Global March for Elephants and Rhinos – 4 October 2014
Strategies
1. All marches are to obtain legal permission in respective cities, if such permits are
needed. Work out a route for the march and a rallying point and go about getting any
permits needed for these.
2. All marches to be conducted in a lawful, respectful and peaceful manner – with no
exceptions.
3. Each city to create an events page on Facebook.
4. Each city to attempt as far as possible to deliver Memorandums of Demand at
embassies or consulates of range, transit and consumer countries (e.g. South Africa,
Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya, Vietnam, China, etc.).
● Consulates and embassies may be closed on Oct 4th – if so, determine a date
(preferably the same date globally, e.g. World Rhino Day on Sept 22nd) to hand
over Memorandums of Demand – i.e. documents with action points we are
asking governments to implement.
● Each city to consider starting a petition to their local or national representatives
(for example this petition started by the San Francisco march,
http://bit.ly/1k1UQ2O); these too could be handed over on the same day (or
another day) to state, local and national policy-makers and reps.
Cities marching in South Africa should consider starting a petition for rhinos,
demanding a meaningful enforcement of the laws and protection of rhinos, as
well as demanding and stating clearly that the people of SA are “anti” trade.
5. Each march should appoint a social media champion to take responsibility for regular
engagement.
● Engage social media platforms to create global awareness and march
participation.
● Use all social media at your disposal – including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
Thunderclap, text messaging, etc). See for example the consolidated posts here:
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/#!social-feed/cp77
● Each city lead (or social media lead) should advertise the following social feeds
on behalf of the global march community as often as they can (and at least once
a week):
i. Web page:
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
vii.
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/
(Everyone can join here, via the sign-up page, and should share widely.)
Global march community page:
https://www.facebook.com/March4Elephants
(Everyone should ‘Like’ and share as widely as possible.)
Twitter: the Global March’s twitter handle is
https://twitter.com/EleRhinoMarch
Everyone with a twitter handle should follow it, and we advise those who
don’t have one yet to get one and follow. Tweets for the march can also
be found here:
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/#!tweetstorm/c1nam
Instagram Account – COMNG SOON
RebelMouse: https://www.rebelmouse.com/march4elesandrhinos/
Here you will find updates, links, and lots of useful and interesting posts.
Tweet Storm - https://www.facebook.com/events/704527516261072/
Thunderclap – https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/12777-global-marchfor-eles-rhinos Completed, another may be launched before the march.
6. Advertising and publicity materials
● Flyers, posters and other material should be used and distributed widely (on the
ground and vie email and social media) to advertise each march. Each city should
finalize its posters and flyers as soon as possible – we can help with graphics.
i. Start thinking of what signs you will use for your march – banners,
placards, posters, etc.
ii. There are many graphics available on the march website which you can
print and use:
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/#!graphics/c1p0q
7. Engage NGOs, politicians, and companies:
Ask for sponsorship of the march – not financial sponsorship but their agreement to
publicly add their name and backing to the march (including their logo).
● NGO contact list – for those who want to reach out to NGOs. Please contact
GMFER organizers for this.
● Sample letter to NGOs is available on the march organizers FB page (in Files:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/March4ElephantsandRhinos/309623599200
416/) and on the GMFER website in Media -> Documents:
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/#!documents/cukg
This letter must be personalized for the recipient group or individual.
8. Engage celebrities: work on getting the participation of local celebrities and other
individuals in the public eye. These can be celebrities in any field – entertainment, sport,
business, and politics. Having a celebrity supporting (or appearing at) a march may be
the single most important element for increasing public awareness and participation …
people flock to see and hear celebrities!
Other ideas for public engagement
9. Get speakers to address the crowd during the march – ideally, experts from well-known
elephant, rhino, or wildlife NGOs, as well as celebrities known to be supporters of
wildlife causes (or indeed any well-known individual who is willing to give their support
to the cause).
10. Secure local press and network news coverage.
11. Involve schools and universities.
12. Involve children. Engage teachers and schoolchildren to make projects or posters that
can be used at the march – children always provide a good photo opportunity for news
coverage, as well as highlighting the importance of the role of education. Think
creatively about other ways to involve children in generating awareness of the march
and its themes – creating skits, costumes, and other great visuals, as well as
participating in the march itself (even leading the march).
13. Secure knowledgeable conservationists to support the march; get local TV documentary
programs to run interviews with these conservationists.
14. Source pro-bono media placements in the month preceding the march (from early
September).
15. Source prizes from sponsors, for example weekend getaway accommodation in nature
reserves/lodges.
16. Source sponsorship for T-shirts with GMFER logo printed.
17. If your city has a Chinese neighborhood, try to secure a champion(s) to support your
march. If you plan to incorporate walking through Chinatown in your march, you may
want to think about translating your march’s brochure (or postcard) into Chinese.
http://geography.about.com/od/chinamaps/a/Chinatowns-Around-The-World.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Chinatowns
18. Try to arrange a music festival or event in a designated area after the march.
19. Obtain pro-bono participation from drummers/dancers/singers to enhance a jovial
atmosphere.
20. Consider the publicity value of a flash mob event – perhaps to perform a song or hold up
posters/chant in unison.
21. Create placards and posters with specific objectives.
One such objective (that some cities are choosing to highlight in their march) is to raise
awareness of the role of the ivory-carving factories in China, which are a key link in the
chain of supply and demand.
● Publicize this slogan: “When the carving stops, the poaching will too.” Nothing
carved means ivory will not be bought or sold. Nothing carved means no tusks
processed, which results in a stoppage of their export from ports in Africa, with a
better chance of confiscation and a decrease in poaching.
● The Chinese agency responsible for issuing carving licences is the State Forestry
Administration – an agency separate from the central government’s main
ministries (many of whom are favourable to a ban on ivory) – and the march
offers should maximize this opportunity to name and shame the SFA – to expose
those responsible for licensing the 37 state sanctioned carving factories.
● For more information on the ivory-carving issue see the FB event page
https://www.facebook.com/events/676428815748255/. On the march website
(this one), there are graphics focusing on protest against the SFA:
http://www.march4elephantsandrhinos.org/#!graphics/c1p0q
22. Please use hashtags everywhere:
#ChinaStopCarving
#SaveTheElephant
#ChinaEndIvoryCarving
#SaveTheElephant
#SaveTheRhino
Hashtag for the march: #March4ElesAndRhinos
If people have any questions or ideas they’d like to share, please write to:
[email protected]