The Bezos Earth Fund and Re:wild have launched the Phoenix Species Project with an initial $200 million commitment to support the recovery of 100 species facing imminent extinction across 30 countries.
Re:wild was co-founded by Leonardo DiCaprio and Dr. Wes Sechrest. The initiative is also supported by DiCaprio, Age of Union and the Todd Graves Family Foundation. The organizations describe the Phoenix Species Project as the largest single philanthropic initiative dedicated exclusively to recovering critically endangered species across multiple taxonomic groups, habitats and countries.
Of the $200 million committed at launch, $100 million comes from the Bezos Earth Fund and $100 million from Re:wild, with additional support from Leonardo DiCaprio, Age of Union and the Todd Graves Family Foundation.
The funding is structured to support conservation programs over multiple years, providing local organizations and conservationists with longer-term resources rather than relying primarily on short-duration grants. The project plans to track population recovery and threat reduction over time.
The 100 selected species span mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, invertebrates and plants and live in habitats ranging from oceans and freshwater lakes to tropical rainforests and volcanic plains.
More than 100 local and international partners, including Indigenous Peoples, local communities, conservation groups and governments, are expected to lead species-specific recovery efforts.
Potential interventions include conservation breeding, head-starting programs, translocations, disease management, removal of non-native species and habitat restoration. The IUCN Species Survival Commission is participating as a global knowledge partner.
Species included in the initiative include Madagascar’s golden-crowned sifaka, the bowmouth guitarfish, South Africa’s fuzzy belly button succulent, North Carolina’s Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander, Mexico’s Charco Azul pupfish and Australia’s night parrot.
The Charco Azul pupfish is already considered extinct in the wild after the freshwater spring it inhabited in Mexico dried up following drought and years of water extraction for agriculture. The night parrot, meanwhile, was rediscovered in Australia after being missing for nearly 150 years.
The project is also designed to support governments working toward Target 4 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which calls for action to halt extinctions and improve the conservation status of threatened species. The Phoenix Species Project is working with the Reverse the Red Action Partnership to help governments identify priority species and activate recovery programs.
Nearly 176,000 species have been assessed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with more than 31,000 classified as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Extinct in the Wild. Re:wild cited previous research indicating that sustained conservation intervention can halt or reverse biodiversity loss, including for species whose populations have fallen to extremely low levels.
The Phoenix Species Project is inviting additional philanthropic donors to participate as it seeks to expand the resources available for species recovery efforts.
KEY QUOTES:
“When we protect those species, we also protect the forests, wetlands, grasslands, and oceans they depend on. The Phoenix Species Project has the potential to drastically shift how we approach conservation and combat the climate crisis at a global scale.”
“The goal is for the Phoenix Species Project to become a global movement that inspires others to invest in nature and help protect our planet.”
Leonardo DiCaprio, Founder of Re:wild
“One hundred species, thirty countries, and a real commitment to bringing them back. Not managing their decline. Recovering them. That’s the whole difference.”
“We know how to do this. We just have to stay committed long enough to see it through.”
Lauren Sánchez Bezos, Vice Chair of the Bezos Earth Fund
“The Phoenix Species Project is designed to do this by supporting Indigenous Peoples, local communities, nongovernmental organizations, and governments on the frontlines to recover critically endangered species, the plants, animals, and fungi that are key to restoring our vital life systems.”
Wes Sechrest, Founder and CEO of Re:wild
