"My Kenyan Friend" Prints by Artist Kathryn Adele Schumacher

After traveling to Kenya on one of our Adventure Trips, and meeting this beautiful elephant, artist Kathryn Adele Schumacher created this stunning portrait in pastels to commemorate her time there.

“We saw tons of elephants— but that particular one struck me as I photographed him. He was so docile and approached us in the jeep like we were old friends. I loved his eyes.

Singer opened my eyes to the beauty of Africa and it’s enchanting nature. I first went with her back in 2011 and then I went with her again in 2013. I’ve seen five different countries and cannot wait to go back. ”

— Kathryn Adele Schumacher

Kathryn Adele Schumacher has generously donated 10 prints of her award-winning elephant portrait to WorldWomenWork, and we have them available in our shop. They have professionally cut mats and are ready to frame. All proceeds from the sale of these prints will go directly to fund our projects, like Save the Elephants, which Kathryn Adele Schumacher got to visit in Kenya during her trip there.

Kathryn Adele Schumacher is a collage artist and painter based in Maine and Florida. Visit her website for more info about her work kathrynschumacherartist.com.

Elephant Rescue: Bringing Yai Boon Home to Elephant Nature Park

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

At our fundraising events with Lek Chailert in April, we raised $100,000 to support Lek’s efforts to rescue abused elephants. Last month, blind elephant Mee Boon was rescued. Today, I am overjoyed to learn that as a direct result of our fundraising efforts, Yai Boon, a 70 year old elephant, has also been rescued and is now recovering at Elephant Nature Park. Lek Chailert and Save Elephant Foundation documented the rescue on their instagram and facebook pages, and the words and images documenting the rescue below are theirs. Thank you so much for your support, we could not have done this without you.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

“We are with an overworked old skinny girl. Her name is Yai Boon. She is about 70 years old . We cannot move her yet from her previous place due to the long Buddhist holiday in Thailand and the officials do not work. We await permission for transport and other required paper work .

Yai Boon worked at the same place as our old girl, Yai Bua. They stayed chained in the same place, working together for 4 years. Yai Bua was rescued on February 6th, 2016. At that time Yai Boon was still healthy and the owner would not let her go. They continued to use her for riding until two weeks ago when she collapsed. We sent the vet to check. Her condition was very malnourished and dehydrated. Our vet is now treating her to ensure that she is strong enough to transport to her new home. Soon Yai Boon will be free. ”

— Lek Chailert, Save Elephant Foundation

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

“After two days of veterinary care, IV fluids and B vitamins, as well as better food , Yao Boon is ready to go on her journey. Our team decorated the truck to help her walk curious and less intimidated onto her final transport. She had a few second thoughts and then finally walked onto the truck. Yai Boon is on her way home now. On behalf of Yai Boon and her future friends in the Park, we would like to thanks to Allene Lapides, a generous resident of Santa Fe, New Mexico, who helped us to rescue Yai Boon. She no longer has to work, and now she can enjoy the freedom life that she deserves. Thanks to Singleton Rankin of World Woman Work together with members of Santa Fe community who always support our project. You have helped to change Yai Boon’s life forever.”

— Lek Chailert, Save Elephant Foundation

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

“Please pray for Yai Boon. Long Hours on the road for our old girl, she get exhausted, heavy rain during journey, our team have to stop often to let Yai Boon to get a short nap. About 3-4 hours to go. Be strong old lady. You will be home soon.”

— Lek Chailert, Save Elephant Foundation

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Elephant Nature Park and Save Elephant Foundation.

“Yai Boon is home. What is not much of a journey for one, can be a great hardship for another. It was a tiring trip for Yai Boon. I was actually concerned for her ability to travel the whole way once we were in motion. She walked so strongly on Terra Firma, but the truck motion was a challenge for her. She is very undernourished. Her health is fragile because of it. Our vet and team monitored her the whole time, especially Darrick who never left her side, comforting her from beginning to end. Yai Boon is weak in body, but strong in mind. She carries on her struggle for freedom. Every one needs help at that.

Thank you to all friends who sent your journeying mercies to Yai Boon. Thank you so much to Allene Lapides and Singleton Rankin who have given the opportunity for Yai Boon to rest, and taste both joy and freedom.”

