Emperor penguins have just been declared endangered. Not threatened. Not at risk. Endangered — two steps from extinction in the wild.

Climate change is destroying the sea ice they depend on to survive. They breed on it. They feed from it. They raise their chicks on it. As it disappears, so do they. Scientists estimate their population could be cut in half by the 2080s. Between 2009 and 2018 alone, around 20,000 adults vanished.

These are some of the most iconic animals on the planet. And we are watching them disappear in real time.

The science is clear. Greenhouse gas emissions are driving climate change. Climate change is destroying sea ice. And without sea ice, emperor penguins cannot survive. Scientists who worked on the assessment called them a "sentinel species" — a living warning about how badly we are failing to control emissions.

We are calling on world leaders and the US Congress to treat this listing as the emergency it is. That means stronger commitments to reducing emissions, greater protections for Antarctic ecosystems, and real accountability for the countries and industries driving the crisis.

The emperor penguin cannot wait. Sign this petition and tell our leaders: act now before it is too late.