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Well it’s easy to be a Glass Half Empty person. Just look around. A tide of terror in Iraq; Syria in bloody turmoil; the Eurozone in crisis (again); the US limping out of recession; earthquakes; floods; unrelenting pressure on wild species and habitats; rampant rhino poaching; massive ivory trade; over-fishing; animal cruelty; political indifference..

But that, of course, is not the whole picture.

I’m a Glass Half Full person: South Sudan, a State born in relative peace; the Arab Spring; the optimism of a new Libya; the growth of philanthropy;  the empowerment of women in many previously oppressive societies; the establishment of more protected areas; the ban on seal skin imports by the EU; a new climate control treaty..

And then consider what we at Born Free have been doing too.

Rescuing lions in Ethiopia; exposing the barbarity of the trapping industry in the USA; building lion-proof bomas in Kenya; caring for our big cats in South Africa; investigating zoos in Europe; drawing the curtain down on wild animal circuses in England; supporting wildlife law enforcement in Central and West Africa; helping the Kenya Wildlife Service fight the ivory trade; protecting wild tigers in India; working with local communities in more than half a dozen countries through Global Friends;  rescuing dolphins in Turkey; saving and homing over 100 primates in Texas. I could go on (and on).

I’ve celebrated, raged, laughed, cried, championed, decried in equal measure.

But is that why I am an optimist – is that why my Glass is Half Full?

Not quite: For me it’s because wherever I look, despite all the horrors, I see the innate goodness of so many people. People who will spend their Christmas serving others less fortunate; who will cross the road to alleviate suffering; who care for all life and, in their own way, do what they can to help; who find the time when others are ‘too busy’; who give and expect nothing in return; who stand up to be counted when others sit; who speak out against injustice when others remain silent.

This is what I admire, respond to, am inspired by. The wellspring of humanity (or should that be humane-ity) that, out of a deep-seated and profound sense of compassion and justice, believes in a better world for all living beings – and is prepared to play their part in making that dream a reality.

To you all, I raise my Glass Half Full (which, by the way, is running over).

Happy New Year!

Will

This May sees the release of the film adaptation of the best-selling novel ‘Water for Elephants’, starring Robert Pattinson and Reece Witherspoon. Whilst the Born Free Foundation notes that the film touches on cruelty towards animals in circuses, we are extremely disappointed that the producers did not take the book’s core message to heart and make the compassionate decision not to use trained wild animals in the film.

Elephants forced into the circus, like Rosie (the elephant in the film), live miserable lives of extended periods of confinement, long-haul transportation, and inadequate housing in “beastwagons”, all in the name of so-called entertainment. It has been frequently documented that the training and handling of wild animals in circuses can include violence, the use of bullhooks or prolonged restraint.
There is, of course, also the issue of the individual elephant, Tai, who was used in filming “Water for Elephants” and the ongoing publicity photo shoots and live appearances. Tai is ‘owned’ by a company who rent out wild-born elephants for rides and entertainment. We believe that it is never justified or appropriate to use wild animals in entertainment, and with recent, amazing technological advances in film production (the upcoming ‘Planet of the Apes’ remake will only use CGI apes, for example), there is no longer any excuse for exploiting wild animals in this way.

We live in hope that thanks to the recent case of Anne, the elephant whose beatings at ‘Bobby Roberts Super Circus’ were documented by ADI, that people who are not aware of the suffering of circus animals will be enlightened and join the 94.5% of people in the UK who already support a ban on the use of wild animals in circuses.

Elephants don’t belong in the circus or the zoo – they belong in the wild. That’s something every Compassionate Conservationist knows!