Changing the Future
$200 million has been committed to the Phoenix Species Project
Leonardo DiCaprio‘s Re:wild, which he co-founded with Dr. Wes Sechrest, and the Bezos Earth Fund are launching the Phoenix Species Project — an initiative with a goal to recover 100 species facing imminent extinction that aims to work with Indigenous Peoples, scientists, and conservationists in an effort to change the future of Earth’s biodiversity.
According to a press release, the project received a $200 million commitment, making it the “largest single philanthropic initiative dedicated exclusively to the recovery of critically endangered species across taxonomic groups, a diversity of habitats, and countries.”
“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,” said DiCaprio 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.”
