World Wildlife Day

What is World Wildlife Day?

The UN has designated March 3 as World Wildlife Day! The UN assigns themes to this holiday each year and this year’s theme is: “Forests and Livelihoods: Sustaining People and Planet.” The UN General Assembly established World Wildlife Day on December 20th, 2013. World Wildlife Day has now become the most important global annual event dedicated to wildlife.

This year, the UN is highlighting the forests, forest species, and ecosystems that serve central roles in sustaining the lives and livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people globally. They want to promote forest and forest wildlife models and practices that help both human well-being, and the long term conservation and health of forests and the ecosystems they sustain. The UN also wants to promote the value of traditional, Indigenous practices and the knowledge that they contain, which contribute to a more sustainable relationship with the natural world.

The forests and people who live in them are finding themselves at a crossroads due to a multitude of planetary crises we currently face, including but not limited to: climate change, biodiversity loss and the economic, health, and social impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Visit World Wildlife Day’s website to learn more and find events and ways you can get involved!

Books and movies

Do you want to learn more about wildlife and sustainability? Check out these books and films to find out what you can do to help!

Books and eBooks

Back from the Brink by Nancy F. Castaldo tells the story of different groups of endangered animals and the efforts to save them. You can find this title in Teen Central’s non-fiction collection.

You can also find eBooks through Overdrive and Libby. Find out how to start using your account here.

Here are just some of the books about wildlife that you can find on Libby!

• The Wildlife Gardener by Kate Bradbury
• Animal Stories by Bill Sherwonit 
• Shrubs and Woody Vines of Indiana and the Midwest by Sally S. Weeks and Harmon P. Weeks Jr.
• Bringing Nature Home by Douglas W. Tallamy
• This Strange Wilderness by Nancy Plain
• Lonely Planet’s Beautiful World by Lonely Planet

You can also check out issues of the BBC Wildlife Magazine!

Documentaries and Films

For films, let’s head over to Kanopy! You’ll be able to access the following documentaries and educational films with your library card:

• Kedi
• Nature Film and Soundtrack of Australia
• The Guide to Landscape and Wildlife Photography: The Great Courses
• Gorongosa Park
• When Giants Fall: The Ivory Trade
• Nature
• Exploring the World

Help us celebrate this day and our beautiful planet by checking out one, or a couple of these titles! If you have any questions or need any help, please feel free to contact us by calling 317-839-6602 or by emailing askus@plainfieldlibrary.net.