Support community efforts to reintroduce elephants into their natural habitat
Program Overview
Volunteer in the lush mountain forests of Northern Thailand with local communities known for their elephant-keeping history, and work up close and personal with these highly sophisticated and intelligent gentle giants.
These communities have an extremely special relationship with elephants and a program has been started to bring captive elephants that have been exposed to the harsh realities of circus or street begging life, back to their natural habitat and into protected forest.
Over the course of your volunteer placement you will learn all about elephant behaviour with tribal elephant experts, as well as sharing your skills by teaching English to help these families establish other avenues of income to save them returning to their previous lives.
Life on the Program
Your time will be split between following the herd as they forage in the forest and studying to learn more about your elephant at base or helping in the community. This will prepare you to work effectively with one elephant and one elephant keeper (mahout) that will be assigned to you throughout your placement.
Although days can be long, it is a rewarding and enriching experience to learn about and observe these amazing animals. You’ll be taught about basic elephant behaviour, personality and health, and help grow this reintroduction program that ensures the elephants are socializing and foraging in their natural habitat.
Your accommodation is basic, within a traditional community so you should expect to adapt and show respect for the environment in which you will be living.
Program Details
This community driven project has been established by a group of mahouts determined to conserve the Asian elephant, the population of which is rapidly declining. With less than 1,000 left in the wild in Thailand, but around 3,000 in captivity, many experts are looking towards this captive population as the future of the species.
Your contribution will help to reintroduce captive elephants into protected forests and conserve this beautiful species, providing the funding and hands-on support to keep this project going.
The goal is to have families of elephants living as a semi-wild population, supervised by their mahouts and able to access the highest quality of veterinary care.
Volunteer Testimonials
Arriving at Huay Pakoot , the remote Karen hilltribe village that was to be home for me for one week in January 2011, was so exciting. Set amongst breathtaking mountainous landscape, the village...
Arriving at Huay Pakoot , the remote Karen hilltribe village that was to be home for me for one week in January 2011, was so exciting. Set amongst breathtaking mountainous landscape, the village is so quaint and picturesque, with wooden houses built on stilts – to keep out the buffalo, pigs and chickens that roam the streets! The basic facilities took us back to a simple life, everything was clean and comfortable and we soon came to really enjoy our bucket showers – best taken in the heat of the afternoon!
Our first encounter with the elephants was magical. We had so much hands-on time in the field feeding, observing, collecting data and even measuring them! To watch their interaction and witness their amazing bonds with the mahouts was really special. My elephant was Thong Dee, the oldest and largest of the five and she was beautiful - a face full of such character that told many stories of her hard life before the project. The two infants were so playful, it was hilarious to watch their cheeky antics wandering through the forests. Knowing we were contributing, even in a small way, towards improving the lives of these amazing creatures was so satisfying.
I highly recommend GVI, it’s such an ethical, compassionate, professional organisation and I knew I was in good hands from my initial enquiry. GVI’s staff are very passionate and that is infectious. The Thailand Elephant Project was so well run and I loved contributing to such an important cause.
The first thing I noticed was the stunning scenery which surrounded the hill tribe village we stayed at. Here the Karen people were extremely friendly and our host family made us feel very welcome. The highlight of the trip though was taking a short trek into the jungle and being able to witness the elephants roaming free in their natural habitat, overall it was a great experience and definitely something I would do again.
I have had the opportunity to observe and work closely with these social and complex animals, which would be impossible with elephants in the wild. Staying in a traditional Karen community has been a million miles away from life in England. I have been made to feel really welcome here and I feel privileged to be part of a project that is helping both the elephants and the community in which they live.
Program Details
Build Your Program
What's Included
- Pre-departure support and discounted services
- 24-hour emergency phone
- Airport pick-up (unless otherwise stated)
- Arrival orientation
- Long term experienced staff
- Safe and basic accommodations (usually shared)
- All meals (unless otherwise stated in field manuals)
- Welcome meeting
- Location orientation
- All necessary project training by experienced staff
- All necessary project equipment and materials
- 24-hour in-country support
- Required transportation for the duration of your stay
- Comprehensive training program that encompasses theory lectures, group study and field practice
- Basic field kit
What's Not Included
- Flights
- Medical and travel insurance
- Visa costs
- Personal kit
- Additional drinks and gratuities
- Extra local excursions
- International and domestic airport taxes
