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Leonardo DiCaprio to donate $3M for Australia wildfire relief

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr., Associated Press
Published: January 9, 2020, 4:28pm

LOS ANGELES — Leonardo DiCaprio’s environmental organization will donate $3 million to help wildfire relief efforts in Australia.

DiCaprio’s Earth Alliance said in a statement Thursday that the organization started the Australia Wildfire Fund to help with an “international response to the catastrophic bushfires” currently raging in the country. The Academy Award-winning actor co-chairs the organization was launched last year to combat climate change and biodiversity loss.

The wildfires have scorched an area twice the size of the U.S. state of Maryland. The blazes have killed 25 people and destroyed 2,000 homes. The fires, fueled by drought and the country’s hottest and driest year on record, have been raging since September, months earlier than is typical for Australia’s annual wildfire season.

The fund will work with local Australian partner organizations including Aussie Ark, Bush Heritage and Wires Wildlife Rescue.

DiCaprio joins a growing list of other celebrities that have rallied to donate. Actor Chris Hemsworth and Elton John each offered $1 million through social media earlier this week.

Nicole Kidman, Pink and Keith Urban have donated as well.

Metallica said they will donation $750,000 to a firefighting agency and emergency services agency in Victoria. Phoebe Waller-Bridge said she would auction off her Globe outfit and have the proceeds go to firefighter relief at the Golden Globes on Sunday.

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