CONTACT: Gerry Ellis

503-232-7067

gerry@globio.org

Elaine Kollias

800-654-8922

New Puppets Launch a Virtual Real-World Adventure

With GLOBIO and Folkmanis Partnership

(Portland, OR – February 15, 2008) GLOBIO® - Where Kids Discover the World™ has joined forces with award-winning puppet maker FOLKMANIS® to introduce a captivating new world of online adventure and hands-on puppetry. WebWilds™ puppets are the first of their kind with their own educational wild web world. This next generation of hand- and imagination-powered, battery-free puppets are the first-ever with their own online virtual habitats created around real-world environments.

There are six WebWilds puppets to collect: Panda, Baby Orangutan, African Elephant, Lion, Koala, and Rockhopper Penguin. WebWilds Puppets are full-bodied, soft, cuddly, and fully detailed replicas of their live animal counterpart. Every WebWilds comes with a secret code that opens up a magical real-world adventure at www.WEBWILDS.com. As WebWilds members, kids can play exclusive free games, look at photos and videos, send ecards, and much more. Every WebWilds also links to GLOBIO’s Glossopedia, the world’s first free, safe, child-specific encyclopedia where kids can discover more about their animals and a world of other creatures and places. Each WebWilds puppet is between 9 and 17 inches and retails for $20.

“Creating WebWilds with Folkmanis was a natural. Their history of quality, integrity and authenticity is compatible with everything we are bringing to children on the web in GLOBIO. We see WebWilds as a special opportunity addressing the concern parents and adults have for kids being lost in the virtual fantasy worlds currently dominating the online environment. WebWilds enables us to marry their efforts in hands-on fun with our minds-on learning about the amazing world of animals,” says Gerry Ellis, GLOBIO’s founder and executive director.

Folkmanis has made a sizable contribution to GLOBIO for the initial WebWilds online development and Glossopedia content for the six WebWilds species. GLOBIO will receive an ongoing percentage of puppet proceeds from every WebWilds purchase to support GLOBIO’s creation of more free content to help kids learn about animals and the environment. “Everyone at Folkmanis realizes how important the environment is to our children’s future, and GLOBIO offers us a unique opportunity to expand on that commitment,” says Atis Folkmanis, company co-founder and president.

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Founded in 2001, GLOBIO envisions a world in which each person recognizes the interdependence of all life and celebrates and protects the diversity that sustains it.  GLOBIO’s mission is to engage children in cross-cultural communication and understanding, inspiring them to preserve the diversity of life on earth.  The non-profit fulfills this mission by creating leading-edge learning activities and educational resources to help children around the world learn about nature, the environment, resources, and each other. www.GLOBIO.org.

Folkmanis believes imagination is the key to a healthy childhood, encouraging play and discovery to develop the skills necessary in life. The company has been making specialty puppets since 1976, delighting imaginations and winning nearly every industry, child development, and kid-tested award. Most Folkmanis® Puppets are recommended for ages 3 and up and are available at toy and gift stores, and specialty retailers nationwide and in more than 15 countries around the world.  www.folkmanis.com.