We are delighted to share a blog written by student Martha Wigglesworth from Hua Hin International School, who is part of a team delivering a Global Goals project for the 2019-20 Global Goals Competition.
Their project is among over 957 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community.
It was so memorising and it also let us realise the reality of what these animals face every day, most of whom don’t have a voice.
Project Overview
On the 20th of February, we went on a trip to Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand also known as WFFT. We were able to discuss how they look after their animals and help them regain their natural instinct. We looked at how they ensure the safety of each animal unlike many zoos across Thailand where they underfeed their animals and don’t give them the right size enclosure. Many zoos also drug and declaw tigers to use them for petting and holding.
Our Journey
Many people are unaware of this happening so tourists and locals support this. We are trying to raise awareness to help these animals. The only way we can stop this is to not support these zoos, research these places before you go. Instead of going to a zoo go to an animal rescue center as we did, learn about the animals and see how they are cared for.
The Next Chapter
Elephant riding in Thailand is a huge problem, and although it may seem like a fun thing to do it is actually heartbreaking. Many poachers go into the forest and shoot the adult elephant in the herd before taking the poor calves (baby elephants). The baby is then locked and chained in a room where it is starved and dehydrated. They also use pins, sticks and hot items to harm the elephant. They then offer it some food, if the elephant has its natural behaviors still they continue to harm it. Once it’s been broken then, they get the Mahout to come and break the chains and feed it and give it water. This breaks the bond between the calf and mother and makes it listen to the Mahout who will then train and look after it, although they may care for them they still harm them to keep them in check.
The 2019-20 GSL Global Goals Competition is now open and runs until June 2020. If you belong to one of the 700+ teams of students currently delivering a social action project as part of the competition we would love to hear from you and feature your blog and project photos on our website to inspire others.
