Contact: Susan Holmes, [email protected] (202) 329-1553
Tara Thornton, [email protected] (207) 504-2705
Occasions Deliberate Throughout the U.S. Honoring Dedication to Wildlife Conservation
Washington, D.C. – On Friday, Might 17, 1000’s of Individuals are taking part in Endangered Species Day occasions and actions throughout the nation, in recognition of our nation’s dedication to defending and restoring our disappearing wildlife. That is the nineteenth annual Endangered Species Day, which happens on the third Friday of Might.
This Endangered Species Day follows a year-long commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Endangered Species Act. The immensely common, profitable, and historic piece of laws has been on the core of our nation’s dedication to defending wildlife and the pure world for our youngsters and grandchildren since 1973. 99 % of species protected beneath the Endangered Species Act have been saved from extinction, together with the humpback whale, grizzly bear, and bald eagle. The Endangered Species Act is at present serving to shield greater than 2,000 species of vegetation and animals which might be threatened or endangered.
“Endangered Species Day honors our nationwide duty to future generations to be good stewards of nature,” acknowledged Susan Holmes, Government Director of the Endangered Species Coalition–the first sponsor of Endangered Species Day. “The Endangered Species Act is our security internet for fish, vegetation and wildlife getting ready to extinction. Because of the Endangered Species Act, grey whales nonetheless swim our coasts, peregrine falcons nonetheless soar our skies, and polar bears nonetheless roam the arctic tundra.”
Endangered Species Day was first created by U.S. Senate in 2006, when it unanimously designated Might 11, 2006 as the primary ever “Endangered Species Day,” to encourage “the individuals of america to turn into educated about, and conscious of, threats to species, success tales in species restoration, and the chance to advertise species conservation worldwide.”
The Endangered Species Act was handed as a result of Individuals believed then–as they do now–that defending our wildlife is an ethical crucial and a duty to future generations. It protects greater than our fellow creatures; it additionally safeguards our nation’s environmental well being and the guts of the American lifestyle. President Biden, a Senator in 1973, was an authentic co-sponsor of the Endangered Species Act, in addition to a sponsor of the 2006 Senate decision creating Endangered Species Day.
Congress, states, and cities throughout the nation acknowledge Endangered Species Day as properly. In Washington, Governor Jay Inslee signed a proclamation that, “acknowledges Might seventeenth, 2024 as Endangered Species Day and underscores that the individuals of Washington state acknowledge {that a} wholesome planet is an integral a part of our state’s economic system, society and tradition”.
On Might seventeenth, and all through the month, wildlife refuges, zoos, aquariums, parks, botanic gardens, colleges, libraries, museums, and group teams will maintain Endangered Species Day occasions. Some highlights embrace:
- A nationwide chalk artwork contest, hosted by the Endangered Species Coalition;
- Colorado Endangered Species Week, every week of free instructional occasions and enjoyable advocacy alternatives to guard the plant and animal species in danger in Colorado, together with a dialogue about boreal toads, a bat stroll, and an public sale, hosted by Rocky Mountain Wild and different organizations;
- Particular reveals and actions at zoos across the nation as a part of AZA’s Occasion for the Planet celebrations together with the Staten Island Zoo, Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, the Saint Louis Zoo, and Zoo Atlanta;
- Pollinator backyard plantings in states throughout the U.S. to create habitat for native bees, butterflies, and different pollinator species.
- Neighborhood Science tasks the place volunteers use an app on their telephone to search out and document as many species as attainable in a particular location.
These and different occasions are listed in an occasion listing on the Endangered Species Day web site.
Along with the Endangered Species Coalition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), quite a few conservation, schooling, group and youth organizations have additionally supported and took part in Endangered Species Day, together with the Lady Scouts USA, the Affiliation of Zoos and Aquariums, Nationwide Wildlife Federation, Defenders of Wildlife, Sustainable Ocean Alliance, the Humane Society of america, and lots of extra.
For extra data on Endangered Species Day, together with occasion areas and a wide range of instructional useful resource supplies, go to www.endangeredspeciesday.org.
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