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Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
 


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  1. World Giraffe Day 2026

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    It’s not long now before we hit the 21st June – and of course what’s special about that is that it’s the longest day of the year – which means it’s World Giraffe Day, too!  

    World Giraffe Day gives us all an important chance to raise awareness of the challenges giraffes face in the wild.  The day puts a light on what is known as the giraffe's 'Silent Extinction'. 

    Giraffe face a Silent Extinction if we don’t act

    Over the past 35 years, giraffe numbers have decreased by nearly 30% and there are only about 117,000 giraffe left in the wild now.  The Giraffe Conservation Foundation needs all our help in saving them.  It initiated World Giraffe Day both to celebrate The Giraffe and to give us all the opportunity to help raise awareness of what giraffes face in the wild.   

    • Giraffe have gone extinct in at least 7 African countries
    • In the last 300 years, we’ve lost 90% of all giraffe habitat
    • Human population growth across Africa is having a huge impact on giraffe and other wildlife

    The Giraffe Conservation Foundation is the only organisation in the world which concentrates solely on the conservation and management of giraffe in the wild throughout Africa.  Giraffe are still vulnerable to extinction, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

    It works in 15 African countries across 45 million acres of giraffe habitat.  And it is making a difference to giraffe and I quote:   

    • Over 300 giraffe returned to their historical habitat
    • 18 new giraffe populations established
    • Over 100 giraffe born in original giraffe habitats
    • Over 12 million acres of giraffe habitat reclaimed
    • Over 5 million data points recorded
    • Impact on over 100 million acres of giraffe habitat


    The Foundation is really busy!  It takes conservation actions such as...

    • Rewildling and giraffe conservation translocations - this is a very important conservation tool.  This video tells you about the longest wild giraffe translocation ever undertaken by road in Malawi.  
    • National and regional giraffe conservation strategies
    • A giraffe resource centre, to make scientific information available and accessible
    • Conservation technology - GCF gives technical assistance and expert guidance to governments, academics, conservation organisations and individuals across Africa
    • A Twiga Tracker - the largest GPS satellite tracking study of giraffe.  I think this is very exciting!  It aims to improve conservation efforts by better understanding the needs and movement of giraffe - and their habitat use
    • Twiga Wetu - this involves working with local communities and enhancing conservation capacity.  
    • A GiraffeSpotter - this is a photo-identification database.  It helps survey giraffe in the wild, and it uses AI aided pattern recognition.  This means it's possible to identify the giraffe by their own unique spot pattern.  
    • An African Wildlife Vet Course, with an annual hands-on training course.  Vets are often working in the wild without access to a veterinary hospital.  
    • Giraffe Taxonomy.   The GCF has reserach based on over 1,000 tissue samples which have been collated from the major giraffe populations.  IT's shown tehre are 4 distinct giraffe species and 7 subspecies.  This all has implications for the future of giraffe in Africa
    • Population surveys - these are often the first step in conserving a species 

    The Giraffe Conservation Foundation works on, and manages and supports giraffe conservation programmes. 

    • Masai Giraffe Conservation, Rwanda 
    • Nubian Giraffe Conservation, Uganda
    • Luangwa Giraffe Conservation, Zambia
    • Masai Giraffe Conservaiton, Kenya
    • Southern Giraffe Conservation, South Africa
    • Southern Giraffe Conservation, Malawi
    • Kordofan Giraffe Consrevation in Chad - the species in the most trouble, as they are critically endangered
    • West African Giraffe Conservation in Niger - their numbers have gone up from 49 to over 600, thanks to conservation efforts by the GCF and Niger government.  This is great news, but the area is politically volatile. 
    • Nubian Giraffe Conservation in South Sudan
    • Kordofan Giraffe Conservation in DRC - there are threats from poaching and rebel activities, but incredibly, GCF, African Parks and the DRC government have been able to grow giraffe numbers
    • Reticulated giraffe conservation in Kenya
    • Southern Giraffe Conservation in Namibia
    • Southern Giraffe conservation in Botswana
    • Masai giraffe conservation in Tanzania
    • Kordofan giraffe conservation in Cameroon
    • Southern giraffe conservation in Zimbabwe
    • Southern giraffe conservation in Zambia
    • Southern giraffe conservation in the KAZA TFCA
    • Southern giraffe conservation in Eswatini
    • Nubian giraffe conservaition in Kenya

    They are also doing a lot of education;  in Namibia, GCF runs one the largest environmental education programme there.  Amongst other things, it aims to teach youngsters about their environment and reconnect them with nature through field-based learning.

    Action is essential - and so is all our support.

    Enter World Giraffe Day!

     

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    Zoos, schools, governments, companies and NGOs are hosting events to help raise awareness, and you can get involved and do your bit.  Stick your neck out and raise awareness of giraffes and remind people of their beauty on social media!

    Giraffe Translocation

    The charity has a translocation programme, moving giraffe.  Giraffe are moving to areas where there are very few or no giraffe.  They are also caught, and then given satellite tracking units so that they can be tracked which enables conservationists to find out more about their movements.  Catching and tracking giraffe provides an excellent opportunity to find out as much as possible about these beautiful animals.  You can look at Returning Angolan Giraffe to their Natural Homeland to get an idea of what's involved...

    You can read about their recent work and news here.

