Plush Koalas Hang on Poles Around NYC With a QR Code to Help Animals Injured in the Australia Fires

Koalas of NYC is a wonderfully compassionate organization that is working to raise funds to help the millions of koalas and other native wildlife that have suffered from the raging bushfires all over Australia.

In order to bring attention to this urgent and important cause, the group has creatively attached plush koalas on poles throughout Manhattan. Each of these stuffed animals has a QR code attached that allows those passing by to easily donate to NSW Wildlife Information Rescue And Education Service Incorporated (WIRES) (previously).

At 6 AM this morning, Friday, January 10, 2020, stuffed koalas plush toys were scattered and positioned in locations all over New York City. Attached to the koalas is a QR code that directs passersby to the Koalas of NYC Gofundme page to spread awareness and raise money for WIRES.

WIRES CEO Leanne Taylor issued a statement on exactly where the money will go and how it will be used.

The allocation of donations received by WIRES will be used to assist as many animals as possible across our nation – we can and will allocate funding and support to all states and territories where needed to assist animals affected by this crisis. We will soon be announcing some new initiatives that have been made possible through these generous contributions. …Right now, our staff, qualified experts and volunteers are working around the clock to ensure that as many native animals as possible receive the ongoing care, supplementary food, and recovery they need. This includes koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, possums, echidnas, birds, reptiles and more.

Officers from the NYC Police Department and NYC Fire Department have also joined in on this worthy effort to help injured animals.

New York City loves you Australia.

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.