In July, Mara Elephant Project celebrated World Ranger Day and several members of our support staff joined their ranger colleagues on patrol to demonstrate their commitment to supporting their protection efforts. They also hand delivered the over 200 thank you messages from our donors across the world. Below are just some of the messages we received.
Also, in July, MEP launched our recurring donor club and you can now join the MEP herd by setting up your monthly donation today and receiving your official herd membership pin. You can have more impact on the protection of elephants by committing to regular support. In August, MEP celebrated World Elephant Day and thanks to your support, we raised $100,000 to fully fund the conservation drone program. This adds 11 thermal drones to our fleet and trains 60% of our workforce to operate them. We were also joined at MEP by World Elephant Day Founder Patricia Sims.
In September, you joined us to celebrate our 13th Anniversary. MEP has grown a lot and quickly, learned many lessons along the way and look forward to entering a phase of independence and stability. Check out our new promo film, Conflict to Coexistence, below.
In September, MEP launched an education experience in partnership with Elephanatics where schools around the world are given an opportunity to bring a MEP researcher or ranger into their classroom. It is a free one-hour zoom session with a Kenyan conservationist. You can learn more about the program here and see all of MEP’s educational resources.
On September 17, MEP held a conservation talk at the Muthaiga Country Club attended by over 100 club members, MEP staff and guests. MEP CEO Marc Goss gave a presentation that was centered mainly on drones and how MEP is leveraging this cutting-edge technology in human-elephant conflict mitigation. Thank you to everyone who came out to support MEP.
The Elephant Charge is an annual 4×4 race held in the Zambian wilderness that raises money for 19 conservation nonprofits focused on ‘conservation through education’. On September 28, MEP Trustee Kendall Evans and his team participated in their MEP branded kit and placed a respectable second in the race. MEP is proud to partner with stakeholders to raise awareness and funds for African conservation efforts.
MEP is now on Wingtap, a new app designed to make giving to your favorite charity even easier. Download the app and follow along to receive updates on our work and help us reach our goal. Also, in August, MEP announced our partnership with Silent Donor, the largest anonymous donation platform in the US. The MEP donate page on Silent Donor gives people and companies the ability to support elephant conservation with full anonymity.
Finally, registration for the 2024 UltraMARAthon was open during the third quarter. Taking place on November 23, the 50-km race can be run solo or in teams of two or four and your entry fee will support wildlife rangers, Africa Mission Services and Mara Elephant Project.
