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For Immediate Release
Contact:

Taralynn Reynolds, (520) 623-5252 x 313, treynolds@biologicaldiversity.org

35,000 Endangered Species Condoms to Be Handed Out This Halloween

Campaign Highlights Scary Reality of Growing Human Population Pushing Out Wildlife

TUSCON, Ariz.

As Americans prepare to celebrate Halloween, the Center for Biological Diversity this week is distributing 35,000 free Endangered Species Condoms to highlight the scary truth about human population growth and the wildlife extinction crisis. The condoms will be distributed by more than 400 volunteers in some of America's spookiest cities, including San Francisco, Baltimore, Chicago and New Orleans.

The condoms will be handed out at Halloween parties, bars, local festivals and other events around the country.

"The idea of a world with no room for wildlife is far more frightening than vampires, ghosts and ghouls," said Taralynn Reynolds, the Center's population and sustainability organizer. "In the past 40 years, we've added more than 3 billion people to our population, while wildlife populations have plummeted. We can no longer ignore that rampant human population growth and overconsumption are driving species extinct."

The Endangered Species Condoms are wrapped in colorful packages featuring six different endangered species and information to help volunteers start the conversation about the impact of runaway human population growth on polar bears, panthers and other imperiled wildlife. The Center has given away more than half a million Endangered Species Condoms since 2009.

According to a recent study published by the World Wildlife Fund, Earth has lost half its wildlife in the past 40 years. Meanwhile the latest UN projections say human population growth is unlikely to peak anytime soon; we could have as many as 12 billion people on the planet by the end of the century.

"It would cost an estimated $8 billion to meet the unmet need for modern contraception worldwide, giving millions of women the tools they need to choose when and how many children they'd like to have," said Reynolds. "That's far less than the $11 billion Americans are expected to spend on costumes, candy and decorations this Halloween season. We can address the population crisis before it's too late."

In addition to distributing Endangered Species Condoms, the Center is asking people to share "spooky selfies" on social media with the message "What's Really Scary? A #CrowdedPlanet with No Wildlife. #FearExtinction." A sample flyer -- along with shareable Halloween-themed images featuring bats, spiders and snakes -- is available here.

The Center's population and sustainability program promotes a range of solutions, including universal access to birth control and family planning, as well as education and empowerment of women and girls and reduced consumption of meat and energy. The program's Halloween outreach also includes the new video "Meatstinction!" which highlights the link between meat production and the wildlife extinction crisis.

Some of the "haunted" cities where Endangered Species Condoms will be given away this week include: San Francisco; New York; Portland, Ore.; Dallas; Chicago; New Orleans; Atlanta; Charleston, S.C.; Baltimore; Washington, D.C. and Raleigh, N.C.

To find out if Endangered Species Condoms are being given away in your coverage area, please contact Taralynn Reynolds at treynolds@biologicaldiversity.org.

At the Center for Biological Diversity, we believe that the welfare of human beings is deeply linked to nature — to the existence in our world of a vast diversity of wild animals and plants. Because diversity has intrinsic value, and because its loss impoverishes society, we work to secure a future for all species, great and small, hovering on the brink of extinction. We do so through science, law and creative media, with a focus on protecting the lands, waters and climate that species need to survive.

(520) 623-5252