Save Elephants, Build Community

That’s what Elephantopia is about. How are we doing this?

A Look Behind:

In the last year of existence, Elephantopia  created a petition with over 10,000 signatures asking Pope Francis to continue the work begun by Federico Lombardi (read his statement here).

Then in October 2013, Elephantopia joined forces with the Houston Zoo and Whole Foods Market to launch a support march for the March for Elephants Day (headed up by The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya). This march took place in over 40 cities around the world. In Houston, Mayor Annise Parker awarded Elephantopia with a proclamation that October 4 is March for Elephants Day Houston.

As director of Elephantopia, I personally sponsors two elephants with The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (Naipoki and Rombo). I had the opportunity to meet Naipoki in October 2012 and look forward to seeing her again this summer 2014 along with meeting Rombo for the first time.

A Look at the Present:

2014 has already been a monumental year for elephants. China destroyed 6 tons of ivory and has plans to destroy another 28 tons. France became the first European nation to destroy their ivory stockpiles. The US tightened it’s laws on the ivory trade, banning the importation of ivory. London is currently hosting a conference with over 50 countries attending to discuss illegal wildlife trade. And Elephantopia decided to launch as an official nonprofit. Last night, we met to discuss our values, our vision and our mission. We went on to elect a president, treasurer and secretary.

Vision: Advancing elephant conservation through community partnerships

Mission: Working locally and globally to foster a harmonious future for elephants and humans through education, action and partnerships.

Our Values: We want to see an end to the ivory trade, a sustainable future for elephants, a harmonious coexistence for elephant and human communities in Africa, education and awareness campaigns in the US, China & Africa, and action opportunities for people like yourself to get involved.

A Look into the Future:

We are filing paperwork with the federal government, re-crafting our logo and will soon be updating this website.Our next immediate step will be hosting an event to further awareness locally while raising funds for a partnership with an elephant orphanage in Zambia. I am very excited to watch this awareness blog grow into a nonprofit that will be actively making a difference in the lives of elephants and humans around the world. Thank you for being a part of this community of elephant advocates!