September 22nd is National Elephant Appreciation Day, and we’re celebrating the majestic Asian elephant in a pretty unique way: with tea.

Worldwide concern over the decline of elephants led to a complete ban of the ivory trade in 1990, but both the African and Asian elephant are still endangered, not only due to poaching, but also due to a lack of land where these animals can forage and roam free.

Asian elephant herds are organized around a matriarch, the oldest female in the group. This rarity in the animal kingdom is thanks to her memory, which guides the herd to food sources and protects them in case of storms. (It’s true that an elephant never forgets – due to the enormous size of her hippocampus.) These herds need extensive land to survive, consuming hundreds of pounds of plant matter in a single day.

Good Earth Tea pays homage to the noble Asian elephant with its new Hathikuli Organic tea. The blend is sourced from Hathikuli Estate, India’s largest integrated organic farm. The farm is aptly named: hati is the Assamese word for elephant and kuli means frequent. Elephants are indeed frequent guests, as they roam freely amongst the tea plants and within the nearby Kaziranga National Park (along with two-thirds of the global Greater One-Horned Rhino population).

“The rustic tranquillity of the hills is complemented by the raging Brahmaputra River, creating impossibly lush plantations,” explains Good Earth Tea. “The organic cultivation of tea in Hathikuli ensures the ecological balance is maintained in the midst of this bio-diverse hotspot.”

The area boasts the perfect combination of elevation and soil conditions to give the tea a unique flavor profile, featuring sweet, malty notes reminiscent of dates and honey. The tea is available in either pyramid sachets or loose, so you can brew depending on your own tastes (and support safe elephant habitats while you do).

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Habitat loss, poaching and global warming are spelling doom for creatures all across the globe.

Imagine telling your children tales of great beasts that once roamed the earth. Big, fantastic looking creatures with incredible features beyond belief. No, you wouldn’t necessarily be talking about dinosaurs. You could be describing elephants, rhinos, hippos and gorillas—large herbivores facing extinction.

“The situation is so dire,” reports the Washington Post, that it threatens an “empty landscape” in some ecosystems “across much of the planet Earth.” According to a new report, 60 percent of these massive creatures are facing extinction.

But unlike the dinosaurs (who most scientists believe were wiped out by a massive meteoroid), large herbivores face demise as a result of something much less random: humans.

“Growing human populations, unsustainable hunting, high densities of livestock, and habitat loss have devastating consequences for large, long-lived, slow-breeding, and, therefore, vulnerable herbivore species,” reads “Collapse of the world’s largest herbivores” in Science Advances, a publication of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

We know the culprits, even if we’ve never set foot in Africa, where most of these creatures reside: poaching, habitat loss and environmental degradation. According to the Post, the animals have only about 19 percent of their historical ranges left to roam on, with the elephant, hippopotamus and black rhinoceros “now living on ‘tiny fractions’ of their previous empires.”

“Between 2002 and 2011 alone, the number of forest elephants in central Africa declined by 62 percent. Some 100,000 African elephants were poached between 2010 and 2012. And the western black rhinoceros in Africa was declared extinct in 2011,” reports the Post.

“This slaughter is driven by the high retail price of rhinoceros horn, which exceeds, per unit weight, that of gold, diamonds, or cocaine,” according to the study.

According to the researchers, changes are happening so rapidly that much of the world’s ecological landscape will be virtually unrecognizable in the next several years, “resulting in enormous ecological and social costs.”

And if you think the loss just means a safari visit without elephants or hippos in sight, you’d be wrong. These large herbivores aren’t just wildlife porn, they actually play crucial roles in their ecosystems, according to the Post, “expanding grasslands for plant species, dispersing seeds in manure, and, in the ultimate sacrifice, providing food for predators.”

So, what can you do? The researchers say we’re all tasked with saving these animals, particularly those among us who can afford to allocate funds to the cause: “The world’s wealthier populations will need to provide the resources essential for ensuring the preservation of our global natural heritage of large herbivores. A sense of justice and development is essential to ensure that local populations can benefit fairly from large herbivore protection and thereby have a vested interest in it.”

It’s either that, or we learn to tell our grandchildren the unbelievable tales of gorillas, elephants and other herbivorous creatures that used to call earth home, once upon a time.

Find Jill on Twitter and Instagram

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NBA star turned animal activist, Yao Ming is now working to protect our elephants. His mission? To turn public opinion on ivory, in his home land of China and around the world, from elitist to socially unacceptable.

