LOS ANGELES, Calif. – When it comes to saving the planet, Leonardo DiCaprio is putting his money where his mouth is.

The actor’s foundation announced Tuesday it has awarded $15 million in grants to a host of environmental organizations, including Amazon Watch, Save the Elephants, Tree People and the World Wildlife Fund.

“The destruction of our planet continues at a pace we can no longer afford to ignore,” DiCaprio said in a statement. “We have a responsibility to innovate a future where the habitability of our planet does not come at the expense of those who inhabit it.”

The groups receiving the grants are “working to solve humankind’s greatest challenge,” he said.

The 40-year-old actor has been an active environmentalist throughout his career. He created the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation in 1998, a year after “Titanic” came out, to fund efforts that protect the planet and its endangered species. It now supports such projects in more than 40 countries.

Last year, the United Nations named DiCaprio a UN Messenger of Peace with a special focus on climate change.

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