SYDNEY (January 14, 2026)— Humane World for Animals Australia (previously known as Humane Society International Australia) is proud to have secured protection for two Murray Darling Basin wetland ecosystems under Australia’s new nature laws announced by Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt today. The Lower Murray, including the Coorong at the river mouth, and the Macquarie Marshes have both been listed as Critically Endangered “Threatened...
It has been a very busy year for the team at HSI Australia and as we draw closer to the end of the year, it is hard not to look back on what 2017 meant for animals and conservation.
We have celebrated elephants entering a peaceful sanctuary for retirement after a life of suffering and cruel treatment as working animals in India, and we’ve added more than 80 new sanctuaries to our Wildlife Land Trust hitting the magic number of 500 sanctuaries nationwide – that’s 62,000 hectares of wildlife-friendly land!

We’ve continued to fight for improvements in animal welfare standards for farm animals to give them a life worth living, and we are preparing to give sharks their day in court to bring a stop to the lethal targeting of harmless sharks in Queensland’s shark control program.

Image: iStock.com/pniesen
We have worked hard this year and you can read about some of the incredible work we are doing in Australia and around the world in our 2017 Campaign Report.
We thank you for your tireless support and look forward to winning more victories for animals and our natural world in 2018. We wish you a safe and happy Christmas and New Year.