GET-U-NOTICED is proud to be part of this great group of women – all determined to help to preserve the lives
of our beloved eles.
For the first time in the world, an intrepid group of KZN women explorers have united to put
the global spotlight on the plight of one of the most well loved creatures on the African Continent, the
Elephant. The Elephant Ignite Expedition departs on Women’s Day on the 9th August this year, and plans to traverse 10,000 km through 10 African countries, starting from the Sibaya Casino and Entertainment Centre and ending in Kenya.
The announcement was made at a press conference that was organised at the Sibaya Casino recently by Founder and Expedition leader Carla Geyser (from Blue Sky Society Trust) and campaign marketing officer, Yolande Kruger.
Said Carla “30, 000 elephants are killed annually. That means one every 15 minutes. Most South Africans are passionate about nature conservation, but what are we all doing about it? Eighteen months ago, Yolande and I made the decision to put focus on these amazing creatures, and the people who protect them, by getting together a group of women, as passionate as we are about the plight of the elephant, and embarking on an epic expedition across Africa. Conservation leaders and sponsors have come on board to support the initiative, and we are extremely grateful to them all. We particularly want to thank our vehicle sponsor, Avis Safari Rentals for the use of their vehicles for the journey.”
Commenting on their decision to sponsor the vehicles, General Manager of ASR, Martin Steer said “Our company is passionate about conservation, and we understand the desperate need to look after our natural resources. We were looking for a group of champions who would make a difference and we found them in Carla and her team.”
The Women for Wildlife’s journey will be underpinned by community upliftment, youth education, public awareness of the plight of African’s declining population, and a fundraising drive to support the dedicated non-profit organisations that are working to protect the elephants. “Each crew member will be funding their own way on the journey, so all the money raised from sponsorships will go towards the elephant conservation projects that have been chosen. We would love to see South African corporates and the population in general unite with us for this worthy cause.” Said Carla.
Along the journey, the Elephant Ignite Expedition will engage with the various research organisations, current conservation, political and tribal leaders and foster knowledge-sharing between generations and nationalities. “The projects and organisations the expedition will be visiting all provide conservation as well as community upliftment and educational programmes especially amongst the youth. The expedition will weave an invisible web, linking together these conservation projects in order to expand their support base and ongoing funding through public awareness.” Carla added.
The expedition will be filmed for a web-series for the award-winning Earth Touch website: www.earthouchnews.com The series will document not only the journey, but tell the stories of the various organisations and people who are truly making a difference in the world of elephant conservation. Commented Earth Touch’s Graeme Duane “We are fully behind the concept of bringing the plight of the African Elephant to the Global Village and look forward to being part of the Expedition.”