It can be tough to fit in. Especially when you are 7’6”. But Yao Ming found his sweet spot on the basketball court where he had a massive fan following in both the US and China. Now he’s a hero off the court, taking to the African bush to aid in banishment of the ivory trade.

That’s right. Yao’s goal is to make the sale and purchase of ivory “socially unacceptable”.

Known as The Gentle Giant in his basketball days, Yao has said he was first drawn to Africa because many of the animals there are bigger than him. It seems more than the physical similarities, it is his big heart that has moved him toward this mission.

Humans have killed 4.5 million elephants in the past 60 years. Over 20,000 elephants died last year alone, along with more than 1,000 rhinos. At this rate it is estimated that these two species could be extinct within the next ten years. Can you imagine your kids or grandkids living in a world without these animals?

In his documentary on the illegal elephant poaching and ivory trade, “Saving Africa’s Giants” which aired on November 18 on Animal Planet, Yao visits Africa to bring the message back home. The people there have no idea he is a mega star in his country. They do, however, share his love of basketball. And his mission to abolish the ivory trade. As he shoots hoops with the locals, one man explains how elephants used to pass through their village regularly. Now they are scarce. Instead roaming further away, scared, skittish and stressed out. Many with bullet holes in their bodies. He says this rampant poaching is killing not only their beautiful elephants, but their economy and their heritage.

These gentle giants are being destroyed for their tusks. Ivory is big business and demand is at an all time high. The highest since the beginning of the ivory ban in 1989. And China is the largest consumer. Once a symbol of wealth and power, the newly wealthier middle class has taken to collecting ivory too. But are they thinking about where it comes from in the first place?

In order to harvest ivory the animals must be killed. The ivory never falls off naturally or is taken from a living animal. Don’t let anyone selling ivory tell you otherwise.

Those doing the killing? Illegal poachers. And these are not the back alley renegades we may once have thought. Poachers of today are organized groups with serious ammo, night vision goggles, and the support of many parties throughout the world. An ivory mafia, of sorts.

The gangs, who move quickly and usually at night, spray the herds with automatic weapons hoping to kill a large elephant. Often babies are killed in these rampages, left to die for no reason. Once larger elephants are killed, their faces are crudely chopped off with axes and taken away. Their bodies litter the African landside.

Systems to defeat poaching have done little to no good in the past. So Yao is implementing a new idea…go to the source. He feels this fight should be fought in the marketplace. This means in Chinese trade rather than the fields of Africa. In order to make a difference in the senseless killing of these remarkable animals, the demand for ivory must cease.

Elephants, aside from being beautiful creatures, are emotional mammals. They live in families, love, and mourn. They also have personalities and look out for one another. They are not only becoming extinct but severely traumatized by this senseless carnage.

Elephant herds are led by a matriarch who knows where to go for food and water, and which areas are safe or should be avoided. Once these matriarchs have been taken from the herd by poachers, babies are left to themselves. When a family member dies the remaining elephants gather round the fallen animal, touching the body with their tusks and feet. This is a mourning period where the elephant family says goodbye to their lost member.

While in Africa, Yao and crew watched one elephant family who was left with only one female. The rest had been killed for their tusks. This last female, whose tusks were very long, showed visible scarring by poachers. She’d been treated three times by the local organization. It is likely only a matter of time before she is destroyed too, her family left to fend for themselves.

“If we buy ivory it makes all of us killers as well,” says Ming. He hopes the documentary shows those at home in China, and around the world, the realities of the ivory trade. When you see the carcass of a young elephant, face missing and life needlessly ended, it makes that ivory trinket seem absolutely pointless and ridiculous.

This past February, the Obama administration tightened the rules on the sale of ivory in the US. Vendors must prove that the ivory they are trying to sell was imported before the 1989 ban. Antique ivory is also exempted with proof of age, and no ivory sales are allowed across state lines.

Conservation groups feel any restrictions on the sale of ivory will help to end illegal poaching. Yao Ming backs them up and is doing what he can to send this message to the people of his country and around the world.

I don’t want to live in a world without elephants. Do you? Wondering what we can do here at home? Take the Ivory Free Pledge, donate or volunteer at WildAid.org.

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Image by Tambako the Jaguar at Flickr.com

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New York governor Andrew Cuomo has signed an ivory ban law in efforts to help reduce poaching of animals including elephants and rhinoceroses.

