World Elephant Day: six elephants, six stories
On 12 August, we celebrated World Elephant Day. A day to reflect on the situation of these giants across the globe, but also to put a human face to the individuals we are striving to protect.
There are currently three species of elephant in the world: the African savannah elephant, the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant. It is the latter that we are home to here at the Mekong Elephant Park.
A special treat for our elephants on World Elephant Day! 🐘💚 They enjoyed a delicious buffet prepared especially for them.
Although smaller than its African cousins, the Asian elephant is even more at risk of extinction, even though its situation often receives less media attention. The loss and fragmentation of its habitat, conflicts with humans and poaching continue to cast a heavy shadow over its future. In Laos, once known as the ‘Land of a Million Elephants’, protecting them remains more crucial than ever.
But behind a species, there are, above all, individuals. Personalities, stories, bonds and, sometimes, whole lives to rebuild.
And here with us, there are six of them
Mae Kham
Our oldest resident. After a life marked by severe trauma, she now trusts our teams completely – undoubtedly one of our greatest successes. Swimming, on the other hand, isn’t really her thing, whether in the pool or in the Mekong! But if she knows a few bananas are waiting for her at the end, she’ll happily let herself be persuaded to have a shower.
Mae Nat
One of the leading figures in our family, spent years living in a circus. Today, she once again shares her daily life with her half-sister Mae Nin, a far cry from the harmonica and the dances she used to have to perform every day. Now deeply attached to the company of the other elephants, spending time alone is out of the question for her!
Mae Nin
Mae Nin was reunited with her family after nearly 15 years apart. Very close to Mae Nat, she has also played an important role in the life of her niece, Mae Ping. After years of working in the logging industry, she is now one of the fastest and strongest elephants in the herd. She loves exploring the forest, always on the lookout for new places to discover, sometimes venturing right to the edge of the protected area.
Mae Ping
The youngest of our four females, is full of character and mischief. She’d quite like to take the lead of the group too… but the others seem to think that, as the baby of the family, her place is still at the back! A decision that clearly isn’t always to her liking and which sometimes leads to a bit of sulking.
And then there are our two boys…
Kham Khoun
Kham Khoun started working in the logging industry at a very young age, pulling heavy loads before reaching his full adult size. This early physical strain explains his relatively small stature today, despite being remarkably strong and sturdy.
Dokeo
And finally, Dokeo, the latest arrival. After years of hard work and a period of poor health, he joined the park in December 2024. Since then, he has put on weight, regained his energy and, as we told you last month, is now once again experiencing natural periods of musth.
Together, Kham Khoun and Dokeo embody a cause we’re also committed to defending: male elephants, too, need places that can accommodate them and respect their natural behaviours.
Six elephants. Six personalities. Six very different life stories. And one shared ambition: simply to allow them to live their lives as elephants.
A look back at our very first auction
Last month, in the run-up to World Elephant Day, we introduced you to our very first auction featuring a collection born out of a collaboration between the French visual artist Sooig and Mister Mong, a craftsman at Mekong Elephant Park who specialises in working with bamboo. The auction has now closed and the next steps will be taken directly with those involved
Above all, we’d like to use this newsletter to thank Sooig and Mister Mong once again for this wonderful collaboration, their creativity and the time they devoted to bringing these six unique works to life. This first experience has allowed us to explore a new way of bringing together art, local craftsmanship and elephant conservation.
France 2: it’s only a matter of time!
As we shared with you last month, Mekong Elephant Park was due to be featured on France 2’s 1:00 pm news on 1 August… but current events had other plans…
Due to a special news edition covering the wildfires, our segment was ultimately unable to air as planned. But don’t worry: it has only been postponed! We are currently waiting for France 2 to confirm a new broadcast date. As soon as we know more, we will of course keep you informed so that, this time, we can all tune in.
Thank you to everyone who had already planned to watch us that day!
Raising awareness among those who create journeys
Last month, we welcomed several tourism professionals from Laos, Thailand and Vietnam to the Mekong Elephant Park to explore the park, meet our teams and gain a better understanding of our approach.
These meetings mean a great deal to us. Changing the relationship between tourism and elephants also depends on those who design journeys, advise their clients and choose the experiences they recommend. Over several days, we shared our daily life, discussed animal welfare and responsible tourism… but above all, allowed our elephants and our teams to show, in their own way, what life in a sanctuary truly means.
Thank you to all the participants who made the journey to Pakbeng and who, we hope, left inspired to help people travel differently.
And if you work in the tourism industry yourself, or know professionals who would like to support and promote a more responsible approach to elephant tourism, please feel free to contact us or pass on our details. We will always be happy to connect with them and introduce them to Mekong Elephant Park.
Wallpaper of the month
Making way for the next generation. This month, Mae Ping is taking over your screens! To mark World Elephant Day, we wanted to round off this newsletter with a picture of our youngest female elephant, looking towards the future. A big thank you to Stéphane Yaich for this lovely photo. Because protecting elephants today also means giving future generations a chance.
