Amazon Australia will invest $2.5 million to help save some of Australia’s most endangered species, including the eastern quoll, eastern barred bandicoot and southern brush-tailed rock-wallaby.
This three-year project, made possible by Amazon’s Right Now Climate Fund in collaboration with Odonata Foundation, will support key conservation activities including:
- Breeding programs to boost population numbers
- Maintenance of wildlife sanctuaries
- The movement of animals between sites
- Educational tours to raise public awareness about endangered species conservation
Odonata Foundation says it has pioneered a species recovery model, called ‘500-in-5’, which improves chances of survival of a threatened species by maintaining at least 500 animals of a species across a minimum of five different locations. According to the organisation, this approach serves two crucial purposes: the population size helps maintain genetic resilience, while multiple sites provide redundancy should a climate-related disaster occur.
Amazon’s funding will enable Odonata to expand their recovery programs at Mt Rothwell Sanctuary located 50km from Melbourne, and the sites they operate across Australia.
“By helping rebuild healthy populations of threatened species, we’re investing in the future of Australia’s unique wildlife,” says Amazon Australia Country Manager Janet Menzies.
“What’s exciting about Odonata’s approach is that it can be scaled up to help endangered species around the world. The project will combine the latest genetic research with climate data to give these species the best chance of survival as temperatures rise, and extreme weather events increase.”
This is Amazon’s first Australian project funded through its Right Now Climate Fund, a $100 million initiative supporting climate resilience and nature conservation in communities around the world. Since the fund was created in 2019, Amazon has disbursed US$67.4 million to finance 20 projects across 15 countries.
