World Elephant Day is celebrated on August 12 every year.
On this year’s commemoration, the Elephant Protection Initiative (EPI) Foundation and the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) have announced their partnership.
The CBCGDF is said to play a prominent role amongst Chinese environmental organisations and is involved in advocacy, environmental education, and scientific research.
The EPI Foundation is the secretariat of the EPI, an alliance of 21 African countries, committed to ending the ivory trade and reducing human-elephant conflict.
The EPI Foundation is already partnered with more than 30 environmental NGOs, with CBCGDF becoming the first from China.
John Scanlon, CEO of the EPI Foundation, said: “I have known CBCGDF for many years now, and admire their tireless efforts to help protect wildlife. We have recently been in contact with CBCGDF about the herd of 15 elephants that have been wandering across Yunnan Province in southern China, a migration that has captured the imagination of so many people in China and across the globe.
“The EPI Foundation, with its African expertise on how to mitigate and prevent conflict between people and elephants, was pleased to share its experiences and pass on technical advice and support to CBCGDF, and we look forward to further advancing our close co-operation.”
Dr. Zhou Jinfeng, the Secretary-General for CBCGDF, said: “The elephant migration across Yunnan Province – which will soon be hosting the UN Conference on Biodiversity – was an important moment in Chinese wildlife conservation. It raised awareness of elephant conservation with Chinese people from right across the country.
“Sadly, both Asian and African elephants are threatened by poaching, disappearing habitat and human elephant conflict. We have much to learn from one another and we want to work with the EPI Foundation to help protect elephants in China, and across Asia and Africa.”