    Ways to help the Giraffe Conservation Foundation help giraffe

    There's a World Giraffe Day fundraiser  which runs until 15th July 2026.  As the  Giraffe Conservation Foundation say, Keep calm and save a giraffe!

    The 21st June is World Giraffe Day

    #StandTallforGiraffe


    Show how you #StandTallforGiraffe – literally!   Take a photo of yourself standing tall – you could make it a group photo, but please bear social distancing rules in mind!  A baby giraffe measures about 2m at birth – whilst the adults reach the giddy heights of over 5m.

    Or come up with something that’s giraffe inspired – a cake with a giraffe on it, or paint a picture – just show how giraffes have inspired you and spread the message on social media of World Giraffe Day!

    And tag the Giraffe Conservation Foundation on social media - here are the tags…

    And use these hashtags to spread the message!

    • #GiraffeConservationFoundation
    • #WorldGiraffeDay
    • #StickYourNeckOutForGiraffe
    • #StandTallForGiraffe

     Visit the Giraffe Conservation Foundation here and remember, Keep Calm and Save Giraffe!

     

  2. World Rainforest Day

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     Visit the World Rainforest Day's website

    The 22nd June is World Rainforests Day.  Rainforests are vital for life to survive on Earth.   Their loss  threatens our biodiversity and imperils earth’s health. We ignore this loss at our peril.

    World Rainforest Day was founded back in 2017 by the Rainforest Partnership.  It celebrates the importance of healthy, standing rainforests for climate, biodiversity, culture and livelihoods.  Crucially, it convenes a global movement to protect them and restore them.  The Pledge programme mentioned below is launching in 2024 to drive rainforest and climate action across all sectors immediately.  

    Natural climate solutions such as protecting and restoring forests could reverse global emissions by a third, according to World Rainforest Day.

    This day is held to celebrate rainforests and encourage us all to protect them.  If we can all unite and become a forest of action that rains on earth, then we can make a huge difference.  Wherever you are in the world, rainforests are impacting you.  And there's something all of us can to to help with rainforest protection and appreciation. 

    In 2026, the theme is  The Forest Within You

    In 2026, World Rainforest Day is aiming "to reignite and amplify global appreciation for rainforests through three key calls to action."

    One of these calls is to join the global video campaign reflecting on your connection to rainforests or what this year's theme means to you.  There's a global toolkit to help you, plus a prompts guide.  For instance, you could think about... 

    your connection to rainforests, wherever you live

    Your wellbeing - you could talk about the role nature plays in your wellbeing

    How your daily choices reflect care for the planet

    A memory - perhaps there's a moment, palce or tree which represents your "inner forest"

    Perhaps there's a story from your local area, or folklore or ancestralknowledge which reflects long and cherished connection to forests

    Share your video on social media, using tags #WorldRainforestDay + #WorldRainforestDay2026

    There's information about this and legal bits on the World Rainforest Day's website here.  

    The website has other ways you can get involved, such as:

    • get your hands dirty and volunteer with a rainforest organisation
    • go greener with your food - try vegan or vegetarian for one day this week or every week
    • Find out more about climate change and nature driven solutions.   Be inspired by the winners and finalists of the Earthshot Prize - there are some amazing things going on to help nature 
    • Discover more about those organisations helping rainforests.  You can see the list of partners of World Rainforest Day here - why not see how many you recognise and find out about those you don't?  

    #WorldRainforestDay

    Be a Planet Walker - take yourself through a forest or park or trail.  Share your journey on social media.  Why not explain what nature and these forests or parks mean to you and how they benefit your wellbeing? 

    The World Rainforest Day website has these things we can all do to make a positive impact on rainforests, today and every day:

    Ways to help rainforests

    • Volunteer for a rainforest charity!  Many charities need help not just from a practical sense but also in the "back office" with those behind-the-scenes but essential tasks.
    • Vote with nature in mind!   Show leaders that you care about our natural world and want to preserve it.
    • Choose local products and ask about where items are sourced.   Many rainforests are cut down for agriculture and cattle ranching.  Go meat free one day a week if you can.  
    • Find out about the different fauna and flora in rainforests, such as lichen.  The British Lichen Society has this great video about it from one of Dartmoor's temperate rainforests
    • Take a look at Global Forest Watch.  It is a fascinating site and it provides tools and data for monitoring forests.  For instance, you can see the alerts for forests fires 
    • Discover about temperate rainforests, too!  The Woodland Trust has 8 rainforests to explore in the UK - check them out here.
    • Share your discoveries and what is being done to help rainforests on social media.   We need to show people that there is a lot going on - and that people can and do make a difference.
    • Visit , Rainforest Rescuewhose mission is to give the rainforest a voice and preserve it in all its splendor.   It has petitions you can sign to give rainforests your voice, and projects it runs to protect them, thanks to donor support.  The petitions expose destructive projects and name the perpetrators, so they are important.
    • There are many charities you can donate to to help rainforests such as the  World Land Trust.    £100 is one acre protected, but you don't have to give £100.  Every bit helps! They have an Action Fund which enables them to respond fast when urgent conservation action is needed - find out about that here.  They have a current appeal to help orangutans in Borneo which you could spread the word about (and donate to, if you can).  
    • You could read the story I wrote about an orangutan and a tiger called Where has my home gone?  

     Find out more from World Rainforest Day’s website.   

    #WorldRainforestDay #WorldRainforestDay2026