If visiting or volunteering are not options for you, there are still plenty of ways you can help: simply start spreading the word!
Raising awareness and raising funds will help ensure Elephant Nature Foundation can continue caring for our rescued elephants, reaching out to locals to advise on human-elephant relationships, and providing medical care to elephants in remote areas of the jungle.
Keep reading for ideas on how you can help raise awareness and raise funds at home. And if you're interested in organizing an awareness-raising event or a fundraiser, make sure to contact ENF UK for more suggestions and guidelines. And remember, together we truly can make a difference!
— Raise Awareness —
Tell your friends about our website. Read more about our programs and what other people are saying about them in our In the Media section. Check out our News From the Park section, and then share what you learn with others.
Encourage other travelers not to visit elephant camps that give rides or make their elephants do tricks. Tell them about Elephant Nature Park instead — we provide our rescued elephants with a better life and our visitors leave with a better experience too.
Get in touch with your hometown newspaper and ask if you can write an article about your time with the elephants at our Park. Or write an account in your personal blog and share a link to our website so your friends can learn more.
Contact your local library, school, church, or community group and ask if they'd like to hear about our rescued elephants, and how they can help. And then drop us an email at Blog@ElephantNatureFoundation.org and tell us about it. Your activism at home may motivate another person to do the same!
Become a walking advertisement by purchasing a Park t-shirt from the EleStore. You'll be surprised at the number of people who will ask what it's all about.
We would also love to hear about past visitor and volunteer experiences. Share with us those moments at the Park that made you smile the most. Tell us about the projects you worked on while you volunteered. Recount your day visit and how it affected you. Then send it in an email to us at Blog@ElephantNatureFoundation.org (and don't forget to include a photo or two if you have them!).
For more information and inspiration, please check out our Elephant Nature Park pamphlet and How-To Guide on Hosting Fundraiser Dinner Parties. Consider printing them out and sharing them with friends and fellow travelers too.
— Raise Funds —
Holding fundraisers or asking others for much-needed funds can feel intimidating. But we've found when people learn about the work Elephant Nature Foundation is doing, one of the most common questions asked is, "How can I donate?" So don't be shy. Ask away! The worst that can happen is someone will say no. And the least that will happen is that another person will learn more about the trouble Asian elephants are facing today. And the more people know, the more people will care.
There are hundreds of ideas for fundraisers, everything from small gatherings to citywide events. So let your imagination go and read on for some great fundraising suggestions:
- Host a dinner party for your friends
- Hold a car wash at your local service station
- Put a collection can at your place of business or ask a local pet store to display one
- Foster an elephant in someone's name for their birthday or holiday present
- Ask your friends and family to make a donation for your birthday present
- Hold a bake sale at your school
- Ask local businesses to donate items you can auction
- Go through your basement or garage and sell any unneeded items
- Have an information table and donation jar at your church after services
- Run a penny drive and collect everyone's unwanted pennies
- At your place of business, ask everyone to bring their lunch from home for a week and to donate the money they saved by not eating out
- And for more fun ideas, check out our Ele's A-Z Guide for Fundraising
Any money you raise can be easily donated to Elephant Nature Foundation here, and will make a world of difference to Lek and the elephants at Elephant Nature Park.
