Clare Holdem, Koala Keeper, Koala Conservation Australia: They are an 5arboreal species. They can't survive a life on the ground. So trees are vital to a koala's existence, not only for food, but for 6shelter and for 7breeding as well. 

CNN Narrator: Listed as 8endangered by the Australian government, a new breeding center north of Sydney run by the Koala 9ConservationAustralia aims to help the 10population rebound. 

Clare Holdem: The purpose is to collect genetically diverse and healthy koalas from the wild to form a founder population. We will then breed joeys or 11juvenile koalas and then those juvenile koalas will be released back to the wild to 12bolster 13existing populations that have low numbers. 

CNN Narrator: During Australia's so-called Black Summer wildfires of 2019 and 2020, it's believed that more than 60,000 koalas 14perished or were harmed in that one bushfire season alone. The new South Wales government has 15committed to creating a national park.