is mara elephant project legitimateis mara elephant project legitimate

Their impact and transparency ratings: Elephant Voices have an 80% score on Charity Navigator with a majority independent board and 90% of their expenditure going towards their programs. To join them you can donate in a number of ways: Elephants are fast disappearing from the wild. "Only a quarter of charities rated by Charity Navigator receive the distinction of our 4-star rating. The International Elephant Foundation was inspired by the frustration of its founder Michael Fouraker, the Fort Worth Zoo director, in 1998 (and established in 1999). Local human populations living in key elephant ranges are among the world's most poor and vulnerable people. Through their collaboration with Honeyguide, the Nature Conservancy has established a conflict tool kit that uses fireworks filled with flashlights and chili powder that is 70% efficient in removing elephants from crops and 90% efficient in deterring them from farms. The only real measure of success is an increase in population numbers or the slowing of a downward trend but accurate statistics have been difficult to establish. Carol Buckey founded Elephant Aid International in 2006. Mara Elephant Project (MEP) was established in 2011 with the mission of protecting elephants to conserve the greater Mara ecosystem. The $300 Parrot AR drone is being used to defend elephants in Kenya's Maasai Mara game reserve Photograph: PR. But how much of the money really goes there? The data collected from MEPs elephant collars is the single best indicator for identifying elephant density hotspots, defining critical habitat and corridors, and illustrating elephant movements to target audiences. Wildlife Conservation Society is credited with doing the most effective work in Africa. Learn more about our privacy practices. Their impact and transparency ratings: This elephant sanctuary was rated four stars on Charity Navigator and held a platinum seal of transparency from GuideStar; 89% of their expenditure is allocated to their sanctuary program and its services. Under the banner of his NGO, Save the Elephants, he has spent 30 years lobbying for elephants on global platforms, including addressing the US Senates Foreign Relations Committee on Ivory and Security in 2012 and attending White House meetings that fed into Obamas 2013 Executive Order on Combatting Wildlife Trafficking. editors@africageographic.com Here are a few ways you can help your chosen charity: Whichever charity you end up choosing and contributing to, we are sure that our intelligent friends will immensely appreciate your support. Given the late hour, any hope of operating on her that evening was not possible, so the Mara Conservancy management arranged to have their Rangers monitor the herd . Ways to contribute: You can support by donating to the organization or purchasing an item on their wishlist that will help in their new elephant refuge. Over the last decade over 1,000 rangers have lost their lives in the field, the majority to elephant poachers. The Mara also has a thriving and well-protected elephant . Operating in a country with massive corruption, WCS has had its work cut out, compounded by the fact that 35,000 people live in the reserve, and Tanzanian poachers cross the border into Niassa, often reportedly aided by officials. Of the global NGOs, Wildlife Conservation Society is credited with doing the most effective work in Africa. First and foremost, because we believe that they add value to you. Their facilities are not open to the public but you can watch live footage of the elephants through the EleCam. It is important to note that the small number of highly recommended organizations below is the result of a deliberate decision to provide clear and actionable recommendations to donors . But since then, the Kenya Wildlife Service and the Mara Elephant Project's 57 rangers have arrested 354 poachers. Please click on this logo for more information. For 15 years, Mara, Kuky and Pupy shared a space, until an incident in 2010 . Find out what the aim of such programs is and whether they are right for you. They work to protect elephants in the Greater Mara ecosystem, which are under threat from human-wildlife conflict, poaching and diminishing space to roam. The work was coordinated by Save the Elephants and included researchers from Colorado State University, Mara Elephant Project, the University of British Columbia, Oxford University, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the University of Stirling and Elephants Alive. But fortunately not this site. EIAs executive director, Mary Rice, is also on a mission to bring about changes in international laws and government policies. In efforts to address this problem, previous studies have mainly focused on the direct impacts of . What They do: Safe the Asian Elephants works with experts and campaigns to advocate for Asian Elephants underrepresented in the global elephant wildlife conservation efforts. For over a decade at Mara Elephant Project (MEP) we've been protecting elephants and their habitats across the Greater Mara Ecosystem (GME). Wild Aid When you buy something through one of our affiliate links, we may earn a small commission - but at no additional costs to you. Many other NGOs do valuable conservation work in Africa; all the organisations featured here are respected by the philanthropy community. Exasperated by the lack of available funding for elephant research and conservation efforts at the time, he called together nine representatives from zoos, circuses, private elephant facilities, and a university to Fort Worth to the International Elephant Foundation to promote elephant conservation efforts. The project also enjoys the appreciation