Friends of Freeland Foundation

Elephants are not safe. In fact, they are being slaughtered across central Africa in record numbers. Despite weighing 10,000 pounds or more, in the wild, they are no match for the armed groups of poachers who are ruthlessly and violently murdering them – for their tusks. The tusks are being sold on the black market in Asia to make ivory figurines. In Asia, the big tusker elephants have been largely wiped out, so the traffickers are paying poachers to kill in Africa.

The situation in Central Africa is especially bad. The rate of illegal killing, 2 to 3 elephants every hour, is staggering. It is hard to imagine a world without elephants in the wild, but at this rate, the elephant population in central Africa could become too low to survive as a species.

Why is this happening? In a word: greed and lack of awareness.

Hi, I’m Steve Galster, and I have been working for 35 years to protect wildlife in fragile areas. My organization, Freeland, is a frontline group that hunts traffickers and also works to develop sustainable communities.

How can we stop poachers from killing elephants in Central Africa?

In short, through teamwork. In more than three decades of work in Africa and Asia, we know who in law enforcement is clean and passionate. Our team specializes in finding traffickers. Working together with trusted officers, we find the people pulling the financial trigger that is financing the slaughter, and we put them out of business.

We’ve done this before: We’ve unplugged the trafficking syndicates behind the poaching of tigers, rhinos, and now elephants. Whenever we have the resources, we succeed, and that slows the poaching.

Ultimately, we have to turn off the demand that is fueling the trade. That’s where our community development and education work comes in. Our frontline teams go into classrooms to cultivate a love for elephants and other wild animals, while developing future protectors, and supporting family heads if they need vocational support.

But make no mistake about it, this trade is driven by wealth, not poverty. Which is why we have to put the greedy traffickers out of business and make it clear to everyone: commercial trade in elephant ivory is neither cool nor legal.

Right now, our investigation team is active between Africa and Asia to identify and stop the traffickers.

What can YOU do?

Freeland's funding was frozen for months now, and while we hope that freeze gets lifted soon, it has challenged us to find new funds to keep up with the traffickers. Together, we can stop this poaching and give elephants a future. We need donations small and large, to put the main criminals out of business, to give time for education efforts to take root, so that we can give elephants a chance at survival.

Every donation, no matter the size, brings us closer to a world where elephants are valued alive, not for their tusks. Join us in protecting these magnificent creatures. The tusks belong on elephants—not as trinkets or status symbols. Donate today and share this campaign to amplify your impact.