Our 170km trek to "be the change"

Did you know that the Illegal Wildlife trade is the fifth most profitable trade in the world? It is estimated to be upwards of $10 billion annually.

On July 5^th Justin and I will be hiking the 170km Mont du Blanc trail over the course of 10 days. We want to use this hike to raise money to donate to a cause that is dear to both of our hearts. But, most importantly, we want to raise awareness about many issues we are learning more and more about – animal exploitation and the current state of our world. We want your help to spread the word and to become the critical change needed in this world. At the end of this blog I have two birthday requests of you. But first, let me explain:

My thoughts for this blog began in Thailand where I witnessed heartbreaking animal abuse and exploitation. Many animals are used as a form of financial gain in Thailand. They are often poached from the wild and are made to live a life of misery. They are passed from tourist to tourist all day and then spend the rest of their time in terrible living conditions, confined to cages and chains. Sadly, to the average traveler, this life of misery may not have been noticed – all we see are the “happy” animals that we get to take our photos with. I certainly don’t judge people I know who have been a part of this. In fact, just two year ago I myself was naïvely snapping photos of elephants in a circus. How many of us wouldn’t love to have our photo taken while riding an elephant? Or while you’re cuddling a baby tiger? Or holding a cute monkey? The sad reality is – by doing this we are supporting this industry. We are supporting the kidnappings, the tearing babies away from their screaming mothers, the murders, and the torturing. Are these photos and “experiences with wild animals” really worth it?

The Animals of Thailand

Gibbons

In the wild where the belong

photo taken by Chantal Tremblay

After asking a traveler why they would get their photo taken with a gibbon they responded: “The monkey was treated very nicely by the owner”.

Fact 1: This poor monkey was poached from the forest while he was still a baby.

Fact 2: It is likely that 5-6 family member were murdered in this traumatic kidnapping.

Fact 3: When the baby reaches approximately 5 years of age, it will become violent and aggressive – often resulting in it either being locked in a cage for life OR being murdered or tortured. One gibbon we heard about at the Gibbon Sanctuary in Phuket had his arm ripped off from his previous owner.

Tigers

Visiting the “Tiger Temple Sanctuary” one might be able to fool himself that he is helping save tigers, given the name “sanctuary”. And who wouldn’t want a cute photo with a tiger? I love tigers! I don’t blame people for having this desire – however, once knowing the truth, I assume not many people would be visiting these tiger temples. Yet hundreds of tourists visit this temple daily, making it a very lucrative business. The sanctuary’s claim is to “eventually free the tigers and retrain them to live in the wild”. Great claim if it were true…

Fact 1: The cubs are taken from their mother as early as 2 weeks. In the wild, tigers are often 2 years of age before they reach independence.

Fact 2: Tigers at the “Sanctuary” have been reported by many visitors and investigators to be extremely lethargic during photo sessions, leading to concerns they may be drugged. (Really, how else would these otherwise aggressive, WILD animals be tame enough to pose for photo after photo?)

Fact 3: Investigators have reported that tigers at the facility are being regularly beaten with wooden sticks and clubs, being forced to sit in direct sunshine for hours, and being kept in poor conditions with inadequate food.

Fact 4: When tigers are not obedient before, during or after the photo-sessions they are sprayed by the keepers with urine from bottles in their eyes and faces.

                    The poor living condition of the tigers                                    Does he look like he is enjoying this?
                                                         photos from www.aroundtheworldin80jobs.com

Elephants

As many of you know, my visit with the elephants touched me deeply. Before visiting, I did my research on this one and the word “sanctuary” truly means sanctuary. They have acres upon acres to roam freely and just be elephants. These magnificent creatures have gone through torture, abuse and hard labor before being rescued. They are often rescued from years of tourism. Sadly, that elephant we so badly want a ride on has very likely been taken from its mother - who often scream and cry for hours – and will often grieve for months. That elephant we get to ride likely spends it's nights chained by it's ankle to a pole, rocking back and forth all night to ease it's own stress.

raw puncture wound from her previous owner before being rescued

photo taken by me

Fact 1: It takes 2 years to make a baby elephant.

Fact 2: Elephants are highly emotional animals who share many of our own feelings. They form close-knit bonds with their herds and if a family member dies they will actually cover the body with leaves and are known to revisit the site.

Fact 3: The capture of wild elephants for domestic use has become a threat to some wild populations, seriously reducing numbers.

Fact 4: The tourist elephants we see that offer rides or perform in circuses once had it's spirit broken. This is done so it will be submissive to humans for the rest of its life. The elephant is tied up in a confined pen and beaten mercilessly with sharp instruments. This disgusting practice is used when an elephant is around 4 years old. The calf is usually never reunited with its mother. 

photo from PETA

The bigger picture – beyond the tourism trade in Thailand, let’s take a look at a few other facts:

Fact: The last of Indonesia's tigers - now fewer than 400 - are holding on for survival. They could be extinct - GONE FOREVER - if this does not stop. Why? Habitat loss and poaching - due to humans of course


 Fact: In 2012, the Sumatran elephant was deemed "Critically Endangered" because half of its population has been lost in one generation - mostly due to habitat loss (caused by what? Humans yet again are destroying habitats to build pulp, paper and palm oil plantations - for products we likely use daily.)

