Frequently Asked Questions
Find quick answers to the questions we’re asked most often, from how Elephant Family works to how you can support our mission to protect Asia’s endangered wildlife.
Does Elephant Family only work with elephants?
Elephant Family started as a charity working for the Asian elephant. Today the charity works to protect habitats and reduce human-wildlife conflict to protect endangered species across Asia.
Does Elephant Family protect African and Asian elephants?
Elephant Family only works for Asian elephants and other endangered species on the continent.
How many Asian elephants are in the wild?
As per the latest assessment by the IUCN Red List of species, there are only about 40,000-50,000 Asian elephants left in the wild.
Are Asian elephants endangered?
Asian elephants are endangered because their populations have decreased by 50% over the last three generations and they have lost over two-thirds of their habitat across Asia.
What is the biggest threat to Asian elephants and Asian wildlife?
Habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict are the biggest threats facing Asian elephants and other Asian wildlife.
What does Elephant Family do to protect elephants?
To protect Asian elephants, Elephant Family works on mitigating human-elephant conflict, restoring habitats, and protecting vital wildlife corridors and landscapes
Why are you called Elephant Family?
Elephant Family was founded by the late Mark Shand in 2002 to ensure the survival of the Asian elephant. Mark and his fellow founding Trustees were all inspired to protect Asian elephants, and chose to name the charity in honour of the species they loved so much.
How many elephants have you helped?
Elephant Family has helped safeguard about 20,000 Asian elephants in captivity and the wild.
What other species does Elephant Family work with?
Elephant Family's work has worked to protect several endangered species including the Bengal tiger, the Golden Langur, the Indian leopard, and dholes (wild canids native to Asia).
Which countries does Elephant Family work in?
As of 2025, Elephant Family's conservation work is focused in India, which is home to 60% of the world's Asian elephants and 70% of the world's tigers. Historically, Elephant Family has worked across the range of the Asian Elephant including Myanmar, Thailand Sumatra (Indonesia) and Borneo.
Does Elephant Family work with local conservation partners?
Elephant Family exclusively works in partnership with local conservation experts and organisations as well as local and indigenous communities to further the charity's mission to protect species and habitats across Asia.
What is human-wildlife coexistence?
Human-wildlife coexistence refers to how people and wild animals share landscapes and natural resources while living alongside each other. It is often an evolving state determined by people's knowledge of the wildlife they live with and their capacity to resolve issues when they arise.
How is Elephant Family funded?
Elephant Family's work is funded through voluntary donations, institutional grants and through our creative events that raise awareness and funds. For more information please see the British Asian Trust's Annual Reports here.
How can I work for Elephant Family?
We are part of the British Asian Trust and our vacancies are advertised there.
Where are you based?
Our fundraising office is in the UK, and our conservation base is in India.
Elephant Family USA, part of Coexistence Story Inc, is also a registered 501(3)c entity in the United States FEIN 46-308 5568 which operates independently and has its own board of trustees.
Conservation
We tackle Asian wildlife's biggest threats: habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict