Tag: Fundraising news
Dave Edwards has been heroically taking on challenges for wildlife every year for the last four years.
Now Dave is fast-approaching his first event of his fifth consecutive year of running, swimming and cycling to raise even more funds for conservation.
I feel privileged to represent Act for Wildlife at events and I just love the challenge of it all and what I’ve managed to achieve.
I really feel like a part of the family!
You can follow Dave’s story here and join us in complete awe of everything he’s achieved and plans to take on this year. Thank you Dave!
Get your place at RideLondon
Over the last few years, fourteen cyclists have joined Team Act for Wildlife and taken on the RideLondon-Surrey 100 to raise nearly £10,000 to protect endangered wildlife.
Here we celebrate their achievements and invite you to cycle for wildlife. You could get your hands on one of our charity places and be part of the UK’s largest cycling festival.
You’ll get all the support you need!
– Act for Wildlife cycling jersey
– Act for Wildlife cap and wristband
– Fundraising pack
Plus training tips and conservation news to keep you going right up to the big day!
RideLondon 2016
An incredible £4,480 was raised by 2016’s RideLondon team from Knights, Wynne Construction, Ultimate Creative and Chester Zoo.
Amanda Bailey, Emyr Kerfoot, Chris Wynne, David Wynne, Rob Leech, Jon Walker and Nick Davis all successfully crossed the finish line in the name of wildlife conservation.
RideLondon was brilliant! There was an amazing atmosphere throughout the day
2016 was Jon’s second time at RideLondon, having also cycled at the 2015 event for Act for Wildlife. In 2016, Jon and his colleagues from Ultimate Creative, Matt and Amy Townsend, each conquered their own cycling challenge.
RideLondon 2015
In 2015, all four of our cycling champions reached The Mall even quicker than they had expected and raised over £2,000 for wildlife.
Paul Round, Giraffe Keeper at Chester Zoo, was joined by Pippa Hague from the Hillyer McKeown Group and Jon Walker and Matt Townsend, colleagues from Ultimate Creative Communications.
To fuel her training and raise even more for wildlife conservation, Pippa even held an animal-themed bake sale.
RideLondon 2014
In 2014, friends and colleagues Christopher Kehoe and Ian Meaden cycled the 100 mile route and successfully raised over £1,000. They enjoyed whizzing through traffic-free central London and reaching the 75 mile point just as the sun came out, before successfully making it to the finish line.
RideLondon 2013
In 2013, Chester Zoo member Stephen Caunce and colleague Rob Sidwell were awarded the places and took on the 100 mile cycling challenge, completing it in 6hrs 3mins and raising over £2000 between them.
We had so much support along the route and it was a great feeling to finish in a brilliant time knowing we’d raised such a lot of money for Act for Wildlife
Gareth’s journey starts here
Gareth Simpson is taking on one of the biggest challenge events in the world for Act for Wildlife: the London Marathon.
Join Gareth from the start of his journey…
You’ve just signed up to run your first ever marathon. Why?!
I am lucky enough to work for Chester Zoo, so I see first-hand what we fight for every day. I know how much of a difference the sponsorship I raise will make, with every penny going directly to conservation. I also like to challenge and push myself and I consider this to be one of my toughest challenges to date.
This is what made me sign up – and this is what will keep me going!
What does your role at Chester Zoo involve?
I am Head of Site Operations so I am responsible for managing the zoo site operations and standards whilst ensuring that we have a safe place for our guests to visit and for our employees to work in. I take ownership for the zoo estate, the site operations team, maintenance and environment, security, health & safety, first aid and the zoo fleet of vehicles.
As you can imagine, no two days are the same and that makes the job very exciting however the challenge is finding the spare time to commit to my training.
What’s your fundraising target?
My target is £2,000. This will be tough to raise, but it could achieve so much.
For example, it could protect rhinos from poachers by fuelling a patrol vehicle for over five months, educate over 1000 children in Assam about the importance of treasuring their elephant neighbours or plant two hundred trees to rebuild the rainforest for orangutans.
How will you get ready for your 26 mile slog?
I am following a programme set up by a key supplier to the leisure industry. The plan is far from easy but it has helped build my fitness and stamina as some of my daily runs are in excess of 10 miles now. I have also had to change my diet and cut out the odd luxury whilst at the same time learning how to run, eat and drink in order to keep my fuel supplies up.
