Saskatoon women lead march to protect elephants and rhinos
The problem may seem far away, but people in Saskatchewan are fighting for the lives of elephants and rhinos threatened by poaching.
Jody Hanson and Siobhan Brennan have organized a march in support of elephants and rhinos.
"In the case of elephants, (they're) really complex, intelligent, animals who have shown a lot of emotion and compassion," Hanson told CBC Radio's Saskatchewan Weekend. "They're important to their own ecosystem. So just from a personal perspective, I care about them. But also from an ecosystem perspective ... time is really running out."
The march gets underway at 11:30 a.m. CST at River Landing in Saskatoon. The event is one of many happening around the world today to help stop poaching.
According to the Global March for Elephants and Rhinos, poachers kill more than 35,000 elephants and 1,000 rhinos every year.
Hanson's passion for conservation was boosted about six years ago when she was in South Africa and spent time working with elephants.
"Their presence is just so lovely," she said. "I've encountered them also in the wild, which is fantastic. I've been really lucky seeing them. But that's why, for me, there's a personal urgency to be heard on this issue."
Brennan said she cares about this cause because she's always cared about animals. But she always wonders about the world her children will be left with.
"These creatures are on the brink of extinction and my three-year-old twins may never actually see them and never get to experience them," Brennan said.
Both women said they just want to spread awareness about this issue that can be forgotten when it is so far away from Saskatchewan.
"Even though we are really removed from them and here it's not really an economic issue, and it does seem really abstract from here if you're not paying attention," Hanson said. "Not only can we have a voice, but we really need to be applying pressure to our own government."
