Saving The World, One Elephant At A Time

Lek Chailert at the Elephant Nature Park

As I was catching up with the James family on their round-the-world travel blog The Wide Wide World, one recent event stood out above all others: Caroline James, who is 13 years old, wrote an outstanding article describing her experiences volunteering at the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai provence, Northern Thailand. The Nature Park is home to more than 30 elephants rescued from horrific situations. They are given a new life on the beautiful grounds of the Nature Park, lovingly cared for by founder Lek Chailert (pictured above).

Caroline and Conor bathing an elephant

During her day volunteering, Caroline fed the elephants, bathed them in a river, scrubbed their backs, and helped clean the camp. It sounds like a truly amazing experience – read Caroline’s article here. And to give some props to Dani and Craig, how awesome is it that they took their kids volunteering instead of the typical Americans-Abroad type activities? To me, that gets to the heart of the difference between vacationing and traveling. Traveling is about more than rest and relaxation; it pushes you to try new experiences. It opens your eyes.

How You Can Help The Elephants in Chiang Mai:

- Buy an elephant medical kit ($20) or an elephant lunch ($10) from The Elephant Nature Park Store to help care for the animals.

- Sign up to be an Elephant Volunteer for a day, a weekend, a week, or a full month.

- Help the herd at the Elephant Nature Park by Fostering an Elephant – this would be an excellent gift for a child who loves elephants. You get a photo of the elephant you have chosen to sponser, along with a bio and updates throughout the year. What a wonderful way to teach a child about empathy!

Photo credits: top photo © Elephant Nature Foundation; bottom photo courtesy the wide wide world

Related posts:

1. Thai Farm Cooking School
2. Round-The-World Travel, Then and Now
3. Etsy Finds Friday {Spring!}
4. Teaching Nature and Science
5. The Girl Project