My fitness tracker is also helping me monitor my progress as I have seen my resting heart rate lowered by 25% and my recovery rate dramatically increase. It is simple things like this that keep me going.
I also really enjoy getting up in the early hours of the morning and set off in the dark watching the day begin and the city slowly wake up as I complete my run. I also make sure that the halfway point is always as far from my house as possible so that I have no option but to get back in time to help get the kids ready for school and to be in work on time. No pressure!
What are you most nervous about?
I ran two 10K events for Act for Wildlife and it was great to be part of a team and know that there were other runners with me. The marathon is over four times the distance and I’ll be running on my own this time, so I’ll have to carry the support of my friends, family and colleagues with me as I run.
Injury is always something on my mind too as that can stop everything and did so for most of December but I am now back on track again. Something as simple as a pothole or coming off a pavement in the wrong way could put a stop to everything!
What are you most excited about?
I am most excited about joining all the other runners on the day and experiencing London in a totally different way. The city has so much history and the route will be passing by some amazing landmarks and architecture and I cannot wait to be part of that. I am also interested to see how it will challenge me both physically and mentally.
Then of course there is seeing the finish line and finding those who are waiting for me on the other side. My wife, Tanya, and my children will be there to cheer me on and meet me at the finish and what more incentive do you need! My wife also works at Chester Zoo and my children have been involved in fundraising for our conservation work at their school, so I know how proud my family will be.
You can see how Gareth is getting on by visiting his fundraising page here.
If you fancy running, walking, swimming or cycling for wildlife, see how you can get involved here.
Nigel is a challenge champion!
Nigel is running 100 miles to raise funds for our research into a virus called EEHV that strikes both elephants in the wild and in zoos.
When Nigel Wood heard about a terrible virus that affects elephants, he wanted to take direct action and fundraise to support our research to find a vaccine.
Nigel felt compelled to do what he could to combat Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus (EEHV) – a disease that affects elephants globally. After first completing a 44km trail run and raising over £1,000 to fight EEHV, Nigel is now getting ready to run an incredible 100 miles!
Cheshire-based Nigel has been training on the Sandstone Ridge which is ideal terrain for what lies ahead. Of his forthcoming challenge he said: “Kate and I have seen the devastating effects of the virus so wanted to do our bit to make a difference. The Addo Elephant Run is a legendary South African event. I know it’s going to be super tough in the searing heat but the National Park is so beautiful, it really is a unique and special place to run through. Training is going well and with not long to go, I feel I’m ready to take on this mammoth task.”
Chester Zoo’s fundraising coordinator Hannah Taylor said: “We are always in awe of people who go to extreme lengths in support of our vital work. What Nigel is taking on is a gruelling challenge in very difficult conditions. We wish Nigel the best of luck and hope that others will be inspired to help combat this terrible elephant disease.”
You can see how Nigel is getting on by visiting his fundraising page here.
Or if he’s inspired you to take on a challenge, you can get involved here.
Joe
I’ve been a part of Chester Zoo’s security team now for three years. It’s a great place to work with some amazing animals and people.
I set myself a list of goals to complete this year and the three peaks was one of them. What better way to complete them than raising some money for one of my favourite animals at our zoo?!
Hopefully this will be the first of many charity events I will be completing over the next few years for Act for Wildlife.
Lucy
I’m assistant team manager of the carnivore team at Chester Zoo and painted dogs are one of the incredible animals I work with.
I have walked Snowdon before, but I’ve never walked Ben Nevis or Scafell Pike, so I’m a bit nervous to complete the challenge!
Chris
I’m a Carnivore keeper working together with Lucy. The chance to work for an organisation which is so heavily involved in important conservation is a rewarding experience.
I am really looking forward to walking the 3 Peaks to help one of the fantastic species I work with every day.
Suzanne
I’m a guest experience supervisor at the zoo, looking after all our guests’ needs and overall site presentation. I lead a team of people to achieve these goals so I am like the leader of the pack!!!
I’ve always wanted to do the three peaks challenge so when the opportunity came up to do it to raise money to help these wonderful animals with my amazing work colleagues, I jumped at the chance.
Reu
I work within a busy pack down in the membership office located at the main entrance assisting Chester Zoo’s members and adopters. My role varies from general enquiries to complex Direct Debit processes, which requires a lot of team work just like a pack of painted dogs.
