Press release | 16 May, 2019

IUCN and Lacoste team up again to inspire support for threatened species

The Lacoste-IUCN partnership has launched its second awareness-raising campaign to support species conservation action worldwide.

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Photo: Lacoste

As part of its three-year collaboration with IUCN’s SOS - Save Our Species initiative, which began in 2018, the global apparel company Lacoste will sell limited-edition polo shirts where its crocodile logo temporarily makes way for 10 different threatened species. The number of shirts for each species corresponds to the number of known individuals remaining in the wild. While each species faces specific threats, all are in need of increased funding for conservation action to help ensure their long-term survival.

“This campaign highlighting the plight of 10 threatened species will help widen awareness of the global extinction crisis,” said IUCN Director General Inger Andersen. “The collaboration with Lacoste is an excellent example of one of many roles that businesses can play to help stop the deterioration of our natural world. Further support from businesses and individuals is urgently needed to conserve the species and ecosystems on which we depend for food security, water security, and countless other benefits.”  

On 22 May – the International Day for Biological Diversity – ten Lacoste stores across the Americas, Europe, Asia and online will put the spotlight on one specific species, selling limited-edition polo shirts related to just that animal. 

“This is an exciting collaboration which is already making a difference; we are delighted that funding from last year’s campaign is helping to conserve Critically Endangered Burmese roofed turtles in Myanmar, for example,” said Thierry Guibert, CEO of Lacoste

All profits from the sale of 3,520 limited-edition polo shirts and all other items sold on the day in the ten stores will support IUCN’s efforts to conserve threatened wildlife. A call for proposals will be issued later in 2019 to identify and fund suitable conservation projects. 

Anyone can get involved to help increase funds for species conservation – visit www.saveourspecies.org/donate to learn more and donate.

Notes to editors

For more information or to set up interviews, please contact:
Goska Bonnaveira, IUCN Media Relations, Tel: +41229990245, Mobile: +41792760185, goska.bonnaveira@iucn.org

Species featured on the limited-edition polo shirts:

Species

IUCN Red List status

Estimated known wild population

Lacoste store location

Hawaiian monk seal

Neomonachus schauinslandi

Endangered

1,400

Online only

Iberian lynx

Lynx pardinus

Endangered

589

Paris

North Atlantic right whale

Eubalaena glacialis

Endangered

444

New York

Moheli scops-owl

Otus moheliensis

Endangered

400

Seoul

Yemeni mouse-tailed bat

Rhinopoma hadramauticum

Endangered

150

London

Opal goodeid

Allotoca maculata

Critically Endangered

150

Los Angeles

Mountain chicken

Leptodactylus fallax

Critically Endangered

132

Miami

Northern hairy-nosed wombat

Lasiorhinus krefftii

Critically Endangered

115

Tokyo

Addax

Addax nasomaculatus

Critically Endangered

90

Berlin

Cebu damselfly

Risiocnemis seidenschwarzi 

Critically Endangered

50

Shanghai

       TOTAL

3,520