Our history
From its beginning as a small group of people with a passion for elephants to its growth into an internationally respected conservation charity, Elephant Family’s story is one of bold ideas, creative campaigning, and an unwavering commitment to protecting Asia’s endangered wildlife and the last of our wild spaces.
Introducing Mark Shand
In 1988, an English adventurer on a visit to India experienced an encounter that would change his life.
He began travelling with an elephant named Tara, sparking a life-long passion for India and a quest for the survival of the Asian elephant.
During his travels Mark discovered the growing imbalance between people and wild elephants. He observed that with natural habitats diminishing, incidents of elephants accidentally straying into villages, demolishing houses or destroying crops were increasing - leading to human-elephant conflict.
A future where the Asian elephant would no longer exist in the wild seemed a very real danger.
Mark, who could not contemplate such a world, responded by founding Elephant Family to ensure that the Asian elephant survived.
Sadly, Mark Shand passed away in 2014. His legacy continues through Elephant Family.
My great passion is Asian elephants. It is to see that one of the greatest animals ever created, survives.
Putting the plight of the Asian elephant onto the world stage
Elephant Family began as a welfare organisation that improved the lives of captive elephants. But as Mark Shand became increasingly concerned about the plight of wild elephants the focus shifted to save the wild Asian elephant from extinction.
Elephant Family worked to protect forests, reconnecting them with wildlife corridors, and empowering people with the tools they needed to live alongside elephants peacefully.
At the same time, Mark set out to bring the plight of the Asian elephant to the world’s attention.
He and the Elephant Family team, which included the remarkably creative Ruth Ganesh (née Powys), worked with designers, artists and sculptors who were all elephant enthusiasts to put together large-scale public art exhibitions. ‘Elephants in the Park,’ the ‘Survival Tour,’ ‘Jungle City’, all events conceptualised by Ruth were the beginnings of a series of iconic events that brought Asian elephants to front pages, raising awareness and funds for the work on the ground.
Today, Elephant Family continues to present spectacular events to power pioneering work that protects Asia's magnificent species, their habitats, and the communities that live alongside them.
Key dates in Elephant Family's history:
2002
Elephant Family is founded by Mark Shand.
2006
Elephant Family partners with the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WSPI) to protect migratory corridors and mitigate human–elephant conflict in Orissa, India, an area increasingly recognised as an emerging hotspot for such conflicts.
2007
With an exhibition of life-size willow elephants called ‘Elephants in the Park’ the charity begins dominating the headlines.
Elephant Family expands its work into Thailand, exploring ways to mitigate human-elephant conflict.
2008
With partners Wildlife Trust of India, Elephant Family begins its work to eliminate collisions between trains and elephants in Assam, India.
2009
Elephant Family contributes to the development of an elephant-specific tetanus vaccine.
The charity also concludes its work with the Jaipur Elephant Welfare Project, India, and shifts its focus to the conservation of wild Asian elephants.
2010
Elephant Family stages the largest outdoor art exhibition in London to date, with the Elephant Parade that raises over £4 million.
The charity starts working with Nature Conservation Federation (NCF) in the Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu, India, to address conflict between elephants and the local community.
2011
‘Jungle City’, an exhibition in partnership with other charities working in Asia, is presented, comprising 130 sculptures of wildlife from elephants and tigers to orangutans hidden across Edinburgh.
Elephant Family works with the Wildlife Trust of India to secure the 2200-acre Tirunelli-Kudrakote corridor in Kerala for the 6500 Asian elephants who call it home.
2012
The first ever Big Egg Hunt is launched in partnership with Action for Children.
2013
Elephant Family USA is registered, functioning as an independent organisation.
The first Animal Ball, the brainchild of Elephant Family CEO Ruth Ganesh, celebrates the beauty and brilliance of our natural world whilst raising substantial funds for conservation priorities across Asia.
2014
The Big Egg Hunt travels to New York City.
Sadly, Mark Shand passes away.
Elephant Family is honoured to welcome Their Majesties The King and The Queen as Joint Royal Presidents.
2015
The first Travels to my Elephant, a flagship Elephant Family event, is launched to honour Mark Shand’s legacy. A wild adventure, the event involved a race across 500km in India, in 49 rickshaws, to meet the elephant who started it all, Tara, in her home at Kipling Camp.
2016
Elephant Family exposes trade in elephant skin products to the international conservation community at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), in Johannesburg, South Africa.
2017
Following a successful bid for funds from the British Government’s Darwin Initiative, Elephant Family gears up to deliver a national awareness programme to promote how people can live safely alongside wild elephants in Myanmar.
2018
With Dakshin Foundation, Elephant Family supports work mapping and removing the invasive Lantana plants and restoring these degraded landscapes in the Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve, India.
2019
Elephant Family formally merges with the British Asian Trust. Ruth Ganesh joins the board as a Trustee.
2020
Elephant Family supports the IUCN Species Survival Commission Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence Specialist Group (HWCCSG) to provide global, authoritative, and impartial guidance to understanding and resolving human-wildlife conflict.
2021
The CoExistence Campaign - a stunning art exhibition of life-size elephants made of the invasive lantana plant is launched on The Mall. The campaign addressed the growing overlap of the human and animal world whilst demonstrating the inspiring ways we can coexist with all the other living beings that call our planet home. It raised over £3 million.
2023
Elephant Family launches the Coexistence Fellowship Programme to support researchers in studying, understanding, implementing, and facilitating coexistence in conservation.
It also announces an exciting new partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Trust at the Animal Ball to expand conservation efforts in the Central Indian Landscapes.
2025
The Big Egg Hunt returns to London, presented by the Elephant Family in partnership with Clarence Court, IBI Logistics and Chopard. 123 egg sculptures were placed around London and later auctioned off to raise funds. The campaign culminated in the dazzling Wonders of the Wild, an evening celebrating the marriage of art and conservation.
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Elephant Family's conservation work tackles Asian wildlife's biggest threats: habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict