'ELE-DATING' TO HELP SAVE THE ASIAN ELEPHANT
(21 March 2005)

A new UK-based charity set up to help care for the endangered Asian elephant has come up with an innovative scheme to make sponsoring the creatures fun. 'Ele-Dating', as opposed to the more conventional tele-dating, invites the public to select a real-life individual elephant they'd like to adopt. For £27 sponsorship per year, the 'date' then receives a bedside photo of their chosen Nelly, personalized love letters and a Valentine's card!

"Asian elephants are intelligent and compassionate creatures who deserve all our help," says Ruth Powys of Elephant Family,"we hope that Britain's Asian community will join with us in this urgent fight to save these wonderful creatures and to stop Asian elephants from becoming a thing of the past, which is a very real threat."

Once able to roam freely from Syria and through Asia into China, today the Asian elephant is a critically endangered species. With no natural enemies, the species is at threat from man-made problems including environmental changes (destruction of rainforest), poaching, under-investment in conservation projects and mistreatment of captive elephants.

All the elephants available for 'ele-dating' are real-life animals involved in Elephant Family's various projects in Asia, including Tanti, a 'voluptuous' 24-year-old 2,700kg female elephant in Aras Napal. For an extra £10 supporters can 'Date a Hero' - namely Medang, a male elephant who is currently helping in the tsunami disaster area in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. The money raised through 'dating' Medang will go directly to helping care for the many elephants helping the tsunami relief projects.

Elephant Family was founded by explorer and conservationist (and Camilla Parker Bowles's brother) Mark Shand and counts among its patrons the Rajmata of Jaipur, former Beatles producer Sir George Martin, Hollywood actress Goldie Hawn and Sir Evelyn de Rothschild. The charity has recently signed up Bollywood music promoters Raj & Pablo as its amabassadors.

To sponsor an Asian elephant through Elephant Family's Ele-Dating scheme, visit www.elephantfamily.org. or call the organization on 0207 580 3184.

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