World Wildlife Fund

The World Wildlife Fund (also known as WWF) is a leading international conservation and animal advocacy organization. With its iconic Panda logo, the WWF can be found working in over one hundred countries, and it boasts of having over one million members!

The WWF was created in 1961 in Morges, Switzerland after environmental thinkers realized that the manpower and knowledge to promote conservation existed, but not the financial resources. The organization expanded beyond Switzerland in the same year to Great Britain (under the leadership of Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh) and the United States.

From the beginning, the organization helped the most vulnerable inhibitants of our world. Some of the first projects included growing the number of Bald Eagles during the 1960s (a project with success we see today) and establishing wildlife reserves in the Amazon Rainforest of Colombia.

As time progressed, the WWF grew rapidly, becoming one of the biggest funding organizations for conservation efforts. By partnering with companies like Coca Cola, the WWF was able to raise incredible resources and hold large corporations to high environmental standards. This approach makes the WWF unique in the realm of environmental activism, and very effective.

In 2011, the WWF surpassed the $200,000,000.00 mark in fundraising. This money will fund current projects, such as salmon conservation in Alaska and Russia, rainforest conservation in Bolivia, and their iconic “Save Tigers Now” program, in order to increase the numbers of endangered tigers, who have seen 97% of their species vanish in the last century.

Becoming involved with the WWF is simple: they ask you to stay connected, take action, spread awareness, and donate if you can.

You can stay connected by liking the WWF Facebook Page and following them on Twitter. By sharing their statuses and tweets with friends, you can spread awareness and help expand the global network of conservation enthusiasts.

The WWF website provides a wealth of information on taking action, but one of the easiest ways to do so involves only a few mouse clicks. Here you can click “take action,” to send pre-written letters to the President and politicians regarding environmental issues to show your support. The site also contains a wealth of information on how to go green in your daily life.

The WWF is an excellent organization for those who care about the environment and all the creatures who inhabit this planet with us. It's very hard for an individual to have a large impact on conservation movements, but by supporting an organization like the WWF, you cease to be just an individual, and become part of a much larger, and very successful movement.