Desert & Delta Safaris, who operate African safaris, have raised $20,000 for Elephants Without Borders, more than doubling their initial target.
The money was raised through an initiative called the CARES Movement, which enabled guests to purchase open-dated safari vouchers (at 2020 rates), for holidays that could be taken up to the end of December 2022. Desert & Delta Safaris donated $10 to Elephants Without Borders for every $100 of revenue generated from each voucher. The money will assist local farmers and communities living in wildlife areas.
Botswana is home to the world’s largest elephant population (almost 130,000 individuals), with 70 per cent of them living outside National Parks. This means they compete with the local human population for food land and scarce water resources. The money raised by this initiative has been directly donated to the ‘EleSenses’ research project, which includes a multi-coloured solar strobe light system referred to as the ‘disco effect’ which appears as a barrier to potential crop-raiding elephants, so discouraging them from entering a field at night.
The long-term survival of elephants will ultimately depend on improved co-existence between elephants and people. As Desert & Delta Safaris say: The tourism industry has a pivotal role in that it relies on this incredible wildlife as a product and has the responsibility to support the people living alongside the animals.
