It goes without saying not to buy ivory. But it’s just as important to know where products like coffee and wood for flooring and furniture come from. Coffee and timber plantations destroy shrinking elephant habitat. Make sure your family buys Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified timber and certified fair trade coffee. If you aren’t sure whether a product has been grown in a way to sustain forests, ask. You can check the FCS database of participating retailers here.
Forest Stewardship Council – U.S. (FSC-US)
212 Third Avenue North, Suite 280
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Support the work of Elephant Care International, a non-governmental organization (NGO) working in rural villages in Asia and Africa to reduce human-elephant conflict. Your school or youth group can adopt a village to help continue this important work.
Elephant Care International
166 Limo View Lane
Hohenwald, TN 38462 USA
Foster a savannah elephant online through the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya.
Support the Elephant Trails campaign of the National Zoo to improve the welfare of both wild and captive Asian elephants. You can also adopt an Asian Elephant.
Donate to Save the Elephants, based in Nairobi, Kenya.
Save the Elephants
P.O. Box 54667
Nairobi 00200
Kenya
Join or start a Roots and Shoots group where you live to work for animals locally and globally. Roots and Shoots was founded in 1992 by sixteen teenagers in Tanzania, and it has grow to chapters in nearly one hundred countries. If you’re in high school, you can join the Roots and Shoots Youth Leadership Council. The Roots and Shoots website lists lots of ways teens can get involved in conservation and pursue careers to help elephants and other wildlife.
Roots & Shoots-USA National Office
The Jane Goodall Institute
4245 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 600
Arlington, VA 22203
Ann Downer 