thank you to our partners during the Australia bushfires

For the last thirty years, IFAW has worked with local partners on the ground in Australia to rescue, rehabilitate, and release wildlife into secure environment.

IFAW’s Australia-based team has been working round-the-clock since the bushfires started in September 2019. As the fires have intensified, so has IFAW’s work on the ground, most recently culminating in our international Disaster Response team being deployed to the scene to help assist with crisis management and hands-on support to wildlife care groups across impacted areas.

IFAW would like to thank and acknowledge our partners who we are incredibly proud to work with and without whom we would not be able to deliver this critical work. 

Detection Dogs for Conservation team at University of the Sunshine Coast

For a number of years, we have partnered with USC to train a rescue dog Bear to locate live koalas via the scent of their fur. Bear is part of a dedicated research at the university studying koala health, genetics, and distribution. During the recent bushfires, Bear’s ability to detect live koalas has been invaluable in allowing him to be part of post-fire search and rescue operations.

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Friends of the Koala, Lismore, NSW

IFAW partners with Friends of the Koala to rescue, rehabilitate and release koalas in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Friends of the Koala rescues over half of all of the rescued koalas in the state, IFAW sponsors the vital role of a veterinary nurse, Marley to provide critical onsite treatment and care for these injured, diseased, and orphaned koalas. This role has been even more critical during the recent unprecedented bushfires in the region to provide emergency treatment and rehabilitation to burned and dehydrated animals. 

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Bangalow Koalas

IFAW partners with Bangalow Koalas to restore a vital wildlife corridor in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Working with the local community and private landholders, we are planting thousands of trees to re-connect fragmented habitat and provide koalas and other animals with secure homes, food sources, and safe passage through the landscape. 

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IFAW acknowledges and thanks the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognize their continuing connection to land, waters, and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present, and emerging.