Together we are making
conservation happen
The Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife (FNPW) is the charity partner of national parks and wildlife services across Australia. We are a non-government organisation with a mission to safeguard our ecosystems, wilderness, and flora and fauna now and for future generations.

Protect
nature
Prevent
extinction
Provide
a better future
Conservation protects our future.
In Australia today, millions of hectares of habitat have no permanent protection. Sadly, without a lasting form of protection, habitats can be degraded or destroyed and a high rate of species extinctions is the result. In fact, Australia has lost two of its unique mammals to extinction since the year 2000 (the Christmas Island Pipistrelle and the Bramble Cay Melomys). Since European settlement, over 40% of our forests have disappeared. When the land is not managed to protect natural biodiversity, we endanger our native species — many of which are found nowhere else on earth. And when we lose them, they are lost to the world forever.
We believe in conservation, not only because it protects native plants, birds and animals, but also because it protects us. After all, you simply can’t be healthy in an unhealthy environment.
By acting now to protect nature and prevent extinction, we can secure a better future for all.
You can act now to safeguard
Australia for future generations
Permanent protection means habitats and species can survive and thrive, creating a healthier tomorrow for our future generations. At FNPW, we believe the answer to our environmental issues focuses on people and conservation. By encouraging people to care and to practice more positive ecological behaviours through environmental education, we are protecting and conserving habitats in the most secure way possible, while making it available for you to access and enjoy.
Impact you can see
For 50 years, FNPW has worked with local, state and federal governments to gain permanent protection for habitats and species to grow Australia’s national parks system. We execute this work in partnership with scientists, indigenous and community groups, as well as corporates and individuals working to conserve Australia’s unique habitats, species and cultural heritage. By working in partnership, we can protect natural Australia for future generations.
50 years
and counting
Since 1970, FNPW has been protecting land and species for future generations. We care about our parks and wildlife so that all Australians can enjoy these natural gifts.
$60m
invested
With the support of, and in partnership with, governments, business, community, and people like you, we have invested more than $60 million to make conservation happen in Australia.
100%
coverage
FNPW involvement across all states and territories includes hundreds of conservation projects. But we still need your support — there are many ways you or your company can get involved.
Species in trouble … and lost forever
To date almost 2000 plant and animal species are in trouble or extinct. Australia has the highest rate of
vertebrate mammal
extinction in the world - nearly 1 in 3 of our unique mammals are at risk of extinction.
Fauna species in trouble or extinct
See the breakdownFlora species in trouble or extinct
See the breakdownendangered
- http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna
- http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=flora
- https://blog.csiro.au/invasive-species-are-australias-number-one-extinction-threat/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_extinct_animals_of_Australia
The rate of extinction continues
By 2021, 104 endemic Australian species were listed as extinct. In the past 20 years, the number of
threatened species and
ecosystems has grown by more than one-third. Climate change threatens to
increase the rate of losses up to fivefold.
What’s causing the problems?
The three biggest causes of threat and extinction are:
Invasive animal species are our number one threat, affecting 82% of all threatened species with cats and foxes being the biggest threat to our mammals. Invasive plants are also a problem. Escaped garden plants account for over 70% of all environmental weeds.
Threats to endangered species

- https://blog.csiro.au/invasive-species-are-australias-number-one-extinction-threat/
- https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/Fulltext/PC18024?subscribe=false%22
- https://www.pnas.org/content/112/15/4531
- https://soe.environment.gov.au/theme/overview/topic/invasive-species-are-potent-persistent-and-widespread-threat-australias
- http://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/215ddf2d-5955-4974-b2c3-a7e99c14f5e3/files/garden-plants-listing-advice.pdf
Land clearing is a primary driver of biodiversity loss in Australia.
At the turn of the 21st century, Australia’s deforestation rate was the sixth highest in the world. Australia’s native forests now cover only 19% of the total land area. Over 40% of forests and woodlands have been cleared, mostly for agricultural expansion. About 8 million hectares of threatened species’ habitats were cleared between 2000 and 2017.
Protected areas such as national parks play a key role in reducing deforestation and protecting species.
- https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/csp2.117
- https://soe.environment.gov.au/theme/land/topic/2016/regional-and-landscape-scale-pressures-land-clearing
- https://data.gov.au/dataset/ds-dga-95f6d0f2-7467-455c-ae81-d6118834225b/details
- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301942515_Deforestation_in_Australia_Drivers_trends_and_policy_responses
- Environmental Resources Information Network, Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy, 2011
- Assessment of Australia’s terrestrial biodiversity 2008, report prepared by the Biodiversity Assessment Working Group of the National Land & Water Resources Audit, Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage
- https://academic.oup.com/jpe/article/5/1/109/1294916
- Resource Assessment Commission Forest and Timber Inquiry. 1992 http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1439778877
- https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/publications/assessment-australias-terrestrial-biodiversity-2008

Extreme fire weather has been getting worse across large parts of the country since the 1950s. 2019 was the driest, warmest year since records began in 1910. In the 2020 bushfires - the largest single recorded fire season for eastern Australia - 17 million hectares was burned and a more than one billion animals were killed with a significant impact on many rare or threatened animals, plants, and insects. In NSW alone, over 37% of the State’s national park estate was impacted.
2020 Fires; extent of damage to NSW National Parks

- https://twitter.com/AFACnews/status/1233262259612213248
- https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1920/Quick_Guides/AustralianBushfires
- http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/current/annual/aus/#tabs=Events
- http://www.bom.gov.au/state-of-the-climate/
- https://www.csiro.au/en/Research/Environment/Extreme-Events/Bushfire/preparing-for-climate-change/2019-20-bushfires-explainer