I'm currently in Northern Thailand living with and working alongside a hill tribe to try help the plight of the Asian elephant. In Thailand the Asian elephant population has undergone a massive decline over the last 100 years, with numbers plummeting from 100,000 to approximately 4,000. Adding to the collapse, the logging ban in the 80's saw the main source of elephant derived income shift to the tourist industry where captive elephants have no legal protection. Current inhumane conditions in the industry drastically reduce life spans, hinder reproduction, and prevent elephants from living any kind of natural life. Asian elephants are incredibly intelligent, social animals and their current lives in what is effectively solitary confinement, being mistreated on a daily basis, is horrendously  undescribable, totally  inexcusable and shockingly overlooked.

The project I work on with Global Vision International recognized the problems that Asian elephants face and so has come together with an elephant keeping community in Northern Thailand to see if they can work together to come up with a solution. GVI and the villagers of Huay Pakoot established a common goal of bringing the village elephants back to the forest to live as naturally as possible while also monitoring their social and physical well-being to further assist the cause. The solution is not simple however, as keeping an elephant is an expensive business. So while the elephants welfare is paramount to GVI, it is also essential to provide funding and alternative sources of income for owners and mahouts so they can support both the elephants and their families with the elephants in the forest.

GVI has established a program which allows volunteers the oportunity to come to the community and work hands on with the village and their elephants in a variety of ways to help us achieve our goal. So far through a lot of hard work and vital volunteer funding, GVI has managed to establish a herd of 5 elephants which have been returned to the forests of Huay Pakoot. These elephants are now secure on project and will remain here foraging and socializing as they please, living out the rest of their lives in freedom. The next stage of the project is to be able to bring more elephants into the herd and be able to secure their furtures just like that of our lucky 5. In order to do this we must ensure a constant source of income so that once removed from their harsh conditions, our elephants never need to go back.

How can you help????? Well I'm doing all the hard work for you.  I've recently been wracking my brain to come up with a great idea to raise money for the elephants and when I heard about a marathon taking place in Chiang Mai on Christmas day I thought what better way to do it! I mean surely training in 30-40 degree heat, mountainous terrain, on top of hiking everyday and running in my hiking boots couldn't possibly be a bad idea right?! Exactly what I thought, so I'm all signed up and raring to go- ish. In reality the heat leaves me a dripping mass of sweat, the hills are absolute killers (a run the other day left me struggling to walk for 3 days) and I'm so tired of running round in huge boots with platforms of mud stuck to the bottom-but I'm convincing myself that this all adds up to the marathon being easy :) So over to you, you guessed it, sponsorship!! We are trying to raise vital funds to bring more elephants back to the forest. If you feel that you can spare a bit of cash to help me raise some money please  give whatever you can afford. For more information please drop me an email or check out the project details at http://gvithailandenvironmental.blogspot.com