Over the past year, we’ve been able to do some amazing things with you by our side. We can’t wait to launch into the new year with a renewed sense of urgency and hope.

While the pandemic has raged throughout the better part of this year, we have been working hard to address the wildlife trade and live animal markets to prevent the next pandemic; protect biodiversity and imperiled ecosystems; and save our coastlines from unsustainable fisheries and other extractive industries.

We had more opportunities during this lock-down to engage with you, our supporters, through webinars, podcasts and panel discussions.  

And, we continued our work to produce our cutting-edge documentaries and projection events.

Although nature has been provided a temporary reprieve in some ways, threats have intensified in others: global emissions are down; restrictions on commercial wildlife trade have been implemented; and some natural areas have been renewed as travel and other human activities have been curtailed.

At the same time, poaching of protected species has increased in areas where law enforcement or wildlife patrols are lagging in the midst of failing economies, and regulatory rollbacks of bedrock environmental protections have left our wildlife and wildlands more vulnerable than ever.

However painful and challenging this year has been, we must make the most of this opportunity to reform our relationship with nature.

There is so much more work to do, but we wanted to share a brief overview of some of our important campaign work in 2020!

Protecting apex carnivores. As a partner to the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project, we played a key role in the successful passage of the public initiative (Proposition 114) to restore gray wolves to Colorado. We also supported successful campaigns to ban wildlife killing contests in Colorado and Washington.

Protecting our oceans. From the phasing out of driftnets off California’s coastline and prohibiting seabed mining and industrial aquaculture to protecting the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale, we addressed some of the most critical threats to the marine environment.

Defending the Endangered Species Act. We joined our coalition partners to oppose the series of regulatory rollbacks that weakened the Endangered Species Act, including the removal of protections for imperiled species, like the gray wolf.

Preventing the next pandemic. As a foundational member of the Endpandemics Alliance and US Wildlife and Health Alliance, we helped build international coalitions working to reform wildlife trade legislation, support front-line defenders, and raise awareness to the root causes of zoonotic disease.

Supporting grassroots activism. We supported Japanese activists who are working in Taiji to monitor and oppose the drive hunts, and change the hearts and minds of those who continue this brutal practice.

Protecting sharks and rays.  As a key partner in Shark Allies’ campaign to end the trade in shark fins in Florida, we celebrated the passage of the Kristin Jacobs Ocean Conservation Act which bans the trade in shark fins in the state. In collaboration with the #FlyWithoutFins social media campaign targeting international airlines, we convinced 11 new airlines to commit to not carrying shark fins in their cargo.

Protecting our climate. Together with coalition partners, we asked the incoming presidential transition team to consider a host of actions, including Executive Orders to address climate change, fossil fuel exploration and the proliferation of plastics. We supported state and federal legislation to require contractors to not source forest-risk commodities, protect 30% of our oceans and lands by 2030, and curb new offshore oil and gas drilling .

Producing our next award-winning documentaries.  We have more film projects and projection events in various stages of production than we can count! Stay tuned as new films and impact campaigns are announced.