National Wildlife Federation Launches P-22 Day Festival and Urban Wildlife Week with Presenting Sponsor Annenberg Foundation

Free Community Events Planned from Agoura Hills to Griffith Park
October 16-October 22

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#SaveLACougars–The National Wildlife Federation and its partners will celebrate
mountain lion P-22, a Los Angeles icon, with
a series of events this October 16-22. P-22 made a remarkable solo
journey across two of the busiest freeways in America, becoming a local
superstar in the process.

As part of the inaugural Urban Wildlife Week and P-22 Day
Festival, a diverse team of environmental advocates, scientists and
leaders will retrace P-22’s historic 40-mile trek from the Santa Monica
Mountains to his new home in Griffith Park. This unique wildlife walk,
led by the Federation’s California Director Beth Pratt-Bergstrom, will
showcase how Los Angeles is demonstrating worldwide leadership in urban
wildlife conservation and point out vital connections that are still
needed for both wildlife and people along the way. Pratt-Bergstrom will
carry a life-size P-22 cutout and wear an actual mountain lion tracking
collar so that people can follow her journey virtually via www.urbanwildlifeweek.org.
Residents and businesses along the route are encouraged to come cheer on
the hikers.

“We’re excited to launch Urban Wildlife Week with public and
private events provided in partnership with our Presenting Sponsor, the
Annenberg Foundation,” Pratt-Bergstrom said. “The series seeks to engage
all Angelenos in a celebration of the region as one of the most diverse
and exciting urban wildlife habitats in the country.” Residents and
visitors alike will learn how they can co-exist with their wild
neighbors, including P-22 and other mountain lions. “Urban Wildlife Week
and the P-22 Day Festival are community engagement components of the
Federation’s larger #SaveLACougars initiative that is helping to
promote public awareness and secure funding for the proposed wildlife
crossing in Agoura Hills,” Pratt-Bergstrom added.

Events planned during the series include:

• Urban wildlife kickoff event in partnership with the Natural History
  Museum of Los Angeles County.
• Four-day wildlife walk (Oct 19-22) starting at the site of the
  proposed wildlife crossing that will physically and virtually trace
  the likely 40-mile path that P-22 took in leaving his birthplace in
  the Santa Monica Mountains to reach his current home in Griffith Park.
• P-22 Day and Urban Wildlife Festival, a free, day-long event in
  Griffith Park featuring interactive exhibits about urban wildlife in
  the region as well as children’s activities, musical and dance
  performances, Ranger Rick and P-22 cutout photo opportunities, art
  contests, gardening demonstrations and more.
• Crowdfunding initiative in support of #SaveLACougars to help fund the
  construction of what will be the largest wildlife crossing in the
  world at Liberty Canyon in Agoura Hills.

Many organizations are celebrating alongside the Annenberg Foundation,
including partners in the events: the City of Los Angeles, National Park
Service, Office of Senator Pavley Friends of Griffith Park, Santa Monica
Mountains Fund, City of Calabasas, Office of Assembly Member Richard
Bloom, Santa Monica Mountains Conservatory, LAUSD, City of Agoura Hills,
Mia Lehrer & Associates, Grown in LA, Citizens for Los Angeles Wildlife,
Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains, Mountain
Recreation and Conservation Authority, City of Thousand Oaks, Friends of
Los Angeles River, Caltrans, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
County and many more.

“It’s easy to think of Los Angeles as a concrete jungle. The truth is,
we’re home to one of the most richly diverse ecosystems in the entire
world. If you care about conservation, as I do—if you believe this Earth
is a precious and interconnected resource, for all of us to share—then
you ought to care about urban wildlife here in L.A. and around the
world,” said Wallis Annenberg, Chairman, President and CEO of the
Annenberg Foundation. “We need to do more to protect our mountain lion
population, to help them breed and thrive. We need to establish more and
better wildlife crossings, which can save entire species from
extinction. And we need to use the extraordinary story of P-22 to help
all the people of L.A. realize that this community is not ours alone.
I’m proud we’re helping to present this celebration of P-22 and of urban
wildlife as a whole—for the good of every living creature who calls L.A.
home.”

For more information on P-22 Day and Urban Wildlife Week as well as an
updated events schedule and wildlife hike map, visit www.urbanwildlifeweek.org
(#urbanwildlifeweek). For more information on #SaveLACougars, go
to www.savelacougars.org.
For P-22 Day and Urban Wildlife Week sponsorship opportunities, contact
Molly Judge at 415-505-1041 or judgem@nwf.org.

About The National Wildlife Federation

One of the oldest and largest conservation groups in the country, the
National Wildlife Federation with its over six million supporters
nationwide is a strong voice for wildlife, dedicated to protecting
wildlife and habitat, as well as inspiring young people today to become
conservation-minded adults. Visit www.nwf.org
for more information.

About the Annenberg Foundation

The Annenberg
Foundation is a family foundation that provides funding and support
to nonprofit organizations in the United States and globally. Since
1989, it has generously funded programs in education and youth
development; arts, culture and humanities; civic and community life;
health and human services; and animal services and the environment. In
addition, the Foundation and its Board of Directors are directly
involved in the community with innovative projects that further its
mission of advancing a better tomorrow through visionary leadership
today. Among them are Annenberg
Alchemy, Annenberg
Learner, Annenberg
Space for Photography, Explore,
GRoW
and the Metabolic
Studio. The Foundation encourages the development of effective ways
to communicate by sharing ideas and knowledge.

Contacts

Tellem Grody Public Relations, Inc.
Susan Tellem, (o) 310-313-3444
x1 or (m) 310-613-3504
susan@tellemgrodypr.com
or
John
Tellem, (o) 310-313-3444 x2 or (m) 310-210-8779
john@tellemgrodypr.com
or
The
Annenberg Foundation
Camille Lowry, (o) 310-209-4568
clowry@annenberg.org