Julian Huxley, grandson of Thomas Henry Huxley, and one of Charles Darwin’s staunchest supporters (and brother of author Aldous), in his late career joined an already impressive roster of British conservationists to call public attention to the issue of endangered species. Many distinguished names, in disparate groups, were working on the issue, but all were coming up short in publicity and funds. A collective, international effort was needed to put the issue to the public and streamline conservation efforts.

On this day, September 11, in 1961, the World Wildlife Fund was founded, with an office in Morges, Switzerland. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, who donated £700,000, became the organization’s first president.

The WWF grew quickly, partly because of their roster of influential names and partly because the belief that nature’s resources were limitless was beginning to give way to a feeling that careful stewardship of nature was necessary. Topsoil erosion and natural disasters caused food panics in third-world countries while animal extinctions made news headlines throughout the decade.