At Friends of the Koala, we know that koala conservation starts with habitat. It is also where Friends of the Koala began as a grassroots organisation 40 years ago.
Without the right trees in the right places, koalas cannot survive in the wild. Rescue, treatment and rehabilitation all matter, but lasting conservation depends on protecting and restoring the habitat koalas rely on every day.
Eucalyptus trees matter.
Eucalypts are far more than iconic Australian trees. For koalas, and many other native species, they provide food, shelter and refuge. They offer browse, shade during extreme heat, and the canopy connections koalas need to move more safely through the landscape.
In the Northern Rivers, this matters enormously. The region remains a nationally significant koala stronghold, and habitat restoration has long been central to Friends of the Koala’s work. It is practical conservation: rebuilding food sources, restoring shelter, and strengthening connectivity across a landscape under pressure from habitat loss, fragmentation, bushfire, flood and climate impacts.
That commitment can be seen in the scale of the work already undertaken. Friends of the Koala has restored koala habitat, enhanced wildlife corridors, grown and distributed hundreds of thousands of koala food trees and other native plants, and built partnerships with thousands of landholders.
Our nursery continues to play a vital role.
Through the Bushfire/Flood Recovery Project, funded by the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife, Friends of the Koala Nursery provides free trees, mainly eucalypts, to local landholders. Since the project began in 2021, Friends of the Koala has given away 290,000 trees.
Every tree planted is a step towards restoring koala habitat. It means more food trees, more shelter, and stronger habitat connections for koalas and other native wildlife. It also reflects the value of working with landholders to support long-term recovery across our region.
This is what Eucalyptus Day means to us — not just celebrating these remarkable trees, but recognising their essential role in the future of koalas.
If you are a local landholder interested in receiving trees, please contact Friends of the Koala Nursery Manager Mark Wilson at [email protected].
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