It is D-DAY, (Decision Day) this Friday 17th February when Minister Burke is supposed to decide on whether to list the koala.
Over this last weekend an article appeared in two of our most prestigious (papers) and I think if the decision is to be made in the court of public opinion, then Minister Burke should have a worrisome week. This article clearly articulates that science is failing the koala, which of course the AKF has known for years, being the largest funding body. We also know that our science gets totally ignored but more on that in the coming days.
It is very gratifying for the Australian Koala Foundation to be seen as the ‘Defender’ of the Koala in this article. We are proud to have that role and of course there are many others around the country doing just that. However it is essential to have one body – one body that gathers and collates, one body to synthesize all the information and most importantly one body to identify solutions that make sense for the koala. After all these years, I think AKF fits that bill perfectly, and as we start off on this new year, those solutions will be articulated to you, and hopefully Governments will listen.
There is no easy fix to save the koala’s habitat, but that said, if you do not cut their trees down in the first place, it does give them a fighting chance. No Tree No Me.
I am going to write a Diary each day leading up to Friday – please check it so you can read what I think is going to happen. I am confident that even if the Minister decides to list, there will be several legal loopholes that will allow State Governments to still have control which would mean no change for the koala. I am hoping this is not the case. As I have said in the article, if AKF sees this, we will and will again, tell you, the public, what is going on behind the scenes in both academia and in our hollow halls of power.
As our supporters, you can be proud to have been behind us all the way, and Friday is a very important day in the history for the koala.
We remain one of the few independent voices for the koala, so if you are able to make a donation to help us, large or small, please click (here).
Deborah
