Morning tea for the Foundation for Australia's Most Endangered Species 25th anniversary

FAME CEO and board members; ladies and gentlemen.

It is wonderful for Kaye and me to welcome you all to Government House this morning, as we mark a very important milestone in the journey of a very important organisation.

As well as the Queenslanders among us, today we have the pleasure to welcome guests from South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales.

You are all here because you appreciate the significance of what we are celebrating today; the 25th anniversary of the Foundation for Australia’s Most Endangered Species.

That’s 25 years of hard work by many – passionate Australians dedicated to the survival of our most rare and endangered flora and fauna.

Actually, considering the remarkable success stories of this organisation, a quarter of a century does not seem like a long time in which to have accomplished so much.

The genuine, tangible differences this foundation has made to the wellbeing of so many unique species is a legacy for which Australians will be grateful for generations to come.

From Lesser Bilbys to Kangaroo Island Dunnarts, Western Quolls to Brush Tailed Possums, from Macadamias to Tasmanian Devils – all of these incredible species are closer to a safe and secure future thanks to the work of FAME.

Through its philanthropic engagement, community outreach, and support of research and education, the foundation has spent 25 years advocating for the funding of on-the-ground conservation projects designed to protect our most vulnerable flora and fauna.

In the face of a changing climate, flooding rains and the current, devastating drought, this is an organisation that continues to find a way to help.

It would be disingenuous not to mention another presently ‘endangered species’ in Australia, and that is the pastoralist.

I am very pleased to discern the State’s commitment to the plight of our drought stricken farmers – and that reflects the real concern of all of us, which is translating into very practical support.

I commend the foundation for its ongoing resilience in the face of unpredictable challenges.

And I thank each one of you here today for the contribution you are making to the longevity of Australia’s unique ecosystem, which of course includes the Great Barrier Reef, not FAME’s immediate point of reference, but one which may in due course benefit from its lateral thinking.

So often we are told the bad news, but here, at your Government House, we rightly celebrate 25 years of good news!

Long may it last.

Thank you.