Making Merit: The Surin Project

Though it sounds a bit like a sinister genome experiment, this month’s Making Merit is actually about giving Thailand’s exploited pachyderms a helping hand.

An established non-profit organisation called the Elephant Nature Foundation is looking for volunteers to help in the founding of something called The Surin Project: a 2,000 acre elephant park in Northeast Thailand’s Surin Province.

Once finished, up to 300 elephants will be able to roam free in natural habitat. That’s roughly 10% of the number now in captivity, either begging on city streets (a shameful practice that reduces an elephant’s life expectancy by 50%) or performing tricks at circuses that really should know better. Meanwhile their mahouts will be provided with an income as recompense for the money they used to earn begging, thereby encouraging them to keep their elephants at the park.

Opt to volunteer and over the course of one week you’ll help reforest a scrubland, destroyed by decades of logging, into suitable elephant habitat. You’ll also be involved in community development. And, of course, have lots of time to feed and bathe the elephants and watch them enjoying their newfound freedom.

How do you get up there? Conveniently, all groups meet in Bangkok and travel together to the project site. Transportation costs to and from the site, food, accommodation and activities, along with an English speaking guide and project leader are all included in the B12,000 volunteer fee.

You also have the option of travelling with the group for a second week of volunteering at the foundation’s original and well-known conversation project north of Chiang Mai, the Elephant Nature Park. It’s worth noting that daytrips and overnights stays are also available here, all proceeds going towards keeping it going.

Forthcoming Surin Project volunteer groups start in Bangkok on December 14th, December 28th and January 11th and last for seven days and six nights. Full details of what to bring will be provided to you on booking.

For details on how to sign up email surin@elephantnaturefoundation. org or log on to

www.elephantnaturefoundation.org