This will be my third time taking part in the three peak challenge, so when I heard Joe’s call to get involved, I thought what a perfect opportunity to do it again, but this time for a vital cause.
Pippa
I work on the herpetology section and spend most of my time caring for the amphibians at Chester Zoo.
From baking to Born Survivor, I love to get involved in raising funds for Chester Zoo’s conservation work. This year’s challenge is sadly going to involve less cake but thankfully also less mud than my previous challenges!
Cerys
I am a rhino keeper at Chester Zoo and I have run a 10K for Act for Wildlife before, but that was nice and flat… To reach the top of all three mountains, we will need to climb 9,800 feet, which apparently is a bit like scrambling up Blackpool Tower 20 times!
Kyle
Having previously run Tough Mudder for Act for Wildlife, I was keen to keep up my commitment to the team’s events. The three peaks is a challenge that I’ve always wanted to do, so when Joe put out a call for pack members I jumped at the chance.
Now, I work in IT and thought whilst I was raising money for charity I would also try and show everyone that IT workers aren’t just deskbound nerds!
Raising money for great causes, seeing fantastic sights, keeping fit. What isn’t to like!?
I’m hoping that others will see what we aim to achieve and will back us in all our efforts and provide some vital funding needed to secure a better future for the painted dogs.
Matt
I’m a retail supervisor at Chester Zoo. I have worked here for two years and feel very passionate about all the animals within the zoo.
I have recently returned from an expedition in Ecuador, experiencing first-hand the conservation work that the zoo carries out in the field. This has made me want to be involved in more activities, and what better way than raising money for Act for Wildlife! I’m sure this will be the first of many.
Phil
I’m a Zoo Ranger and give the animal talks around the zoo. Just like how painted dogs communicate with each other to pass information between the pack, I communicate with visitors to raise awareness about conservation and the natural world.
I love being outdoors and have hiked up Snowdon in the past, but not Scafell Pike or Ben Nevis…yet! I’m looking forward to the adventure and am excited to be part of this team, raising awareness and support for the conservation of these amazing endangered animals!
Jon
I’m Head of Guest Experience at Chester Zoo, and am looking forward to completing the 3 Peaks as a team to raise funds for this important cause.
My last challenge was The Great North Run in 2003… and I haven’t done anything big since then so it will definitely be a challenge!
Please give what you can to help save Painted Dogs.
Chris
I’m a keeper on the zoo’s giraffe team, working with several hoof stock species, some of which share the same habitat as the Painted Dogs.
I was incredibly fortunate many years ago to see Painted Dogs in the wild while travelling in Botswana and I love to think that my grandchildren and great grandchildren will have that oppurtunity too.
I feel privileged to be able to take on these mountains with the team, to make my own small contribution to hopefully ensuring their long term survival.
Hannah
I’m Hannah and I work in the Aquarium. I look after nearly ten thousand fish, some of which share their habitat with African Painted Dogs.
This is my first attempt at the Three Peaks and my first challenge as part of Team Act for Wildlife.
I’m looking forward to representing the Aquarium and Chester Zoo whilst supporting this important conservation endeavour.
Olly
I run the Catering department at Chester Zoo – ensuring all our visitors and staff are fed and watered. I oversee the operation of 14 kiosks, three coffee shops and three restaurants serving over 1.2 million people each year!
One of the unique parts of working at the Zoo is knowing all your hard work is contributing to good causes and being able to get involved directly in fund raising initiatives such as the 2 challenges I am undertaking this year: the 3 Peaks challenge for Painted dogs and the Chester Half Marathon to save Indonesian Songbirds. The aim is to raise awareness of both causes and hopefully get a little fitter along the journey!
Dan Bentley ran 14 events to raise funds for ape conservation. Here he tells us what made him run for wildlife and how his Nan’s inspiring words kept him going. Why walk when you can run?
‘Over the past year I’ve been running quite a bit…
I launched a campaign called ‘Great Runs For Great Apes’ in late 2015 with the aim to motivate myself to run over winter, possibly inspire some other human apes and raise a few quid along the way for something I ape-solutely love.
I couldn’t decide which charity to go with so I split 50/50 with The Aspinall Foundation, and Act for Wildlife led by Chester Zoo – both awesome. These charities have been really supportive by sending me good lucks before and thank yous after every event and I really recommend running and raising for them. Thanks Donna and Hannah.
