World Wildlife Day

Today is World Wildlife Day! Alongside climate change, the biodiversity crisis is one of the greatest challenges of our time, with the relentless destruction of species and habitats continuing apace. Today’s zoos have a key role to play in educating people about nature conservation and raising awareness of species protection issues. As the 2023 position statement from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) made clear, zoos are a vital part of the solution! They inspire, educate and inform ‒ they amplify messages about species conservation.

– Protection through knowledge & engagement: zoos spark interest in animals and the natural world and help visitors understand the threats faced by many species.

– Protection through collaboration: we provide platforms for NGOs and use donations from our Conservation Euro initiative to support conservation projects around the world.

– Protection through captive breeding programmes: some species do not stand any chance of survival without zoos. The California condor, the European hamster and the Evers’ rice fish, for example, have all been saved from extinction as a result of coordinated breeding programmes.

Here at Dresden Zoo we are proud to play an active role in species conservation. In 2024, we raised around €340,000 for global conservation projects through our Conservation Euro initiative alone. These funds go to programmes that are closely linked to the animal species in our zoo. Even a visit to the zoo helps. Every time you visit us and make a voluntary Conservation Euro donation, you too become a species conservationist, helping us champion these important projects. Together we can make a difference.