Governor Cuomo signed the ivory ban into law on August 12—World Elephant Day—in hopes to raise awareness about the gruesome practice of poaching these majestic, threatened creatures.

Poaching for illegal ivory is a huge problem on the African continent. According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, the number of African elephants has dwindles from more than 1.2 million in 1980 to less than 420,000 today.

Forest elephants, which are a separate species from the better-known savannah elephants, are faring much worse as a result of poaching for illegal ivory. Their numbers are down to fewer than 100,000, and experts say outright extinction of the forest elephants could occur in the next decade.

Under the New York ban, ivory that’s less than 100 years old or makes up more than 20 percent of antique ivory products, can no longer be sold in the state (some musical instruments excluded). According to Bloomberg Businessweek, some of the violations can carry felony charges.

Now, some New York state antique dealers say they may leave the state over the new rule because antique ivory from elephants and rhinoceros horns make up a big chunk of their businesses. For some it’s as much as 20 percent.

There are also federal rules now on the sale or trade of ivory as well; and it’s causing similar ripples among those in the ivory trade—most of which was acquired legally, before restrictions went into effect. But the government isn’t too interested in discerning between legal and illegal ivory. Even museums are in danger of losing exhibit pieces.

Ivory is quickly becoming the veal of the antique world. It’s not something most people can look at without seeing the giant beasts once attached to it. But what’s to be gained in prohibiting the sale of existing ivory? If the food analogy holds true, letting perfectly good ivory sit in warehouses seems like a waste, and certainly not a way to honor the animals who paid the ultimate sacrifice for it.

At a recent hearing on the issue, some critics questioned “whether criminalizing the civilian ivory market would be as effective as helping African countries protect elephants and punish poachers,” reports the New York Times. But federal officials hold firm in the position that “the reduction in demand will invariably put a dent in poaching efforts.” And if that’s the case, it looks like any ban may just be worth it.

Find Jill on Twitter @jillettinger

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Driving east beyond the Cape of Good Hope and the true terminus of Africa, Cape Agulhas, where the convergence of the Indian and The Atlantic Ocean dance to support untold stories of life and struggle in the ocean – the land of South Africa opens up. For the wild beasts of the continent, roads represent interruptions in natural corridors, obstacles that herd, and grazing animals must transect in order to get to ungrazed lands, water, and mating grounds. The result is a smattering of civilization and wilderness in conflict at times, and wildlife management replaces the natural order.

Now, it is the dry season, and at this time, the few watering holes represent the gathering points for species in the wild. Here there are elephants, hippos, hyena, rhino, zebra, lion, gazelle, cheetah; all the usual suspects that remind me of my youth spent staring at the Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom show on TV. A lot has changed since then.

Throughout the countryside, there are game reserves and game parks, the former, similar to national parks in the United States. In national reserves, there is no take, but in other places massive swatches of land are bought up to create the appearance of the wild, where hunters will come to track and kill large game. These areas are all fenced in with electric wire to keep the prized beasts from moving out. European, Arab, and American hunters alike will pay top dollar to kill large beasts. I’m told it costs up to 30k U.S to shoot an elephant. Lions can fetch up to 50k. Animals are specifically bred for this purpose and roam on massive hunting parks where hunters can hire a guide to track animals the old way, and claim their prize with a gun. Exporting of the tusks and such is difficult in the United States but I was told by a taxidermist in Namibia that other than the U.S, taking prizes home from these beasts is not as difficult.

In the Northwest of South Africa, Kruger National Park – the most healthy environment and one private game park, where no hunting is allowed – has emerged as model for restoring things to their natural populations. The place is called, Londolozi, started by the Varty family and is perhaps the most exclusive safari spot in this region. Dave Varty wrote an incredible book about the project entitled The Full Circle. Celebrities visit it often, and accommodation costs 1k per person per day. It is so wild that guests are escorted from their rooms to the dining area, as it’s far too dangerous even amongst the hotel buildings to wander the grounds, especially at night.

