The WILD Foundation

Mission Statement

The WILD Foundation is a non-profit, 501(c)(3), non-governmental organization founded in the United States in 1974 by South African Dr. Ian Player, and based in Boulder, Colorado.The WILD Foundation protects and sustains wild nature by informing, inspiring and empowering people around the globe. WILD works in three sectors: policy and applied research, with decision-makers at every level of government, business, and community; field projects that integrate the needs of wilderness, wildlife and people; and communications, through publishing, media and the arts. The World Wilderness Congress- established by WILD in 1977 and now the world's longest-running public environmental forum- is WILD's flagship program, bringing together the public and leaders from government, business and organizations working for wilderness and human communities around the globe. Convening every three to four years, the WWC sets objectives, creates structure and alliances to achieve those objectives and produces practical results. For example, the 4th World Wilderness Congress (1987) helped start the Global Environmental Facility of the World Bank, and the 8th World Wilderness Congress (2005) launched the International League of Conservation Photographers and announced the first wilderness law and designated wilderness area in Latin America (Mexico).