Elephant Volunteer Project, Thailand

The project relies on assistance from volunteers to help support the elephants at the sanctuary and to support its community development programmes. Please note, as part of the sanctuary's ethical stance, the volunteer programme is strictly hands-off, meaning you will not be touching or interacting with the elephants directly, but you will have the opportunity to observe, learn about and support elephant welfare in a pro-active way. Volunteering with elephants means you will be involved in a range of tasks in the sanctuary such as;

– Observing the Elephants (hiking to see them in the forest/fields)
– Preparing night food and Enrichment for the elephants
– Placing Food and Enrichment throughout the night enclosures
– Going to cut grass/corn/banana trees for elephants
– Learning about the elephants and elephant welfare
– Helping with Projects either onsite or in the local area that help the elephants, rescued animals and the community.

Another main focus of this project is small animals rescue and release volunteer work. Volunteers have rescued tortoises and different species of owls which have been rehabilitated back to health and released back into the wild.  So you may also be involved in any ongoing small animals rescue and release programmes, including building animal enclosures, making beds for animals, fixing fences, and so on.

In addition, Eco-tourism and environmental conservation are promoted through planting trees, local education and community development. Volunteers have the opportunity to work together with the community and can join in on community projects, such as:

• teaching English,
• helping with educational programmes,
• tree planting and clean-up days,
• providing soy milk for the elderly for nutrition,
• Thai cooking lessons
• replacing water pipes,
• placing sandbags along the river banks to protect from flooding,
• helping to repair local houses and so on.