Let's Talk About Poaching.

Written in 2017 for the Gobar Times- Down to Earth Magazine:

As the dust ruffled through the air and swirled around the rusty old tires, the car engine slowly stopped. My eyes then searched far into the distance beyond the golden blades of the savannah, hoping to find one of the “Big Five” animals. All across the savannah were empty spaces filled with bushes and trees, but then gradually emerging out of the yellow pastel horizon came eight giant black rhinos.

I was eleven when I saw such an exquisite ‘event.’ That was about the last time that I had seen such a large crash of rhinos, all of them nonchalantly grazing at the grass and peacefully minding their own business.

Over the past few years in Kenya, the rhino population has decreased immensely. Today, only 540 rhinos remain in Kenya. This is an incredibly tiny number, which is still rapidly reducing due to ivory and rhino horn poaching. Being home to many of the existing rhinos of the world, Kenya is one of the largest exporters of ivory. This has strongly impacted and destroyed many of the lives and species of rhinos, leaving them to head towards extinction.

As I distinctly remember, when I was in the 6th Grade, my school had shown all the students a brutal video of how rhinos and elephants were poached for informative education. Minutes after the video, I was speechless, no words could come out of my mouth, and I slowly felt cold drops of water running down my face. I was in complete shock. I could not believe that there were humans out there who could be so selfish and heartless.

I couldn’t bear the idea of baby elephants and rhinos being poached and brutally killed anymore, so I decided to do something about it. I wanted to make a change; whether it was big or small, I wanted these brutal actions to stop. As I started to ponder more about this topic and the idea of conservation, I decided that I could use my art as a tool to advocate for the lives of these endangered animals. So during the following summer, I drew a rhino portrait in charcoal and printed the sketch to make greeting cards. With the cards ready, I had a bake sale at school; and soon enough, after a few minutes of the sale, all the goodies and cards were gone! I ended up raising the money to buy two pairs of binoculars (and had my name engraved on them) for the rangers to use and look out for poachers in the national parks of Nairobi. The binoculars were then donated to the rangers of the FoNNAP Organization (Friends of The Nairobi National Park). I am also currently a member of the organization and still get frequent updates about the national park and the endangered species.

The rhino drawing that was then printed and sold onto greeting cards to raise money to combat animal poaching in Kenya.

In the 8th Grade, the 20% Time Project was introduced to our class. This was an opportunity where students could learn about anything educational during 20% of specific class periods (like Social Sciences and English). This was a self-learning and independent study project. With a passion for art and a great interest in the conservation of Kenya, I decided to base my project on saving the elephants of Kenya.

In this project, I had to independently research and learn about the various kinds of elephants and research major organizations that help combat elephant poaching. During this process, I also attended an educational debate focused on “Should Kenya burn or sell ivory?”. This debate had inspired and changed my perspective of how the value of ivory is deeply appreciated in Kenya. So again, I had decided that I wanted my art to speak for what I was representing. Soon after drawing a baby and mother elephant, I had made printed copies to sell as greeting cards to show my position and love towards these endangered animals. Along with the cards, I also made hand-crafted elephant-shaped frames and painted each one with vibrant colors to make a positive change.

All the frames and cards were sold around school, to neighbors, family, and friends, any where I could initiate a change. After a lengthy process of putting this project together, I had managed to raise about $400. The money was then donated to The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust organization (DWST). This is a non-profit organization that is also an orphanage where baby elephants (and a few other animals) are protected and taken care of daily. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to meet the Late Dame Daphne Sheldrick (founder of the organization) and her daughter; we chatted about the danger and the devastating news about the elephants and their reducing population in Kenya. At that time, I had also adopted a baby elephant from the orphanage named Sirimon; currently, he is living independently in the vast landscapes of the Tsavo National Park.

The drawing of a baby and mother elephant bonding, this was also printed onto greeting cards and sold to raise money for the awareness of animal poaching.

For the conclusion of my project, I was then selected to give a “TED-like” Style talk in my school, encouraging my peers and sharing my own experiences on what I had learned through this process.

I wanted my art to speak for a vital cause that could impact society and even make a small change. I followed my passion and used it to my advantage to help the conservation of elephants and rhinos. One day, I hope that future generations can see these beautiful creatures and not just value them for their ivory.

The printed greeting cards, with envelopes and packaging.

The elephant frames that were painted and sold to raise money for this cause.