A wild animal on the move is at once focused and keenly attuned to its surroundings. Whether looking for food, a mate, or a place to rest, it knows instinctively that the key to survival is the ability to remain steady on the path ahead while reacting quickly to potential roadblocks. This is a lesson that the Wildlife Land Trust knows well. Since 1993, we’ve been dedicated to protecting wildlife through the creation of natural habitat sanctuaries where the animals can live safe from harm. But as the world around us changes, we have had to consider new circumstances related to our work. Perhaps the greatest challenge that the Trust and other conservation organizations must now face is climate change. All reliable scientific evidence confirms that the earth’s temperature is increasing and that patterns such as rainfall and drought have become less predictable and more extreme. Wildlife are foremost among the earth’s inhabitants negatively affected by these changes. Many species must adjust to alterations of the only homes they’ve ever know, and some are forced to migrate to new placed to survive. One thing above all will make these shifts possible: habitat. Yet this strategy has itself become an increasing challenge as landscapes far and wide are developed and fragmented to accommodate the demands of a growing human population. Rather than yielding to this pressure, the Trust has succeeded in protecting even more of the places on which wildlife rely. We’ve expanded the size and geographic range of our work – as of April 2008, the Wildlife Land Trust has worked with private landowners to create 109 permanent wildlife sanctuaries where recreational and commercial hunting and trapping will always be prohibited. In addition the Wildlife Land Trust works in collaboration with a variety of partners to protect many other vulnerable lands to benefit wildlife. Proud of its affiliation with the Humane Society of the United States, the Wildlife Land Trust joins in campaigns to protect wildlife from cruel and indefensible practices such as poaching, steel-jawed leghold traps, Internet hunting and canned shoots. Let us keep you informed of our progress in saving wild places for wildlife. Robert W. Koons, Executive Director Robert W. Koons, Executive Director |
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