Sustaining Thailand's Treasures

About the program

Save the Asian elephant from extinction and give captive elephants a life worth living!

This volunteer vacation program is geared toward the nature loving volunteer explorer and the majority of program projects involve work with locals of the Surin province to preserve the native elephant habitat and includes working on such projects as planting food crops, such as bamboo and native grasses, and also the construction of shade shelters for these elephants.

Volunteers plant elephant food and cut it; this process is a big part of the project. It really insight on what the life of a mahout is like because an elephant eats 500-600 lbs of food every day! Volunteers feed the elephants fruit, sugarcane and grass. They cut the sugarcane and grass and feed this to them as well. They bathe them and go for long walks down to the river with them.

There is also a night when the volunteers camp out, if they chose, by the river with the elephants. Most of the volunteers’ time is spent directly with the elephants. Please note that this is a unique program in that Globe Aware was asked by a local grassroots organization for its help recruiting volunteers.

There are more than 300 elephants registered in the Surin Province and the majority of these are trapped in the unfortunate trade of street begging and circus shows. These activities reduce an elephant’s life expectancy by at least 50% as elephants needs hundreds of kilos of fresh vegetables and water daily. Essentially, volunteers will be working at Thailand's only "elephant refugee camp".

Projects vary depending on the number of volunteers, which projects were finished (or not) with the prior group, what priorities have changed, weather conditions, which supplies are available, and often the interest and fitness level of the volunteers. For these reasons, specific projects are often not fixed until the week prior to your arrival and can even change upon arrival.

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Leisure Activities

This volunteer experience offers a truly immersive cultural experience. Life moves at a delightful, slower pace in the Thai community. The program begins with a traditional Thai welcoming ceremony led by a village Shaman, an event the average tourist would never experience.  Every week there is a local evening market to attend, giving volunteers an opportunity to participate in life, Thai style and opportunities to spend time gaining knowledge  with the village elders, which is a highlight of the trip. Cooking lessons with locals is also offered.