Ambassador of Elephant Parade Singapore

Though emerging markets in Asia have long been called Asian Tigers, the multiple aspects of Asia's growth create a perfect storm challenging Asian elephants.

Economic growth among the varied economies of Asia includes commercial logging as well as expansion of cities as Asia's human population becomes more affluent. Human encroachment into elephant habitats comes in varied forms. Expansion of farmlands bringing farmers into conflict with elephants, bad management practices contaminating fresh water supplies, and overall urbanization without considered planning all present growing strains upon elephant populations. Asia's continued population growth also exacerbates both urbanization and the competition for natural resources between humans and ever dwindling elephant populations.

While humanity continues working towards achieving more sustainable practices globally, we also need to proactively safeguard elephant habitats wherever they exist, lest we gift to our progeny a future where elephants exist only as domesticated laborers, attractions in zoos, or as ancillary props and characters in video footage taken long ago.

The Elephant Parade plays an important role in engendering heightened awareness of humanity's impacts upon elephant populations while also funding elephant conservation and the variety of efforts required to safeguard these gentle giants, who are said to have no natural predators except human beings. At the same time as supporting elephant conservation in its many forms, Elephant Parade is a unique union of contemporary art with conservation.

It is my pleasure to invite you to participate in Elephant Parade Singapore, an effort allowing the appreciation of two forms of art simultaneously: the art crafted by human hands in decorating the elephant replicas as well as the art nature has created in the genus Elephas, or elephants.

Ms Claire Chiang
Chairman of Wildlife Reserves Singapore
Chairperson of Banyan Tree Global Foundation