by Simran Jayasinghe
Last year for Christmas, Kiran, Svara, and I decided to donate to a wildlife organization. I chose to foster and animal through The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust after reading about them in an issue of National Geographic.
The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, based in Nairobi, Kenya, was founded in 1977 by Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick. It was founded in memory of her husband, David Sheldrick, famous naturalist and founding Warden of Tsavo East National Park. The Trust was built to help provide help to animals and struggling wildlife, and help preserve and protect the wildlife in Kenya. Daphne sadly passed away in 2018, and the trust is continuing on in the hands of her husband and children.
The trust’s main focus is their Orphan’s Project. The organization is best known for operating the most successful orphan elephant rescue and rehabilitation program in the world. They rescue orphaned and endangered animals, who would not survive on their own. A good number of these animals are victims of poaching. The trust takes these animals in and provide the necessary medical assistance they need to have the best life they can. Then, if they are young and still dependent on keepers, they are kept in their Nursery. They have elephants, rhinos, and even a giraffe under their care. The main goal is to get the animals to a point where they can survive on their own, and eventually reintegrate them into the wild. Sometimes, the trust gets to see orphans that they raised come back with their families after being released!
You can now donate money to ‘foster’ one of these orphans, and get updates about your animal, read their keepers entries, and more!
The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust also has an Ariel Unit, Canine Unit, De-Snaring Team, Rangers, and Mobile Veterinary Units help prevent illegal activity (livestock grazing, charcoal burning, poaching, etc.) , can help alert the trust and aid injured animals, and help protect the environment and wildlife.
To visit The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’s website, click here.
Follow them on Instagram at @sheldricktrust .