​UN World Wildlife Day - Wildlife Around The World Is Struggling
​UN World Wildlife Day - Wildlife Around The World Is Struggling

​UN World Wildlife Day - Wildlife Around The World Is Struggling

The Great Elephant Project

The Great Elephant Project

8 - 85 Nights from $1,119.00 $1,007.00

Encounter the beautiful Asiatic elephant deep within the heart of the vast and verdant Sri Lankan jungle!

View Project
The Great Lion Project

The Great Lion Project


The Great Orangutan Project

The Great Orangutan Project

7 - 28 Nights from $994.00

Volunteer with orangutans on this award-winning orangutan project at Matang Wildlife Centre in beautiful Borneo!

View Project
Watch Six Orangutans Take Their First Steps of Freedom

Watch Six Orangutans Take Their First Steps of Freedom

After more than 20 hours of travelling by land and water, six orangutans were released into their new wild home, fittingly on Earth Day! Watch Sie-Sie, Mikhayla, Bugis, Uli, Siti, and Mori step into freedom in today's blog. 

View Blog Post
The Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Sanctuary Season is Back with a Bang

The Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Sanctuary Season is Back with a Bang

The Nyaru Menteng season is back, and our first groups have hit the ground running. Take a look at what volunteers have been up to and hear from volunteer coordinator Matt about a special current project!

View Blog Post
Wild Aspirations: Meet the Orangutans Ready for Life Beyond Samboja Lestari

Wild Aspirations: Meet the Orangutans Ready for Life Beyond Samboja Lestari

Six orangutans from Samboja Lestari are being released into the wild. Meet the newest forest-bound adventurers and join us in celebrating this inspiring milestone in orangutan rehabilitation!

View Blog Post
Posted by Leanne Sturrock on 3rd Mar 2016 3 mins

World Wildlife Day is all about raising awareness of the world's wild animals and plants. It is also about celebrating wildlife, and highlighting the risks that various species face.

It is a fairly new initiative, having only been ratified at the end of 2013. Given the involvement of the UN, it is a truly global event, with countries all over the world encouraged to take part. It is not only about governments though, as it also aims to bring together organisations, individuals and the wider society with the goal of enhancing and promoting conservation and wildlife protection.

Yearly Themes

Each year the UN selects a theme to base official events on. It usually selects an animal for particular attention, but very often it also encourages member states to select an animal of their own to focus on. This brings the occasion closer to their citizens and makes it more relevant.

The main focus is on animals that are at risk, as well as issues that the UN has influence over. Poaching is one example where the UN tries to take the lead in helping authorities in affected areas clamp down on poachers, and to put an end to the international trade in illegal animal parts and products.

How People Get Involved

The UN makes a number of recommendations for how people can get involved in UN World Wildlife Day. They include:

• Use social media - people are asked to promote UN World Wildlife Day by mentioning it on social media, or by sharing posts. ‘Shout out’ cards have also been created and individuals are asked to take selfies with the cards.

• Go to the zoo – most zoos take part in UN World Wildlife Day, so the UN encourages people to go to their local zoo. They also suggest visiting national parks, botanical gardens, or museums.

• Create ambassadors – the UN wants to create Wildlife Conservation Ambassadors and encourages the public to engage with key individuals to get them to take up the role. This includes celebrities, business people, politicians, and athletes.

• Launch a campaign – to raise awareness and/or money

• Engage children – the UN encourages schools and universities to put on events and talk about wildlife

• Organise an event - like a photo exhibition or art contest. If you don't want to create one you can go along to visit one.

• Go on a parade – some local areas have parades, usually highlighting the plight of a particular animal

• Get involved with local conservation projects – the UN is a global organisation, and it has a significant role to play in protecting wildlife and promoting conservation. However, most conservation work is done in local areas with local people and communities. The UN therefore encourages people to get involved in such projects.

As you can see, most of the ideas are about raising awareness and getting more people to think about animals and wildlife. Humans are responsible for everything from the loss of habitat that many species face, to illegal poaching. The more that is known about these issues, and the more that is known about animals and other wildlife that are currently at risk, the better.

Elephant Spraying Water

Leave a Comment

Wanting to add something to this story or just let us know your thoughts? Just leave your comments below. Please be aware that all comments will be moderated: abusive behaviour or self-promotion will not be allowed.

500 characters remaining

Has this blog inspired you to volunteer? If so, why not enquire today? Simply fill out an enquiry form, and allow a member of our travel team to assist with your query! Please note that blog comments are not monitored by the travel team, so any questions related to bookings may be missed.