Nestled in the lush green jungle, Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort, in collaboration with the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF), successfully hosted a two-day event in celebration of World Elephant Day. The event, held on August 12-13, 2024, aimed to raise awareness about the critical role elephants play in ecosystems and to support elephant conservation initiatives. This year’s festivities included cultural ceremonies reflecting the spirit of Thailand, a craft market, a fruit feast for elephants, and educational activities for students from Chiang Rai and guests.
World Elephant Day, on August 12th, began with an interactive learning session for students, featuring education on elephant anatomy and behaviour led by a resident veterinarian. The session included target training, a method of training elephants that aligns with elephants’ natural behaviours and eliminates the use of harmful tools. This was followed by seed planting activities designed to cultivate awareness of the importance of elephants and nature. The event also featured a craft market showcasing handcrafted art and products from local artisans, with this year’s highlight being live painting performances by local artists. The day concluded with a grand buffet of favourite fruits and vegetables for the elephants.
The second day commenced with a sacred elephant blessing ceremony, known as the ‘Pakham Ceremony,’ performed by the Khru Ba Yai or Elephant Spirit Men from Surin. The celebration concluded with a hosted lunch and a learning session with students from The School of the Blind, Mae Sai.
“In celebrating World Elephant Day we aim to share knowledge and highlight the importance of elephants, demonstrating their way of life to enhance awareness and foster an understanding of their crucial role in the conservation of ecosystems where they live in the wild as well as celebrating their cultural importance to Thailand.”
– John Roberts, Group Director of Sustainability & Conservation at the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation and Minor Hotels
“This year’s World Elephant Day event was a heartfelt gesture from our community to the elephants. We aimed to make an impact by planting seeds of awareness among students and guests about the importance of elephants and conservation. Additionally, we featured live painting performances and a handcraft market to support the indigenous knowledge and skills of local artisans.”
– Arnaud Béril, General Manager of Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort
Since its establishment in 2003, Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort has worked alongside the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF) to care for the 20 elephants it has rescued from Thailand’s city streets and illegal logging camps, as well as supported their mahouts and families.
You must be logged in to post a comment.