Why apes? Apes are ace.
Running is also ace. It will change your life. Some of these events really picked me apart. Probably a bit silly to run a half marathon, 50 mile ultra and a couple of marathons within the final month, but having £1000 as my target I needed to do try and do something impressive to try and reach that.’
‘Kindly supported by everyone at Dockside Runners, Saturday Morning Jog Club, friends and family we managed to get the target in donapetions! YESSSS! Thanks to you I’ve raised a final total of £1,567.77 ! ! !
Nan was giving her famous iron-fist to cancer at 89 years young earlier this year and together we had planned in a few events that she was going to recover and be at the finish line for. Within the last month of her life I was helping her down the stairs for the very first, and last time. We took one step at a time, quick breather, next step, little break, next step. Nan being proud Nan got fed up and decided to try and take two steps, left and then right… falls backwards onto her bum and chuckles. Telling her again to take her time she shrugs it off and replied, “Why walk when you can run?” Stuck with me, that. Some events listed below Nan paid for, and I wish she could’ve made the finish line, but she was truly there in spirit at every one and in every hard step.
I am proud of myself doing Great Runs For Great Apes, and I couldn’t thank you all enough. 100% of the raised money will contribute towards a positive change in the lives of great apes and the support has positively changed mine. There is so much more to running around the block than you might think…’
Dan’s achievement in the name of great ape conservation is incredible.
Join Team Act for Wildlife today and find out what you can achieve.
Dan’s Great Runs For Great Apes included:
2015
Whistle Stop Tour of Wirral / Sept 11th, 12th
Wirral Half Marathon (part of Whistle Stop) / Sept 13th
Chester Marathon / Oct 4th
HellRunner Half Marathon / Oct 17th
RunTheRed Half Marathon / Dec 23rd
2016
Parbold Hill race / Feb 13th
Liverpool Half Marathon / March 13th
Canalathon 50k / March 27th
Port Sunlight 10k / May 15th
The Yorkshire 3 Peaks Challenge / Aug 21st
The Great North Run / Sept 11th
Ladybower 50 miler / Sept 18th
Chester Marathon / Oct 2nd
York Marathon / Oct 9th
A huge THANK YOU to Dan and everyone who supported his Great Runs for Great Apes!
We’d like to introduce you to Ross Edgley, one of our amazing Act for Wildlife supporters. Ross is an athlete adventurer, chief sports scientist at THE PROTEIN WORKS™ and is considered one of the world’s most travelled fitness experts.
As you can probably guess from the title of this blog, this man is going pretty far to help raise awareness and funds for our orangutan conservation work! He tells us more:
“The work Chester Zoo do is amazing. From saving endangered species – the scimitar-horned oryx being a favorite of mine – to combatting deforestation in Borneo and Sumatra; their projects are of profound global importance and every inch of the zoo is run by ‘undercover’ superheroes who work with this admirable, quiet modesty!
“I’m what some people call an athlete adventurer. This means I’ve a tendency to set physical challenges to raise awareness and money for some truly deserving charities and causes. This year began as I ran a marathon (26.2 miles) pulling a 1.4 tonne car for Children with Cancer. I then decided to climb a 20m rope (repeatedly) until I’d climbed the height of Everest (8.848m) for the Teenage Cancer Trust.
“But both of these seem tame compared to my latest stunt. On the 19 July I decided to strap a 50kg Marine backpack to myself and cover 1,000 miles, in a month, barefoot. Why? It was my hope my fitness-based lunacy would raise awareness and funds for Chester Zoo’s Act for Wildlife campaign and its sustainable palm oil project.
“This is because when travelling (eight countries in eight months visiting everywhere from the Brazilian rainforest to Bangladesh) I became painfully aware of the mass-scale unsustainable farming taking place and the need for ethical agriculture. Fast forward a few years and returning home I became part of the founding team at THE PROTEIN WORKS™ (Europe’s fastest growing nutrition brand) and as a team we identified the expanding unsustainable palm oil industry as one of the biggest threats facing regions in Borneo and Sumatra and the species that inhabit it.