For the animals that populate the area, the natural order reigns, and the cruelty of nature is law. The game rangers are selected in Top Gun fashion and undergo a series of very rigorous and dangerous tests to be hired. The park is massive and a prospective ranger is asked to transect it with only a knife – and stay alive amidst some of the biggest predators known to man. If confronted by a lion, the ranger must hold his ground, staring the lion down. I’m told that the lion will often charge and stop, testing the ranger, sometimes up to three times. If it happens a fourth, typically the man is doomed. Another test is meant to teach the ranger the true difficulty of being a predator in the wild. Killing one’s food is one thing, but eating it is another. Many animals will compete for a hunter’s kill, and protecting one’s meal means surviving to the next one. To pass the test, a ranger is given a rifle with three bullets and is asked to hunt and kill an Impala, at least 1.5 kilometers from camp, gut it, and carry it back on his shoulders fending off any competitors. Killing an Impala farther away means more distance to cover. And the smell of fresh kills excites predators for miles upon miles. Night or day, the ranger must return and I was told of one story where a ranger, covered in the animals blood, successfully fended off a pack of Hyena tracking him.

On more of a budget, I traveled to Addo National Elephant Reserve, and took a driving tour with a guide. The herd was over 400 and the reserve was set up to protect the animals from poachers. Elephants were everywhere and would often walk with in feet of our vehicle moving to the next food source – in English, my guide referred to the tree as the Bacon Tree (which to me sounds magical) and told me that elephants can feed up to 22 hours a day in order to survive.

Leaving Africa means another month at sea for me, back to the plastic pollution work and a constant life of discovery. Blessed.

Editor’s Note: This is part 11 in a special series. Voyage with Stiv and catch the exclusive each week here at EcoSalon during his months-long journey into the heart of the South Atlantic Gyre and beyond.

Image: flowcomm, Sara&Joachim

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There’s a fine line when it comes to the now ubiquitous trend of recycling. Many objects are born of good intent by sparing castaways from the dreaded garbage heap but can emerge as art or utility assembled with too forced a hand.

Here’s a look at a few newfangled creations that are on the wackier side.

You be the judge: Inventive and funky or kitschy and junkie?

Clearly, the theme is “sewing” in this doll made by Arizona-based Janus Creations that I spotted on Trend Hunter. The artist incorporates recycled tins, paper clay, old block letters and spools of thread to produce her one-of-a-kind caricature sculptures. Would this appeal to savvy collectors of craft or just sentimental womenfolk with a soft spot for all things kooky?

Roll over, Beethoven! Another genius may be at work. Who says when the toilet paper is gone there are no lasting memories to speak of? Yuken Teryua goes out on a limb by affixing the rolls to branches to form intricate, organic artwork (shown at top). If you don’t mind the process, the result can be stunning. I had the same reaction with a tampon installation I once saw at the San Francisco Art Institute.

Vintage irons, motorcycle helmets and seltzer bottles are all seen in a different light when disguised as the shades of Lamponi Lamps, the brainchild of Italian artist Maurizio Lamponi Leopardi. Leave it to a mechanical engineer who studied in high style Milan to figure out how to rewire retro American household gadgets into conversational pieces for the edgy habitat. For me, the jury is still out on these. I’m drawn to the iron but the other collectibles can come as they are, as far as I’m concerned, rather than mounted to shiny chrome.

Donkey told his friend Shrek he was like an onion cause “onions have layers.” He could have said “like a chair” because this one also has layers, wrapped around a cylinder. The Cabbage Chair has been described as peel-till-you-drop furniture. It was designed by Oki Sato of the Japanese Nendo for the XXIst Century Man exhibition curated by Issey Miyake. The assignment was to make furniture out of pleated fabric that is usually tossed out as an unwanted by-product. It has no finishing to speak of, no screws or nails. During a meeting, Miyake described his concept by saying “21st century people don’t just wear clothes, but shed their skin.” But do we really want disposable furniture?

High five, I Robot, a quirky hand punctured pierced with recycled electronic objects to function as a fridge magnet. The woodcut design is faux-painted with metallic silver acrylic paint by Etsy’s Rabbit Hole Art. It’s a rather complex assemblage for simply tacking up memos, but that’s recycling for you.

Are you dung-ho about using elephant droppings to write letters to loved ones? It’s not that crappy of an idea if you don’t mind the tactile experience of holding a piece of poop paper in your hand. The stationary is created by fair trade workers at the Lampang Elephant Conservation Camp in Thailand. You will be happy to know it is not only 100% recycled but also bacteria and odor free. Dug up at Rainbow Gifts USA, no one can argue that as far as elephant byproducts go, this one sure beats ivory!

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