Should we ride elephants? (For me, the answer is definitely no.) 

But did you know that at one stage, the offering of elephant rides was seen as being part of "saving" them from a tortuous life working in the forestry industry, dragging heavy logs around?

And did you know there are now thousands of domesticated elephants in Thailand who still need to be supported, somehow?

While I always strive to be an ethical wildlife tourist, diving deeper into this topic has proven to me it's never as black and white as we think, and that many solutions to these kind of problems are best solved through empowerment and many discussions with the local people involved - and that this is not a quick or easy solution, but a better one for sure!

This is a special episode of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast - I've put it together as part of the requirements for the Certificate in Sustainability and Anti-Oppression in Travel, a fabulous course I've been studying through the RISE Travel Institute. See the show notes for references, more information and videos.

Links:

• RISE Travel Institute - https://www.risetravelinstitute.org
• Catherine Marshall at Time To Wander - https://www.timetowander.com.au 
• World Animal Protection - https://www.worldanimalprotection.org.au 
• Animondial - https://animondial.com  
• Diana Edelman's post about riding elephants in Thailand - https://dtravelsround.com/2015/08/11/truth-about-riding-elephants-in-thailand/
• Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
• Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin
• Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/252

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