“This is because palm oil is used in around 50% of packaged supermarket products. For us at THE PROTEIN WORKS™ this includes our vegan protein snacks, which is why as well as solely using palm oil suppliers who are Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certified, we decided to take it one step further. That’s when my 1,000 mile marine month was created to show our commitment to supporting the market transformation to a fully sustainable palm oil supply, to help reduce the industries impact on the environment and to help protect beautiful wildlife like orangutans.
“The weather has been kind with mainly blue skies and green grass. The terrain has been a little less forgiving as you’ll see from the newly hardened soles of my feet and a missing toenail on my right foot.
Ouch! That looks painful…
“But the highlight has to be running around the zoo among the animals with my backpack. Having a rhino, giraffe and few orangutans as my training partners for the evening was a workout I’ll never forget and I want to say a big thank you to the entire Chester Zoo team for making it possible.
“With a few days left I’m now in the home straight and need a sprint finish to complete the 1,000 miles at the Bear Grylls Survival Race. Once I do, there will be time for some mini celebrations, all before I embark on my next adventure…”
To follow Ross’s 1,000 Mile Marine Month and support his challenge, visit his Just Giving page, here or follow him on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.
Winter
We kick started the year by celebrating five years of our Biodiversity Trainee scheme; a project we’re all very proud of and which saw us train 12 future conservationists in a range of skills needed to preserve UK wildlife. The participants were trained in a huge range of topics-from wildlife recording to fundraising-and public engagement to habitat management – and everything in between. The project was run in partnership with RECORD and Cheshire Wildlife Trust-and was made possible thanks to generous funding from Heritage Lottery Fund.
A team of zoo staff took part in an expedition to Assam in North East India where they spent time working with our Assam Haathi Project. The project has been working to reduce human-elephant conflict for over ten years; together with local communities we have implemented a range of methods to help keep elephants and people from harm.
It was non-stop for the group as they travelled from village to village working closely with a number of villages. If they weren’t sharing their knowledge and skills in a workshop-they were volunteering their support in general maintenance and construction or providing support to long-term strategies for elephant conservation in this area.
Spring
We were thrilled to announce our new Living with Tigers project which-as the name suggests-aims to protect tigers and help the local communities live safely alongside them. Despite the fantastic news that tiger numbers are increasing as a result of the conservation efforts-this development brought with it a new challenge: human-tiger conflict. We recognised a need for support and are now currently establishing a team in Nepal who can work with the local villages to reduce the risk of tiger attacks. Read more updates from our Living with Tigers project-here.
Back in Chester-as the warmer weather arrived we celebrated our changing seasons and the wonderful animals and plants we have right here in the UK. We also conducted our own BioBlitz – which saw a team of around 30 professionals count and identify as many species as possible in and around the zoo – all within 24 hours! Some of the highlights included exceeding our 500 species target-recording over 50 species of mosses and lichens and using new technology to record seven bat species.
Summer
We received some devastating news from our project partners the Katala Foundation-in the Philippines-that over 4,000 turtles were confiscated from a convoy on its way to China. We sent out an emergency appeal to send resources to the team who were working around the clock to save as many turtles as possible. Thanks to the AMAZING response from you-our wonderful supporters-they were able to treat and release almost all of the animals!
Those that weren’t ready for release are being rehabilitated at the Katala Foundation-who sent us this message:
“Without the generous support-immediate action-moral support and great dedication of all of you-we would not have been able to manage this crisis. But now-I believe we can proudly say ‘a crisis well managed’. Congratulations and Kudos. Thank you so much!”
We were also flying high after being recognised for the work we do to protect highly threatened bird species. The British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) created a list of the top ten birds benefiting from conservation and breeding programmes at zoos and aquariums in the UK. We are home to six of the species that were on the list and play a significant role in supporting and protecting endangered birds on the brink of extinction – not just here at the zoo but also through the vital work we do in the wild.
Autumn
Alongside our Go Orange for Orangutans campaign we launched the Palm Oil Challenge and asked for your help to take part in our challenge of making sustainable palm oil the norm. By picking products that contain sustainable palm oil on your weekly shop you’ll be helping to protect the remaining forest homes for animals like the orangutan-tiger-rhino and elephant.
You can Act for Wildlife and help us to continue the vital work we’re doing around the world by making a donation. Go to www.actforwildlife.org.uk/get-involved/donate to donate now. And with Christmas only a couple of weeks away-why not sponsor a project for someone else as a unique gift? Perfect for any last minute presents!
We’re looking forward to 2016!.