For the past two years the Wilderness Foundation UK in partnership with sister NGO The Wild Foundation have been delivering an on-the-ground project to protect the desert elephants of Mali.
Mali is best known for its rich cultural diversity, and is also home to the northernmost herd of African elephants. The survival of these elephants is directly linked to the state of relations between the peoples of the Gourma region.
Despite its wealth in natural resources, half of Mali’s population lives below the poverty line ($1.25 a day). This poverty is made worse by instability such as the recent armed conflict.
We were successful in our bid to DEFRA for funding in support of the Mali Elephant Project, which has been awarded to us through the Darwin Initiative. DEFRA has now profiled our work as a case study on their website.   You can read the full story by visiting:
https://www.gov.uk/government/case-studies/darwin-grant-protecting-elephants-and-promoting-peace-in-mali
The Mali Elephant Project is led for the Wilderness Foundation and Wild Foundation by Dr. Susan Canney.