The International Crane Foundation in Africa calls for governments, organisations, and individuals to work alongside traditional custodians to restore wetlands for a secure future of cranes and people ahead of World Wetlands Day to be celebrated on 2nd February under the theme “Wetlands and Traditional Knowledge: Celebrating Cultural Heritage.”

More than 90,000 hectares (222,600 acres) of irreplaceable Drakensberg Grasslands will now be conserved as part of South Africa’s first large-scale, verified soil carbon project.

In a landmark conservation achievement for the Texas coast, a coalition of partners at the International Crane Foundation, The Conservation Fund, and the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program has secured permanent protection for more than 3,300 acres of high-priority wintering habitat for the federally endangered Whooping Crane, one of North America’s rarest and most endangered birds.

This successful approach to conservation will be shared by Kerryn Morrison, the International Crane Foundation/Endangered Wildlife Trust Partnership’s Vice President of Africa Programs, during the 9th Session of the Meeting of the Parties of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA MOP9) held from November 11-14 in Bonn, Germany.

A newly commissioned modern office block at Blue Lagoon National Park Headquarters at Naleza will serve as a vital hub for Wildlife management, research, and community engagement in Zambia’s Kafue Flats.

An Endangered Whooping Crane, lovingly named “Ducky,” died earlier this month due to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). The loss marks the first confirmed death of a Whooping Crane due to HPAI.

A local grassroots celebration of cranes has now grown into a national platform for education, cultural exchange, and conservation action.

There is growing concern for the future of South Africa’s national bird, the Blue Crane, which has been uplisted from Near Threatened to Vulnerable in the Regional Red Data Book 2025. The uplisting reflects a high risk of extinction for the species in the wild.

Earlier this month, the International Crane Foundation, along with government officials, partners, universities, and others, celebrated the project’s past successes and introduced future conservation plans – including the Foundation’s registration as an authorized NGO in Rwanda and a new office space in Kigali.