Take a moment to consider this…
Around 100 elephants and 3 rhinos are killed every day for their ivory and horn.
Every single day.
Why Join the March?
In response, people from all over the world have banded together to call for urgent action to stop the slaughter of these critically endangered species. The third Global March for Elephants and Rhinos is an example of such movements and will take place on 24 September to demand an end to poaching and the illegal wildlife trade.
“We must join forces everywhere to stop the slaughter of elephants and rhinos. They feel pain, they know suffering. We must stop people from buying ivory.” – Jane Goodall
This year’s march is timed to take place on the opening day of the CITES conference, CoP17, in Johannesburg. Thousands of people in over 100 cities around the world will take to the streets to send a powerful global message to the delegates, urging them to vote for the strongest measures of protection for elephants and rhinos. The march calls on them to move all populations of both species to Appendix I status, which will impose a global ban on trade in their body parts, and to reject proposals for trade in ivory or horn.
“According to experts, these marches keep political pressure on leaders to protect the world’s largest land animal.”- U.S. State Department
There will be 117 cities around the world taking part come 24 September. Click here to find a march near you.
Elephants
Every day around 100 elephants in Africa are brutally killed for their tusks. It is estimated that 25,000 – 50,000 elephants are poached each year. From numbering in their millions around 100 years ago, today there may be only around 400,000 elephants left in Africa; lower estimates put this number at around 250,000.
Rhinos
Over a million rhinos roamed Africa’s savannahs 150 years ago. Today, the continent’s remaining rhinos are found in only four countries – South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. Although almost all remaining rhinos live in protected areas and sanctuaries, the governments of these countries are failing to keep them safe from poachers.
“As the dominant species on this planet it is our moral duty to protect and preserve all forms of life. For species such as elephants and rhinos to be fighting for their existence due to human exploitation and interference is unacceptable and we must do everything within our power to turn this dire situation around. We are responsible for the problem and we must be held responsible for the solution. It will indeed be a very sad indictment on our species if rhinos and elephants are no more, and that day will come sooner than we think if we do not take action.” – David Attenborough
Go to their website, https://march4elephantsandrhinos.org/, to find out more.