What We Do
In 2019 the founders of Act Big Live Small, David and Esther Zimmer, worked as volunteers at Save Elephant Foundation’s (SEF) flagship project, Elephant Nature Park (ENP), an ethical elephant rescue and rehabilitation sanctuary in Thailand.
”After spending our days in the company of the elephants at ENP and the park’s founder, world-renowned elephant rights advocate, Saengduean ‘Lek’ Chailert, we knew we didn’t want our involvement with Asian elephant conservation to end just because it was time to return to London. So, as a first step, we became UK Ambassadors for Save Elephant Foundation (SEF), Lek’s overarching foundation for the various projects SEF supports, which includes ENP”.
Advocacy & Education
1 - A key responsibility of our Save Elephant Foundation (SEF) Ambassador roles is to raise awareness of the vulnerable position of the Asian elephant:
The population is currently estimated to be between 39,000 and 50,000 in the wild*.
Approximately 13,000 more are captive*. Captive elephants are typically used for work, and frequently suffer from horrific abuse and exploitation.
Read about Asian elephant conservation here.
*Source: The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) 2024.
2 - We strive to raise awareness and educate the public about the key conservation issues facing Asian elephants, with a focus on habitat loss and elephants in captivity. We do this through the compilation of information and resources to help consumers make ethical buying and travel decisions. We believe that who we choose to give our money to is a powerful form of everyday activism.
Our Strategies
a. Educating Consumers:
Highlighting how the UK drives habitat destruction in Asia through the purchase of palm oil, found in many daily products.
We are currently compiling information on this issue and a list of products to avoid - please check back soon.
b. Raising Awareness & Providing Alternatives:
Raising awareness of the abuse and exploitation most elephants working in captivity endure.
We are currently compiling information to help tourists choose ethical, elephant-friendly tourism options - please check back soon.
3 - We run small-scale awareness campaigns and host workshops by request at festivals, schools, universities or organisations. Want us to come speak at your school or next event? Please get in touch via the ‘Contact Us’ button further down this page.
Investment & Fundraising
We raise crucial funds which we give to Save Elephant Foundation (SEF) - a registered Thai non-profit organisation (Thai Government registration number Chor Mor 282) - to support their work in Asian elephant conservation. Our initiatives include small-scale activities such as our 100-mile sponsored walk and sales of our digital, plant-based cookbook, ‘Eat for Elephants’.
Storytelling
We aim to captivate hearts and minds and raise awareness and inspire change through the power of storytelling. We share our experience of bicycling across Central and Southeast Asia, which led to us working as volunteers at Save Elephant Foundation’s (SEF) Elephant Nature Park (ENP). By recounting our transformative experience and the powerful impact it’s had on our lives, we inspire audiences to play their own role - big or small - in Asian elephant conservation or a cause that’s close to their hearts.
Want us to come speak at your school or next event? We’d love to come to your school, university or organisation to share our stories of adventure, volunteering and the lessons we learnt on the road that continue to positively reverberate through our lives at home.
Want to talk to us about us about contributing to your publication? We’d love to hear from you!
Please get in touch via the ‘Contact Us’ button below. We’re always interested in discussing speaking or writing opportunities.
You can read about our experience working as volunteers at Save Elephant Foundation’s Elephant Nature Park here.
“Such a moving story of how an exciting adventure led to a meaningful, life-changing experience.
I was left feeling astounded and inspired” - Festival attendee, Yestival 2019.
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