Massive thank you to all of you who supported us by donating.

Matt Pufahl - £10
Luke Blackmore - £5
Annette & Eric Stapleton - £10
Chris & Maria Beaumont - £10
Samantha Beaumont - £5
Stash & Debbie Pokoj & Grandma Pokoj  - £10
David Pokoj - £5
Bill Buckley - £5
Kathy Bailey - £3
Heidi White - £5
Peter Oram - £5
Tanya Dresman - £8
Michael Watkins - £5
Jo Pearse - £25
Kirsty Milsom - £5
Tara Houtzagers - £5
Chris Hoggle - £5
Josh Malkinson - £5
Sally (hunter) - £5
Mel Osborne - £5
Sue Winson - £5
Amanda Verrall - £3
Paul Couch - £5
David Lane - £5
Rosemary Terrible - £5
Stuart Thompson - £5.01
Ski Martin - £5.02
Chloe Bond - £3
Onno Neve - £5
Mark (Buckie) & Tanya Buck - £10
Hanna Yeo - £5
Rebecca Worth - £5
Ann Moon - £5
Jody Thornhill - £5
Jess Mckechie - £5
Tania Veivers - £5
Zoe (Fudgies) - £7

Halina Pokoj - £10
Wayne Beaumont - £10

+ change from good random people!

Thank you those guys who donated online too.

Good effort everyone - Thank you all again so much!


Hello everyone!

As many of you may know Wayne and I climbed to the sumit of Mt Teide, the 3rd largest volcano in the world.
We asked you lovely people if you would kindly sponsor us to do this, with all funds raised going to the Millenium Elephant Foundation in Sri Lanka.
This is a great charity, with little money but big dream, of which i hope to be a part of in the future.

So far we have raised over £300.

Thank you all so much for your donations. A little money from all of you, together, can go a long way and make a big difference.

Pictures of our climb are on our facebook group. You can see them at : http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=111495455565121&v=info&ref=ts


(100% OF ALL DONATIONS GO DIRECTLY TO THE PROJECT NO ADMINISTRATION COSTS OR COMMISION IS TAKEN BY AWF FROM THE DONATIONS MADE)

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!

Wayne and Halina x x x

More info:

Asian elephant numbers have been decimated over the past few decades this has been done through habitat destruction, illegal poaching for ivory, the pet trade, work and for being kept in captivity. Through the Millennium Elephant Foundation in Sri Lanka there is a home for old and injured working elephants this has been developed into a major centre for elephant conservation, research and education however to continue it's brilliant work the Millennium Elephant Foundation needs our support.

In Asian elephants, only the males have tusks. In some Asian countries, many of the males also lack tusks. The Asian elephant's tusks are elongated incisors that grow throughout an elephant’s life and are used in feeding, in displays during social encounters, and as weapons. Male Asian elephants can weigh over five tons; females typically weigh less than 3 tons. On average Asian elephants can live up to 80 years in captivity. While there are over 15,000 Asian elephants in captivity, only about 32,750 are thought to roam wild in the tropical forests of Asia, less than a tenth of the number of wild African elephants.

The biggest threat to Asian elephants is humans. As the human population grows, elephant/human conflicts increase resulting in the death of both humans and elephants in retaliatory incidents. The elephants ancient migratory routes are being disrupted due to the increasing human encroachment, isolating small, fragmented groups of Asian Elephants. Each year in India, over 200 people are killed by elephants, and more than 100 elephants are killed in retaliation. Habitat loss and poaching are the main reasons for the decline of Asian Elephants as they have no natural predators, however along with this, a lot of Asian Elephants are also caught and kept in captivity for the circus trade, for zoos, for religious and traditional displays and also for working. Elephants need lots of space and lots of food (an average of 150kg per day). As the forest is cut down to make room for farms, elephants destroy plantations and fields for food. They uproot and scatter other plants, trees, and groundcover as they forage. This creates conflict with farmers settling into elephant habitat. A single elephant can devastate a small farmer’s crop holding in one feeding raid. This makes elephants the target of retaliatory killings. Habitat loss creates the danger that elephants may soon be confined to habitat ‘islands’ as isolated populations that cannot follow ancient migratory routes or mix with other herds, and so may become inbred.

In 1989, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) banned the international trade in ivory. However the illegal trade of ivory from Asian and African Elephants still thrives. Although most of this ivory comes from poaching of African elephants, Asian elephants are also illegally hunted for their ivory, as well as for their skin.

The Millennium Elephant Foundation is situated on a 15 acre estate known as Samaragiri, which has been home to the Samarasinghe family for many generations. The family has owned elephants since the 1960's and in 1979 Mr. Samarasinghe (1939 - 1991) opened the estate to the public as the "Elephant Bath". Currently the MEF is home to 5 cow (female) elephants. The youngest, Pooja was the first captive elephant to be bred in Sri Lanka, born in 1984. It is estimated that the MEF grounds have a total holding capacity of 10-15 female elephants; of course consideration can be given to male elephants if necessary. In an effort to increase awareness and generate the funds needed for the maintenance and care of their elephants, the MEF actively welcomes visitors and encourages one to one interaction with them.

Your donation goes towards the resources required for this to be possible (read less)