“Something really neat that I experience is getting to know a range of elephant personalities. Some elephants are young and playful but easily distracted, whereas others are slow, relaxed and almost stoic,” explains 23-year-old Elise Gilchrist (@elise_gills), an American research assistant and illustrator working with elephants in Thailand’s Chiang Saen District. Elise works alongside Think Elephants International to better understand the minds of elephants—a task she feels is a crucial step to saving them. “Humans and other primates navigate their world primarily using vision,” she explains. “We do not think the same is true for elephants. We think they use other senses like smell, touch and hearing to understand the world around them.” With these findings, she hopes to instill in others a curiosity about the gentle giants and move them to take notice of their plight. “Asian elephants are an endangered species, and I believe that if we do not change the way we interact with them and their environment, they will be extinct within my lifetime.” For more photos and illustrations from Elise's work with elephants in Thailand, follow @elise_gills.
Photo by @elise_gills