We cannot wait for wildlife to reach crisis point

Invest before the crisis

The same must be true of the way we finance conservation.

As a member of the IUCN SSC Philanthropy Council, I joined discussions about how we increase investment in species conservation and new mechanisms through which to finance it. For me, one thing is fundamental. We cannot wait until a species reaches a critical point before deciding it is worth investing in its future. By then, our choices will be fewer, interventions will be harder, and the stakes even higher.

We need investment that allows conservationists to act early-to understand emerging threats, protect and reconnect habitats, strengthen local capacity, and ultimately put solutions in place before the situation becomes critical.

At IFAW, we know the importance of responding to the individual animal in front of us. Rescuing that animal in crisis is fundamental to who we are. But rescue also forces us to ask a bigger question about what happens next. Where will that animal live? Is its habitat secure? What pressures does its population face?

An individual animal does not exist in isolation. Neither does the practice of conservation. If we save an animal today, we need to ensure it has a safe landscape to return to. If it cannot survive tomorrow, we have not finished the job. That is why conservation investment must go far beyond responding to the crisis in front of us. It must also address the conditions creating that crisis in the first place.

Rethinking the return