Walking around downtown Manhattan, you might stumble upon some unexpected tourists: A herd of 100 life-size elephant sculptures, spread throughout New York City’s Meatpacking district. These elephants are on a very special mission — a mission to raise funds for non-profit conservation organisations and to foster awareness about the challenges wildlife face.

The Great Elephant Migration is a travelling art installation and fundraiser consisting of 100 elephant sculptures. As they make their migratory journey across the United States, each elephant in this special herd supports NGOs like Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in the process.

We are honoured to be part of the Great Elephant Migration — and that sculptures of two of our orphans, Edie and Chaimu, are the sole representatives of African elephants in the herd. Best of all, you can purchase a limited-edition, life-size sculpture for yourself, supporting our conservation work and bringing a message of coexistence into your world.

Around the world, wild animals are making a comeback. But there will always be the issue of space. If we are to forge a future for wildlife, we must also be open to the possibility of living alongside them.

The Great Elephant Migration supports conservationists who have found ways to coexist with some of the planet’s most challenging animals. Each elephant is twinned with a conservation NGO, whose work directly benefits from the proceeds of their sculpture sales. The migration encourages grassroots, field-level conservation strategies and supports the organisations who are bringing that work to life.

Each elephant sculpture is made from lantana camara, the second most widespread invasive species in the world. This fast growing, toxic shrub has taken over 40 percent of forests in India, obliterating native plants and diminishing food sources for animals, which drives them out of forests and into urban areas. The Great Elephant Migration supports a large-scale lantana removal project, which will restore vast tracts of forest, sequestering 2,625 tons of carbon in the process.

The sculptures are creations of the Coexistence Collective, a community of 200 indigenous artisans from India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. The collective has spent the past five years handcrafting the Great Elephant Migration, based on the elephants they live alongside. The sculptures of Edie and Chaimu were modelled from detailed photos we provided of each orphan.

The Great Elephant Migration began in Newport, Rhode Island, before the herd took up residence in New York City, where they will remain through 20 October 2024. In December, they will venture down to Miami, Florida, before travelling to Browning, Montana for May-June 2025. The migration will end in Los Angeles, California in July 2025.

In New York, you will find Chaimu on 9th Avenue + W 13th Street and you will find Edie on Horatio Street + W 4th Street!

While the majority of elephants in the Great Elephant Migration are Asian elephants, two very special African elephants have joined the journey — both of whom are twinned with orphans rescued, raised, and rewilded through our Orphans’ Project!

Chaimu: Chaimu was rescued in 2009, when a lonely young orphan was found trekking across the Chyulu Hills. She was also the elephant who connected us with the wonderful Kristin Davis, who was present for her rescue. We are proud that Kristin is a patron of Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and that the Great Elephant Migration’s Chaimu was created in her honour.

Edie: Edie was rescued from a well in 1999, when she was just an infant. Over the past 25 years, we have helped her grow up, reclaim her place in the wild, and become a matriarch and mother of four wild-born babies. The final leg of the Great Elephant Migration will honour matriarchs, and we are proud to have Edie representing the herd for Africa. Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is itself a matriarchy: Our ‘matriarch’, Dame Daphne Sheldrick, founded the organisation in 1977, and under her family’s stewardship, the Trust continues into its next century of conservation. It felt very fitting to have Edie, one of our most successful orphan matriarchs, represent this important legacy.

First and foremost, please visit the Great Elephant Migration as they make their way across the United States! We would love to see your photos — be sure to tag us (@sheldricktrust) in your social posts.

You can also purchase a limited-edition, life-size sculpture to add to your own herd! We will receive a minimum of 50 percent of proceeds from the sales of Chaimu and Edie editions.

We extend our deepest gratitude to the Coexistence Collective, whose artisans in the Nilgiri Hills handcrafted each elephant sculpture; to Ruth Ganesh, whose vision sparked a great migration; and to Elephant Family USA, who brought the Great Elephant Migration to life.