How Nationals Students Are Helping Protect WA Wildlife  

95% of student-athletes registered for UniSport Nationals Perth 2026 have chosen to contribute to conservation through their Nationals experience, helping support projects that protect Western Australia’s wildlife and natural landscapes. 

Through UniSport Australia’s partnership with everclime, students can opt in to a voluntary $2.50 donation during registration, with funds supporting three WA conservation projects selected by student leaders: the Rottnest Foundation, WA Wildlife and Forever Wild. 

UniSport is also matching funds raised through the Environmental Legacy Project dollar-for-dollar, increasing the collective contribution made by students. 

One of the three projects chosen is WA Wildlife, Western Australia’s largest wildlife rescue and release organisation. 

Based in Bibra Lake, WA Wildlife manages the full journey of an animal’s care, from rescue and veterinary treatment through to rehabilitation and release back into the wild.

The organisation’s wildlife hospital cares for between 6,500 and 7,000 injured, sick or orphaned native animals each year, spanning around 280 species, as well as responding to approximately 1,000 immediate rescues. Altogether, their work reaches close to 8,000 native animals annually. 

WA Wildlife also contribute to understanding broader threats to native wildlife. As WA’s only sentinel clinic for Wildlife Health Australia, the organisation provides data to the Federal Government on emerging wildlife health threats, including H5 bird flu. 

They are supported by around 550 active volunteers, alongside a small team of full-time staff. With no ongoing state or federal funding, WA Wildlife relies largely on donations, op shop proceeds and grants to continue their work. 

The partnership with UniSport and everclime is helping WA Wildlife connect with a new audience as they welcomed the opportunity, saying, “This is fantastic for our organisation. To be able to get our brand out there to three to five thousand youth, that’s huge for us. Thank you.” 

As students prepare to travel to Perth for Nationals this month, their collective contribution adds to the community support that helps WA Wildlife care for thousands of injured, sick and orphaned native animals each year. 

For more information on WA Wildlife, visit | https://wawildlife.org.au/  

About the UniSport Australia x everclime Environmental Legacy Project   

Through a partnership with everclime, UniSport Australia is connecting the university sport community with environmental projects that deliver meaningful conservation outcomes across Western Australia.    

Through everclime’s impact platform, every contribution is tracked, providing students with transparency on the projects their support helps fund and the outcomes it contributes towards.    

By coming together through university sport, student-athletes can turn their collective support into meaningful environmental impact that extends well beyond the competition.