"Wildlife is Mother Nature’s greatest treasure, To protect it, we must take every measure."

It’s Nearly World Wildlife Day!

Did you know that it is nearly World Wildlife Day? 

On March 3rd, 1973, the United Nations General Assembly took a stand to safeguard Endangered species throughout the world. CITES was established (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) to ensure that the world would not continue to lose species that would never be seen from again. On December 20th 2013, the 3rd of March was declared a day to honour and raise awareness for the world’s wildlife.

World Wildlife Day is observed on March 3rd every year, and is a day to celebrate our native fora and fauna, from the tiniest insect the largest whale. It is also a day to raise awareness about issues the issues impacting our wildlife.

Why is our Wildlife so Important?

If some organisms in our environment died off, our food chain would be thrown out of sync. This is because in a healthy ecosystem, if any link in the food chain breaks, it has far-reaching implications.

Overhunting, illegal game trade, overfishing, and deforestation are all elements that contribute to this problem. All of this, however, is within human control. We can send a message by recognising World Wildlife Day that these human activities will not go unnoticed or unpunished in order to keep our environment intact.

What is This Year’s Theme?

This year’s theme for World Wildlife Day is “Recovering key species for ecosystem restoration”. This brings attention to conservation issues and our most endangered fauna and flora species. This theme will also elicit discussion about developing and implementing conservation strategies for these species.

According to data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, more than 8,400 species of wild fauna and flora are critically endangered, with another 30,000 considered endangered or vulnerable. According to these estimates, more than a million species are in danger of extinction. This is why the subject of this year is so important: to raise awareness about endangered species and the conservation of them.

How Ecoternatives Supports Wildlife

If you didn’t already know, Ecoternatives’ mission is to make a positive difference in the world by promoting good business practices and supporting companies and nonprofit organizations that care about the planet, it's people, and wildlife.

We donate 50% of our profits to nonprofit organizations like the Papahānau-mokuākea Marine Debris Project! They are an non-profit group dedicated to keeping the remote reefs and shorelines of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (Northwestern Hawaiian Islands) free from harmful marine debris.  This is important to our wildlife as it ensures the best chance of survival for endangered Hawaiian monk seals, threatened green sea turtles, numerous species of seabirds, and delicate coral reefs.

You can find out the other nonprofits we work with and donate to by checking out the rest of our website!

What can you do on WWD This Year?

Here’s a few simple things you can do to think about and do on World Wildlife Day:

• Get outside and spend some time pondering nature’s magnificence
• Raise awareness for WWD this year and it’s theme with your friends and contacts in person and online
• Visit your local zoo or botanical conservatory
• Shop our products to support the nonprofits we donate to that help keep our environment clean of waste, making the world a better place for our native flora and fauna!