The tallest species in Africa is slowly dying off; animal experts say the giraffe population in Africa has declined 40 percent in the past 15 years.

But there is something you can do to help reverse that trend.

"Jeans for Giraffes" is a growing recycling movement to help support giraffe conservation.

This is how it works: the Santa Barbara Zoo is among a worldwide group collecting donated jeans through mid-July.

All of the collected denim will be sold by the pound to a textile recycler in Arizona, then turned into insulation for homes and businesses.

The money raised will go to giraffe conservation and research in Africa.

According to, the average person throws away 68 pounds of clothing and textiles each year.