— Lek Chailert, Save Elephant Foundation

New Artisan Made Goods in the WorldWomenWork Shop

Kenyan Beaded Purse

Our online shop is live! We hope you love these pieces as much as we do.

The WorldWomenWork shop carries a unique selection of artisan made goods from around the world. We carry a range of items including jewelry, home goods, and clothing. Each piece is carefully selected by Singer Rankin, president of WorldWomenWork, for its unique quality and craftmanship. Singer travels throughout Africa and Asia, buying beautiful things from local women artisans who are working to develop income alternatives for their families and their communities. 100% of the the profits from every sale goes to fund conservation, education, and skills building projects for women in some of the world’s most environmentally threatened countries.

Intricate Silver Cuff

Silver Lapis Serpent Cuff

Beaded Choker-Style Statement Necklace

Large Orange Moroccan Cactus Silk Pillow Cover

By purchasing a product from our store you become part of a chain reaction. 100% of the profits from your purchase is given back to help fund women working for economic independence, a better community and on the front lines of conservation of critically endangered species and environments. Thank you for your support.

The Elephant Queen Movie in Sicily

photo courtesy of Victoria Stone

I recently traveled to Sicily to meet up with Save the Elephants founder Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton and to attend the screening of the new documentary The Elephant Queen at the Taormina Film Festival. The film festival takes place on the Italian coast in an ancient Greek amphitheater.

The Elephant Queen was just released this year, and has been shown at a number of film festivals. It will be available later on Apple’s new streaming service. The new documentary is directed by Victoria Stone and Mark Deeble of Deeble and Stone, and narrated by Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years A Slave). It tells the story of an elephant called Athena, queen of her herd, as she leads her herd on a dangerous journey in search of a new watering hole, as theirs is drying up. It is powerful and beautiful. You can get a preview by watching the trailer below.

Mark Deeble also has some great writing on his blog. He tells the story of finding an elephant tusk and realizing that he knew the elephant it had belonged to here: https://markdeeble.wordpress.com/2016/04/28/the-story-of-a-tusk-kg-voi-river-30514/

He also writes about the importance of time and place in recording audio for wildlife films. Have a read and listen here: https://markdeeble.wordpress.com/2015/07/15/the-elephant-movie-the-sound-of-it/

Visit to the Northern Great Plains

Last month, I traveled to South Dakota with to meet up with the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Northern Great Plains Advisory Committee, of which I’m a member, and whose projects we help fund. These meetings always remind one of the fragility of these magnificent grasslands.

The Northern Great Plains is an area of more than 180 million acres in the US states of Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska, as well as the two Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The Northern Great Plains are under constant threat of conversion to croplands. In 2017 more than half a million acres of grasslands were lost to cropland. The grasslands are important because they are natural habitats to many species, birds, bison, the black-footed ferret, the swift fox, and many others. Grasslands protect water quality and limit flooding for downstream communities and it is vital that we protect them!

One aspect of WWF’s Northern Great Plains Project is their sustainable ranching initiative. When properly managed, cattle and bison can have conservation benefits, as grazing maintains the health of grasslands, improves the quality of the soil and keeps the land as a possible wildlife habitat, instead of turning it into cropland. WWF has been working with ranchers throughout the Northern Great Plains region to develop more holistic practices in ranching. We had a wonderful dinner out in the plains with some of the ranchers.

Along with Silverback Productions, WWF created a new Netflix documentary series called Our Planet, now streaming on their platform. In episode 5 “From Deserts to Grasslands” you can see the Northern Great Plains in all of its glory, and peril.

“It’s never been more urgent and important to recognize the fragility of our world. We’re losing nature at an unprecedented rate. Sixty percent of vertebrate species have disappeared in the last 50 years. The health of our forests, oceans and fresh water are all at risk. Nature isn’t something we can choose to care about. It’s vital to our very existence and our future. Our homes, our health, the food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink—our lives and all the things we care about—simply can’t exist in a world without nature. Today, we can see the impact of our actions on our planet. We also have the opportunity to change course and solve these problems. WWF exists to protect nature and to build a better future for wildlife and people. Our Planet helps bring WWF’s urgent mission to people around the world. We can begin a better future for our planet. But we can’t do it alone.”

— World Wildlife Fund

Monica Terkildsen, Tribal Community Liason, WWF-US, talking to our group about the Badlands.