In no particular order here are my favorite 30 wildlife organizations that deserve your donation. I update this post throughout the year so check back whenever you are deciding where to give your wildlife donations.
- Retiti Elephant Sanctuary
I love this sanctuary in the Samburu region of Northern Kenya. Many of Kenya’s orphaned elephants are discovered in this area, so it makes my heart sing knowing these traumatized babies can now be rehabilitated on their birth land rather than flown or trucked to the foreign but more famous elephant orphanage in Nairobi.
Iain Douglas-Hamilton’s research on wild elephant populations in Northern Kenya has taught the world much about elephant behavior, and migrating patterns. His wildlife organization, ‘Save the Elephants’ is focused on stopping poachers, thwarting traffickers, and ending demand for ivory.
PAWS is at the forefront of efforts to rescue and provide appropriate, humane sanctuary for animals who have been the victims of the exotic and performing animal trades. Started by an animal trainer for the movie industry turned animal activist, PAWS focuses on Elephants but has also rescued bears, tigers, monkeys, and other animals from the abusive life of entertainment.
Dr. Marker’s Cheetah Conservation Fund is a model to other wildlife organizations for her pioneering work engaging communities in Namibia to protect cheetahs.
Dedicated to conserving the world’s 36 species of wild cats including tigers, lions, jaguars, and snow leopards, Panthera partners with local and international scientific institutions, communities, NGO’s, and government agencies.
The SCCA works with partners and organizations around the world reducing and mitigating threats to the world’s 31 species of small wild cats.
Established in 1997 by the late Carole Noon and 21 chimpanzees, Save the Chimps has grown to be the world’s largest chimpanzee sanctuary. They provide permanent care for 300 chimpanzees rescued from research laboratories, the entertainment industry, and the pet trade.
The only organization working toward actual LEGAL rights for non-human species. Their mission: to change the common law status of at least some nonhuman animals from mere “things,” which cannot possess any legal right, to “persons,” who possess such fundamental rights as bodily integrity and bodily liberty. What this organization is fighting for, if achieved, will be a game-changer for animals worldwide.
GRASP is an innovative and ambitious partnership comprised of great ape range states faced with an immediate challenge: to lift the threat of imminent extinction faced by gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, and orangutans across their ranges in Equatorial Africa and Southeast Asia.
Lola ya Bonobo is the world’s only organization to provide lifetime care to orphaned bonobos (the least known of the great apes). At the sanctuary, the bonobos recover from the physical and psychological trauma suffered from being torn from their mothers and their natural habitat in The Democratic Republic of Congo – the only country with wild bonobos.
Recommended reading: the delightful memoir, Bonobo Handshake, by Vanessa Woods who spent years working at Lola ya Bonobo Sanctuary.
This 100-acre sanctuary in Uganda rescues orphaned and abused chimps from the bushmeat, entertainment, and pet trade industries. Through their ‘adopt a chimp’ program you can support one of the chimps currently living there.
Save the Orangutan has launched a Forest Program to preserve and restore the orangutans’ natural habitat. By supporting SOS Borneo, you help ensure that orangutans can continue to roam freely in the treetops of Borneo.
Because the loss of biodiversity impoverishes society, the Center for Biological Diversity uses science, law, and creative media to protect the lands, waters, and climate that all species need to survive. An impressive ninety-three percent of their lawsuits have resulted in favorable outcomes for endangered species.
14. Animal Defenders International
Animal Defenders International (ADI) was founded in 1990. With offices in Los Angeles, London, and Bogota, ADI educates and campaigns across the globe for animals in entertainment and other industries. One of the busiest and most effective organizations I know of but I find their website to be confusing and a turn-off to someone looking to get involved.
Whether it’s working to end whaling, poaching, or seal hunts this organization has no boundaries for its mission to save individual animals, animal populations, and habitats across the world. Founded in 1969, with projects in more than 40 countries including China, IFAW provides hands-on assistance to all animals in need.
Defenders’ approach is direct and straightforward – they “protect and restore imperiled species throughout North America by transforming policies and institutions and promoting innovative solutions” –making a lasting difference for wildlife and its habitats.
Born Free takes ‘front line’ action worldwide, sending emergency teams to rescue vulnerable animals from appalling lives of misery in tiny cages and move them to spacious bush sanctuaries.
Peta’s statement “Animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, use for entertainment, or abuse in any way,” says it all. Considered by some to be radical in their approach, they are on this list because I admire their courage to push the limits for animal welfare. Whether it’s criticizing the movie industry for using chimps as actors, running ads for anti-fur campaigns, or releasing undercover photos from factory farms, Peta is great at shedding light on some of the toughest areas of animal abuse.
WCN saves endangered species in 24 countries around the world by supporting 14 independent wildlife conservationists working with different wildlife species. At their annual Spring and Fall conferences in California, supporters can meet and hear from WCN’s conservationists.
Based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in the USA, this Wildlife Center is the country’s highest-volume wildlife hospital. They treat over 12,000 animals of more than 250 species each year. An affiliate of The Humane Society of the United States, the center has been protecting South Florida’s biodiversity, transforming wildlife rehabilitation and saving lives for nearly 50 years.
Continue to Part 2 of my favorite 30 Wildlife NGOs
5 Replies to “Best 30 Wildlife Organizations that Won’t Waste Your $$$”
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I think it’s important to check out their ratings on charitynavigator.org to be sure they’re the right place for you to give your money. For example, some of these organizations spend way too much on advertising or administrative salaries. I believe 300k+ is too much for a CEO salary but some of the charities on this list are not as highly rated on charitynavigator.org.
Thanks for bringing that up. I almost wrote about why I did not include their rankings in this post but here it is. Charity Navigator says they are not the end all in the decision making process for a good organization. I have been involved with NGO’s with high CN ratings and saw how ineffectual they were. So, I don’t rank their ranking super high in my decision process. They don’t cover all organizations, and the financial picture is only one piece of the pie, although an important one. That being said, use my list as a starting point and then go ck them out on CN and then decide for yourself. Hope that helps.
Its kind of a chicken and an egg situation too because the largest organizations, like The Nature Conservancy, get something like 90% of the environmental donations. They can afford to spend less on advertising. Whereas a smaller less known org may need to spend more in the beginning but it does not mean they are not using their other dollars ineffectively. I would rather give to a smaller, less known org a lot of the time and help them grow larger, if they are effective and even if they have to be spending a greater % on getting known. Hope that makes sense.
Thank you for this post Lori! I recently started my own blog how people can help animals. So I will definitely check out this post and others. Thank you for your commitment in helping animals. I also can’t believe you met Jane Goodall. That’s amazing 🙂
Thanks for the comment and glad you are starting a blog about animals. Let me know once its up. There are so few of us out there its nice to know about each other. Best,