
World Animal Protection & Ride Share Company
Highlighting the cruelty behind elephant rides
About the Partnership
An NYC-based ride-hailing service that prides itself on the exceptional treatment of both their drivers and riders partnered with World Animal Protection to celebrate World Elephant Day in 2019. They pledged to bring awareness to the cruelty behind elephant rides in tourist venues as well as donate $1 per ride to support our ongoing work to protect animals, including elephants, around the world.
How We Work Together
Prior to World Elephant Day 2019, both of our organizations sent communications to our respective supporters about the cause marketing collaboration and urge individuals to make a positive impact for elephants. On the day of, the ride-booking app notified customers who planned to take a ride about our World Elephant Day partnership, the donation scheme, and how riders would make a difference through their taxi choice that day.
“We are grateful for this partnership to help educate the public and for the company’s donation to fund our work around the world to protect animals,” says World Animal Protection.
Why we have partnered
World Animal Protection’s Taken for a Ride report found that up to 550,000 wild animals are exploited in the tourism industry worldwide. Tourist demand for direct contact activities with elephants such as riding, washing, and feeding leads to a lifetime of abuse. The constant presence of strangers requires elephants to be controlled by keepers through harsh obedience training from a young age that includes severe restraining, pain, and discomfort.
By partnering with the rideshare company and using relevant, thought-provoking messaging, such as “Ride a Cab, not an Elephant,” we were able to bring further awareness and attention to elephant cruelty to new audiences, media outlets and other animal advocates on the timely World Elephant Day.