Thousands of Children Celebrate Tiger Day

YARMOUTH PORT, Mass., Sept. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Thousands of schoolchildren will hit the streets for annual Tiger Day festivities in Vladivostok, Russia this Sunday to promote appreciation and conservation of one of the world's most iconic and endangered species. Children in at least thirteen countries, from China to Kenya, will join the celebration via a mosaic of video messages presented by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).

IFAW's Youth Voices for Tigers video messages comprise a collective call for world leaders to ensure that the next generation does not grow up in a world without tigers. The campaign is part of the United Nations International Year of Youth and IFAW's global Animal Action education and outreach program, which reaches more than five million school-age children in 15 countries each year.

Over the past century, the worldwide population of wild tigers has plunged from 100,000 to as few as 3,000, primarily due to rampant poaching and habitat loss.

"Tiger Day offers a unique opportunity to alert people to the grave threats tigers face, and what has to be done to save them from extinction," said Masha Vorontsova, Director of IFAW Russia. "Tiger Day is a holiday for all, which reminds us that the future of tigers is in our own hands."

The celebration is organized annually on the last Sunday in September by regional and municipal governments in partnership with IFAW, Phoenix Foundation, the Amur branch of WWF, AMUR Fund, and corporate sponsors. It was first held in Vladivostok in 2000 and is now celebrated in villages and towns throughout the Primorsky region, a small corner of the Russian Far East that is home to the world's last 300-400 Amur (Siberian) tigers. Officials, celebrities, musicians and thousands of local people take part in Tiger Day parades, festivals, education programs and concerts.

This Tiger Day falls during an especially significant year for tiger conservation. 2010 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese zodiac and the UN International Year of Biodiversity. In November, Russia will host a Global Tiger Summit for leaders of tiger range countries and others to announce new plans with specific commitments and time-lines to save these critically-endangered wild animals.

IFAW works on the front lines of tiger protection. Ranger teams have been instrumental in reducing poaching of tigers and their prey in protected reserves of the Russian Far East. IFAW has also trained and equipped a third of India's anti-poaching force.

Through campaigns in China and throughout Asia to reduce consumer demand, IFAW is working to close down the international black market for tiger body parts that fuels tiger poaching. The organization is also pioneering new methods for rescuing and rehabilitating orphaned and injured wild tigers, with the goal of returning them to the wild.

About IFAW (the International Fund for Animal Welfare)

Founded in 1969, IFAW saves animals in crisis around the world. With projects in more than 40 countries, IFAW rescues individual animals, works to prevent cruelty to animals, and advocates for the protection of wildlife and habitats. www.ifaw.org

Note to Editors: To preview the Youth Voices for Tigers video or add a child's creative message to the campaign, visit the multi-lingual website: www.ifaw.org/youthroar

SOURCE International Fund for Animal Welfare