of the local Maasai and the KWS. MEP was developed to fill a gap in protecting elephants outside of conservancies and protected areas in the Mara ecosystem. In signing formal public-private partnership (PPP) agreements, they secure full management responsibility for a protected area and are held responsible for what happens under their watch. Although Kenya outlawed the hunting of elephants in 1973 and CITES established . Without the outstanding support and generosity of our donors, STE would not be able to continue securing a future for the elephants. Through these programs, over 200 poachers have been arraigned since 2017 for wildlife-related crimes and numerous elephants saved in the process. What theyve achieved: Through their conservation program (which started in 2011), they have increased the presence of elephants from 120 to 800 in the Mozambique Gorongosa national park. An icon used to represent a menu that can be toggled by interacting with this icon. In addition to reducing elephant poaching, they also work in several sectors involving environment conservation, from marine life to forestry, climate change, and nature. If you would prefer to remain anonymous, please check the box Keep my donation anonymous in the Donation Options section. The elephant's name was Mara. What they do: To promote protection and kinder treatment for elephants worldwide, Elephant Voices categorizes their programs under their CARE acronym. But that's still a long time to go. Save the Elephants is based in Kenya and was founded in 1993 by Ian Douglas-Hamilton. Dr Ian Douglas-Hamilton exemplifies the genre of zoologists who have migrated from the field to the global advocacy platform. In the Kenya portion of the ecosystem, people and wildlifepeacefully co-existed when space for both did not overlap; however, as the human population has grown, the rangeland demand for livestock and farming has increased, pushing wild animals into smaller areas. . What they do: Under their Africa Elephant Conservation Action Plan, the World Wide Fund works on mitigating human-elephant conflict, improving livelihoods, reducing poaching, and retaliatory killings of elephants that result from human-elephant conflict. and MEP better understand elephant movements in Shimba Hills and the Mwaluganje, a critical dispersal area for elephants. The GME, an extension of the vast Serengeti ecosystem, is Kenya's most important wildlife area and tourism asset. (UK) +44 (23) 9387-7464 To better understand and address the poaching issue, where the elephant rangeland extends beyond protected areas, MEP has developed a three-part program called the MEP Method. There was no funding from the Clinton Foundation; indeed a significant portion was European Union funding that had long been committed to protected areas in Africa. Generally, organisations working closest to the ground use donor funds the most sparingly. With hundreds of NGOs proclaiming to protect elephants, how do philanthropists decide who to support? In no time, Big Life had broken up the worst of the poaching gangs operating in the Amboseli region. Photo Galleries, Photographer of the Year, TRAVEL & CONSERVATION COMPANY Jake Wall, director of research and conservation for Mara Elephant Project and affiliate faculty at CSU, said that by using GPS tracking coupled with remote-sensing agricultural spatial information, scientists now have a method for characterizing crop-raiding behavior within a given elephant population. These charities ensure their efforts also cater to the behavioral needs of these brilliant beings. Save the Elephants is funded almost entirely by private donations. You can also partake in any of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trusts upcoming events or increase you and your peers knowledge by engaging in their education programs. Says Lee White, head of Gabons national park agency, Agence Nationale des Parcs Nationaux: Were fighting for the survival of the forest elephant. Dennis is the founder of Impactful Ninja and passionate about enabling you to make a positive impact on the world & society. It is a passion project of mine and I love to share helpful information with you to make a positive impact on the world and society. Elephants that are safe in the Mara have been in the formally protected Maasai Mara National Reserve and the informallyprotected conservancies. Mara Elephant Project's mission is to protect elephants to conserve the greater Mara ecosystem. A significant achievement for Mara Elephant Project in 2017 was the recovery of more ivory from arrested suspects than was lost in the Mara ecosystem from poaching or conflict. The Mara Elephant Project (MEP) is a two-pronged project, which aims to better understand and protect the elephants of the Mara- Serengeti ecosystem. They claim to deliver the possibilities of this new world with a focus on ease, simplicity, and education. Disclaimer: Mara Elephant Project focuses on the wildlife, communities and habitat of the Maasai Mara. This is not the time for glib marketing campaigns or gratuitous gloom and doom. Elephants in the Maasai Mara traverse a wide . 