Fact: The African elephant population is falling rapidly. The Forest Elephants of Central Africa are nearing total annihilation, and many former Elephant Range States have been left with none at all!

Fact: Orangutans have lost well over 80% of their habitat in the last 20 years due to extreme habitat loss due mostly to palm oil plantations. They will be extinct in 5-10 years if this does not stop. Palm oil is used is many everyday products we use today. In fact, it is used in so many products, we likely don't even know we are using palm oil. 

                                what products do you use that have palm oil?
                                                           photos from www.rainforest-rescue.org

What is the cause of all of these tragedies? The human race of course. To illustrate my point of the selfishness of the human race I want to tell you about Qumquat. She was a famous Matriarch (meaning wise elephant). She was born in l968.  Below you will see her recent brutal killing. For what? Simply her tusks. The rest of her remained intact. It is estimated that this happens to 104 elephants every day.

                                                                                   Photo from Sheldrick Wildlife Foundation

Now onto my point.

These visits really got me thinking about the bigger picture. When did it become normal for us to view these wild animals as a source of entertainment? And when did our desires to consume and consume matter more than their environments? When did our wants become priority over every other species? And to take it further- over the state of our environment? The way we view animals is just the tip of the iceberg.  It goes so much deeper than this. From the way we treat animals to the way we over consume to the way we don’t care much for conservation. We don’t care how our actions greatly affect the very earth we live on.  The behaviour of many repulses us all – who could kill so many elephants that they are named a “critically endangered” species? Who could kill and skin beautiful tigers simply for their fur? Who could destroy an entire forest just for some palm oil? The answer is simple – someone who has placed their want before all else. And while our actions aren’t nearly as repulsive, they are just as damaging.  

We are killing this world. Many of us hardly know the state of our current world and the species that live in it. There is a separation between what we purchase and what we consume and where it comes from. We hardly know that we are supporting this destruction with our daily choices. Do we even know what our country is doing to contribute to the world's greenhouse gas emissions? By not doing anything to stop this, and by not educating ourselves, we are contributing to this problem. This is due in part to our misconceptions about the news we watch – if we don’t hear about it on national news we often don’t think of it as a big deal. Does it not frighten you that so many things happen in this world that we have no idea about? That should say something about our news right there. The fact is, this is so important it should be on every news station in every country! 

Do we stop to think about the products we are buying or the organizations we are supporting? Where do they come from? How do they get here? How many animals had to die or how much of our environment had to be ruined for us to get it? What about the food we eat? What about the cars we drive? What about the companies our government supports and their devastating impact on our world? 

Do we really want to be responsible for the end of all of these life forms? What about the end to earth as we know it? We have our children and our children’s children to think about here.

This could be the greatest tragedy of our generation.

Final Facts: The selfishness of our species is contributing to the loss of species, the cruel treatment of animals and the destruction of our own world:

If everyone lived like we do in the developed Western world, we'd need six Earths to sustain life.

Scientists believe that the Earth has gone through 5 major extinctions.

Biologists predict we are in the midst of the 6^th mass extinction.

Scientists predict we will lose half of all species by the end of this century.

Now, my birthday requests:

I’m not asking you to instantly change your life. I understand that things like this need to trigger or touch you personally. 

However, my most important request - I am asking you to watch the documentary “Revolution” filmed by Rob Stewart. A regular Canadian who wanted to be the change. It is full of information, insight and some inspiration. (You’ll also be surprised at how much air time Canada gets in this video). And as they say, knowledge is wisdom and you will learn much more from this documentary than from my blog.

I would also like you to personally message this request/blog to one other person that you feel it will touch. Please be the change with me.

Lastly, please research the product you use and the companies you support. Find ways to make changes - write to companies, political leaders, reduce your own carbon footprint and try to make educated choices.

“It’s better to light one candle than curse the darkness. There are so many people that sit back and say ‘we’re screwed’. But with that one candle, maybe someone else with a candle will find you. And that’s where movements are started.”

If you would like to donate to our cause, you can do so at:

http://www.gofundme.com/94ubsc

All money will be going towards:David Suzuki Foundation – this one hits home as David Suzuki dedicates his life to improving Canada and bettering the world:

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/donate/what-we-do/

The Orangutan Project – one of the many species to be critically endangered of becoming extinct in the next few years:

http://www.orangutan.org.au/

While I don’t have all of the answers about what we can do to be the change here are some resources to help and inspire your journey:

http://www.therevolutionmovie.com/ - click “world issues” to read about how you can help make changes
http://www.davidsuzuki.org/what-you-can-do/ - amazing resource with links on the side that advise us how to take action in Canada. From how to reduce our carbon footprint, to what we should be requesting of our current government.
http://6themovie.opsociety.org/ - a new documentary set to come out this year about the earth's sixth great extinction. It also has many links and resources on this site
- Or google any issue I spoke about to read hundreds of articles: Earth's sixth extinction, deforestation and habitat loss, palm oil problems, etc.

To watch Revolution:

Purchase it:

On itunes

Stream it for free on:

www.solarmovie.tl or www.primewire.ag

-       

Download it for free on:

www.torrentz.com

-          Will need the utorrent player downloader on your computer first.