watches koala numbers dwindling with dismay, Koala Gardens is working to show private landowners that they can provide habitat and watch the numbers grow. – Katrina Jeffery
Friends of the Koala. Friends of the Koala has been operating for over 35 years in the NSW Northern Rivers. They are involved in rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing koalas, protecting and enhancing koala habitat, education, research and advocacy.
Make your purchases count
At Affirmations, we're determined to make the Great Koala National Park happen. Purchase products marked with Save the Koala to help fund the initiative.
Plant koala food trees (in real life and online)
Check your local paper or Facebook groups to find koala tree-planting events. If you can't find any, grab some neighbours and organise one yourself. If that's not possible, there are groups with tree planting programs in koala habitats that you can help support:
Koala Clancy Foundation. This organisation plants trees for koalas on farms and private land to create habitat and advocates for better protection of wild koalas.
15 Trees. Fifteen Trees is an Australian social enterprise that helps you reduce your carbon footprint by planting trees on your behalf. Once your trees are planted, they send you the link to the blogpost to view your trees.
Follow the guidelines for watching wild koalas sustainably
The Koala Clancy Foundation has been researching wild koalas since 1998. Over that time, they noticed that some human behaviour causes koalas to respond negatively, so they formulated a Sustainable Koala Watching Code. It includes maintaining a 10m distance from koalas, not touching a tree they're in and avoiding excessive movement or noise.
Volunteer for WIRES
WIRES has many dedicated licensed volunteers working around NSW to rescue and care for tens of thousands of animals every year. Completing the initial training enables you to rescue a range of sick, injured and orphaned native animals and provide some immediate care. Koala rescue requires some extra training.
