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At Friends of the Koala, we believe in a future for koalas in the NSW Northern Rivers. Operating for over 35 years, we have an established history of working towards positive outcomes for koalas.
Our mission
Friends of the Koala is committed to conserving koalas and preserving and enhancing their habitat, particularly in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. In doing this, we aim to make a key contribution to Australia’s biodiversity.
Our core business
- Rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing koalas
- Protecting and enhancing koala habitat
- Educating the community about koalas and issues that affect them
- Advocating on behalf of koalas
- Assisting relevant research
Our Partners
Thanks to our partners we have been able to do what we do, better! Without them our work would be that much more difficult.
Key achievements
In the 35 years since Friends of the Koala was first established, with the aim to enhance and protect koala habitat, we’ve become the lead koala conservation group in the Northern Rivers Region of New South Wales.
We maintain a 24/7 Rescue Hotline and rehabilitate and release sick and injured koalas. We operate a Koala Hospital (triage, treatment, and pathology clinic) and Burribi - Widjabul word for Koala – (education and administration centre) in East Lismore, NSW. We also issue koala food trees and other rainforest species, work with all levels of government, and provide advice to landowners on preserving and extending koala habitat.
We currently rescue approximately 50% of the sick, injured and orphaned koalas rescued in NSW (average of 400 koalas per year). Since records began in 1990, Friends of the Koala have grown and issued more than 200,000 koala food trees to landholders and habitat restoration groups across the region. If we were to include rainforest species, the total would be closer to half a million trees.
We have nearly 150 active volunteers who are engaged in habitat restoration, rescue, rehabilitation, nursery, leaf collection in addition to management and advocacy.
Some major FOK milestones
1986
- Formed as an organisation to enhance and protect koala habitat
1989
- Commenced rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing koalas under the guidance of the Lismore District Office of the National Parks & Wildlife Service
1990
- Incorporated as Friends of the Koala Inc.
1993
- Licensed to rescue, rehabilitate and release koalas under the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Act 1974
1994
- Entry in the Federal Register of Environmental Organisations
1996
- Koala Care and Research Centre, East Lismore opened
- Southern Cross University Vice Chancellor’s Special Award
2000
- Lismore City Council’s Australia Day Achievement Award (Environment Category)
- 1st Green Corps Project 2004- Koala Conservation and Corridor Connection and Bundjalung Walking Track
2004
- Outdoor enclosures established at the Koala Care Centre
- Steve Irwin Conservation Foundation’s Koala and Wildlife Hospital agreed to treat our koalas
- WildLife Link donated our Rescue Van and trailer
2006
- Wildlife Preservation Society of Australia’s Community Wildlife Conservation Award
2007
- 1st Environmental Trust Lead Environmental Community Groups grant
2008
- 21-year lease on Koala Care & Research site granted by Lismore Council
2009
- 1st partnership in an ARC Linkage project – Development of an anti-Chlamydial vaccine for the koala
2010
- NSW Volunteer of the Year Award, Northern Rivers Region Team of the Year Award
2012
- Nature Conservation Council of NSW’s Outstanding Member Group 2012
2013
- Lismore City Council’s Australia Day Achievement Award (Sustainable Environment)
- Nature Conservation Council of NSW’s Marie Byles Award for the most outstanding new environmental campaign
2014
- Byron Shire Council’s 2014 World Environment Day Award (Conservation & Land Management)
- 3 additional outdoor runs extended Koala Care Centre capacity
2015
- 1st Environmental Trust Lead Environmental Communication Grant
2016
- Environmental Trust Restoration & Rehabilitation grant over 3 years – Enhancing Lismore wildlife refuges and corridors for threatened species
- September – Opened our Burribi Education and Administration Centre and hired our first paid employee
2017
- 2017 Environmental Trust Environmental Education grant over 3 years – Koala Watch: Community led koala recovery – Northern Rivers.
- June – WINNER of the Golden Leaf Award of Excellence for a Wildlife Group
- September – official opening of Burribi Education & Administration Centre
2018
- October – Opened our Triage, Treatment and Triage Clinic
2019
- May – Employed our Vet Nurse Marley Christian
2020
- April – Employed our Vet Jackie Reed
- July – Approval granted for FOK to operate a specialist Koala Hospital
Our Licensed Coverage Area
Friends of the Koala Inc. is licensed to carry out rescue and rehabilitation of diseased and injured koalas across five of the local government areas in the Northern Rivers Region of NSW, covering an area 10,000+ sq km.
