American actor Leonardo DiCaprio and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have launched an international project with a budget of $200 million to preserve 100 animal species that are under the greatest threat of extinction. This is reported by AP, writes UNN.
Details
The initiative, called the Phoenix Species Project, is being implemented by the conservation organization Re:wild, co-founded by DiCaprio, and the Bezos Earth Fund. The organizers call it the largest individual fund in history created solely for the recovery of populations of species threatened with extinction.
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The idea for the project was developed over several years. In 2021, DiCaprio and Re:wild CEO Wes Sechrest discussed it with Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos. After consultations with scientists, representatives of local communities, conservation organizations, and indigenous peoples, a program to support the most vulnerable species was formed.
100 rare species will be protected
Funding will be directed toward the conservation of animals on the brink of extinction in various parts of the world. Among them are the golden-crowned sifaka from Madagascar, the Malayan pangolin, the pink land iguana from the Galápagos Islands, Attenborough's long-beaked echidna from New Guinea, the Tanzanian pancake tortoise, the Visayan warty pig from the Philippines, and other rare species.
The organizers note that the project should provide not only funding but also long-term support for conservation programs that previously worked with limited resources.
For years, we have protected the golden-crowned sifaka with a budget that never matched what this species deserves. But letting it disappear was never an option. This funding, this global platform, and technical support are changing what is possible
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