16.6k Followers, 590 Following, 1,050 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Mara Elephant Project (@maraelephantproject) maraelephantproject. The answer is not easy, and the givers themselves are often motivated by personal goals, simply wishing to feel virtuous with an easy click and credit-card swipe entry on a website. What theyve achieved: Since their inception in 1995, they have provided sanctuary to 28 elephants making them North Americas largest refuge for captive elephants. But Brandt says that Big Life is doing far more than anti-poaching, with human-wildlife conflict a major area of focus. Below are our favorite charities for protecting elephants: (At the end of this article, well also share our six-step approach on how you can select the best charity to support.). Ways to contribute: The best way to support this initiative is through donations, and if you are skilled in writing, Elephant Voices encourages you to write opinion pieces for your local newspaper, blog, or school article. Ways to contribute: You can save an elephant today by donating to the charity, by getting involved by spreading the word, or even by applying for one of their internship opportunities. Please read below to learn more about some of the individual elephants they are studying. The impacts of wildlife trafficking are broad and complex, representing a threat to wildlife species, natural habitats, and human beings. But that's still a long time to go. the director of research and conservation at the Mara Elephant Project in Kenya and lead author of the study, said in a statement. Although impressive in scale, the $8 million project has excluded forest elephants which are notoriously difficult to count, giving an incomplete picture of the African elephant story. Marc assembled the first Rapid Response Unit for MEP in 2011 and in 2013 started working full-time with MEP. Her frequent African travels to the Maasai Mara inspired Sidekicks first boots on the ground initiative, Mara Elephant Project, which she founded to protect the regions African elephants. Average of 480 Customer Reviews. Unregulated trade of wild animals spreads diseases including SARS and AvianInfluenza, endangering human health. However, it emerged that of the $80 million in pledged funds, $78 million comprised the already-funded budgets of over a dozen conservation organisations working in Africa. . All travel bookings booked via Trust my Travel are financially protected by them. African Parks has been lauded for its poacher-to-protector amnesty programme, which allows poachers to surrender their weapons and apply for work in the park; to date 45 have been trained and deployed in the field as eco-guards or wildlife monitors. Elephant Voices now operate in North America and Africa (Kenya and Mozambique). They accomplish this mission by utilizing anti-poaching patrols and rapid response ranger units, collaring, monitoring and collecting data on elephants, and using innovative techniques and technologies to mitigate human-elephant conflict. The charities we have chosen work closely with grassroots organizations, governments, and other conservation parties to ensure the safety of elephants across the world. This is a settlement area that is growing and is situated right next to Mara North Conservancy. What they do: Save The Elephants works in research and monitoring through their GPS tracking system, elephant protection by funding partners, and grassroots organizations committed to anti-poaching through their Elephant Crisis Fund. Not Just A Cup, But A Just Cup. Hwange lies in a transition zone between desert and savannah woodlands and has virtually no natural water. "This is a war of space, with people carving out a living in this area", says Marc Goss, CEO of the Mara Elephant Project. 246. We especially like how we can use the new web app on a mobile . Protects elephants in the greater Mara ecosystem as a keystone species for conservation. The concept is to connect individual people - guides, scouts, researchers, visitors and people of the . "We found 62% of those 29.2 million square kilometers is . Save the Elephants. MEPs rangers are the backbone of their organization. And when there is an affiliate program for these products, we sign up for it. For example, as Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases. 501(c)3. Big Lifes teams now apprehend poachers almost every time they kill an animal. This experience sparked him to start Save The Asian Elephants (STAE), an association of professionals, experts, and campaigners who exert their influence on governments and the tourism industry to adopt solutions for the welfare of Asian elephants. Whether you want to save elephant habitats, end poaching and the demand for ivory, or even secure a baby elephants future by adopting them, there is a charity for you. When we find products that we believe add value to you and the seller has an affiliate program, we sign up for it. He is also the current Kenya Wildlife Service Honorary Warden for the Maasai Mara. What they do: From providing a home that offers rest, refuge, and a herd for previously captive elephants, the Elephant Sanctuary also provides individualized care to each elephant. Uses innovative techniques and technologies to eliminate the illegal killing of elephants in collaboration with . Our 10 years of experience using the MEP Method of boots on the ground rangers and applied research all while taking a collaborative approach has disrupted poaching . MEP's key activities are to locate and follow elephants' movements through collars, improve the security and their protection, respond to human elephant conflicts, like Protecting elephants and their habitats across the Greater Mara Ecosystem Some conservationists question whether the census is the best application of $8 million of donor funding and say the data must have management applicability. Between them, WWF, WCS, IFAW and CI (World Wide Fund for Nature, Wildlife Conservation Society, International Fund for Animal Welfare and Conservation International) have an annual budget of over $1 billion, with over $100 million spent in Africa. Crimes and numerous elephants saved in the Mara Elephant Project in Kenya Mozambique! & Society web app on a mobile philanthropy community in Kenya and Mozambique ) area that is and. 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