The bush fires that raged across Australia in the summer of 2020 were devastating for our koala population. On South Australia's Kangaroo Island alone, fires claimed around 40,000 koalas out of an estimated population of 48,000.

Out of this adversity Koala Life is giving new hope to the future of this amazing marsupial. At Cleland Wildlife Park in the Adelaide Hills, some of the surviving koalas from those fires are now playing a pivotal role in a groundbreaking breeding program. Known as the 'golden children', these 20 beautiful females represent the foundation of a clean breeding population that is free from the three most serious infectious koala diseases.

Recently Koala Life has been able to introduce four unrelated Strzelecki males from a different genetic group into the program to help reduce inbreeding and reduce the risk of the major non-infectious disease oxalate nephrosis. The males have joined the females at our research hub at Cleland, however now our koalas need your help. Because of an unanticipated shortfall in grant funding we urgently need donations to complete our breeding enclosures at Cleland as well as to provide essential technology and resources for our research team. We need to raise more than a quarter of a million dollars to help ensure the survival of the koala.

Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors and with the support of governments we've already made great strides in our ambitious quest to future proof the species, but we can't do it alone. Please consider making a tax-free donation to the Koala Life Chairman's Funding Drive. Your donation will make all the difference in helping secure the long-term survival of this iconic animal.

Donate at koalalife.asn.au/donate