Washington, DC

As the Endangered Species Act marks its 50th anniversary today, Defenders of Wildlife thanks President Biden for issuing a Presidential proclamation in support of this life-saving, bedrock conservation law. 

The proclamation calls on all Americans to work together to conserve the United States’ incredible biodiversity and to honor the progress made toward protecting endangered species. It also celebrates the Act’s near-perfect track record of preventing extinction. 

Jamie Rappaport Clark, Former president and CEO of Defenders of Wildlife issued the following statement in response: 

“There is no mission more important than leaving the world a better place for our children than we found it, and we thank President Biden for recognizing the Endangered Species Act as the strongest tool we have to ensure imperiled wildlife and their habitats are protected for future generations to enjoy and benefit from. The Act has ensured remarkable conservation achievements in its first 50 years, and we look forward to another 50 years of success protecting the imperiled wildlife and habitats that need our support.  We can’t afford to lose any ground in the face of an escalating biodiversity crisis, however, and call on the President to enact a National Biodiversity Strategy that prioritizes this crisis before more irreparable damage is inflicted on the wild places and wildlife we treasure.”

For nearly 80 years, Defenders of Wildlife has worked to protect and restore America’s wildlife at risk of extinction, advancing a vision of a future in which wildlife thrives, sustained by broad public support and a resilient network of healthy lands and waters. With a network of more than 2 million supporters, Defenders is an advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard wildlife for generations to come. To learn more, please visit https://defenders.org/newsroom or follow us on Instagram @defendersofwildlife.  

 

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