From funding a computer lab in his hometown library to his decades-long investment in climate solutions, Leonardo DiCaprio is no stranger to activism.
And the “One Battle After Another” star just announced a new arm of his advocacy work: the Phoenix Species Project.
Together with the Bezos Earth Fund, DiCaprio’s organization Re:wild, is launching a project dedicated exclusively to recovering the world’s 100 most critically endangered species.
The effort begins with a $200 million investment. Of that amount, $100 million comes from the Bezos Earth Fund, and $100 million from Re:wild, with support from Leonardo DiCaprio, Age of Union, and the Todd Graves Family Foundation.
According to a press release from the Phoenix Species Project, it is the largest single philanthropic initiative dedicated to the recovery of critically endangered species across diverse taxonomic groups, habitats, and countries.
The goal of the project is to help recover 100 key species facing imminent extinction, spanning mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, invertebrates, and plants from 30 different countries. All of these species live across a range of habitats and will require localized attention to recover.
The Bowmouth Guitarfish, one of the species supported by the project. Mark Erdmann
“For decades, scientists, Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and conservation leaders have been on the front lines of protecting nature, and what has been made clear through research, is that species on the brink of extinction are often the ones that anchor some of the world’s most important ecosystems,” DiCaprio, co-founder of Re:wild, said in a statement.
“When we protect those species, we also protect the forests, wetlands, grasslands, and oceans they depend on. The Phoenix Species Project has the potential to drastically shift how we approach conservation and combat the climate crisis at a global scale.”
“By creating the largest philanthropic initiative in history dedicated to the recovery of critically endangered species across continents,” DiCaprio concluded, “… we have an opportunity to make a lasting impact where it’s needed most.”
According to the press release, more than 100 local and international partners will lead the work through strategic grant funding, tailoring recovery efforts to specific species and habitats.
Some recovery strategies may include conservation breeding programs, head starting programs, translocations, disease management, non-native species control, and restoring habitats.
Moving away from small, short-term donations, the sizable investment is designed to provide “the sustained, ambitious investment that endangered and critically endangered species need to rebound,” the press release continued.
The project will also track population recovery and threat reduction and report updates on its website and social media platforms.
The golden-crowned sifaka. Courtesy of Fanamby
“We’ve protected the golden-crowned sifaka for years on a budget that would never match what this species deserves, but letting it go extinct was never an option,” Tiana Andriamanana, executive director of Association Fanamby, which is receiving a Phoenix Species Project grant, said in a statement.
“This funding, this global platform and technical support change what is possible. We are no longer only holding the line against extinction; we can begin to bring the gold of Madagascar’s northern forests back.”
The golden-crowned sifaka is a critically endangered primate that is foundational to the long-term health of its environment.
Helping protect the species, Andriamanana said, doesn’t start and end with the sifakas alone.
The fuzzy belly button, a tiny desert succulent that is illegally harvested for the ornamental plant trade in western South Africa, is a plant species supported by the project. Chris Rogerson
“In doing so, we protect the landscapes that give Malagasy people drinking water, we open real ecotourism opportunities for local communities, and we prove that conservation succeeds only when everyone has a role in it,” she said. “People and wildlife always thrived together; we only became disconnected, and now it is a homecoming.”
The golden-crowned sifaka is just one of the 100 targeted species that are part of this initiative. Others include the bowmouth guitarfish, Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander, the Charco Azul pupfish, Australia’s night parrot, and many others.
Charco Azul pupfish. Barbara Nicca
Each species will be supported by an implementing partner with the specialized knowledge needed to keep them from extinction. The project will also be executed in collaboration with the IUCN Species Survival Commission, renowned for its scientific rigor.
As DiCaprio said, this effort is an attempt to bring about lasting conservation on a global scale. His funding partners appear to echo his sentiments.
“One hundred species, thirty countries, and a real commitment to bringing them back. Not managing their decline. Recovering them,” Lauren Sánchez Bezos, Vice Chair of the Bezos Earth Fund, said in a statement. “That’s the whole difference. We know how to do this. We just have to stay committed long enough to see it through.”
Hickory Nut Gorge Green Salamander. José Garrido/ARC
Yula Kepetanakos, Re:wild’s senior manager of the Phoenix Species Project, said she believes this approach — of using big dollars to fund lasting local change — could be the answer to an urgent question: How do we save the world’s most endangered animals?
“It’s been very exciting and energizing to work with local partners who are championing these species with their hopeful visions and strategies to quickly turn the tide,” Kepetanakos said.
“It’s not only given me hope for these species, but I think it could also shift the way we think about wildlife conservation. We have the tools we need to help these species. We just need to mobilize the resources.”
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Featured Image: Courtesy of Fanamby, Inset: Raph_PH/Flickr (CC BY 4.0)
