Bring the Elephant Home Foundation

What Bring the Elephant Home Foundation does

Bring the Elephant Home Foundation is a Dutch-registered nonprofit foundation (ANBI/CBF-certified) founded in 2004 by Antoinette van de Water, focused on the conservation and welfare of African and Asian elephants. The organization operates across three geographies — headquartered in Vlaardingen, Netherlands, with field operations in Thailand (around Kuiburi National Park) and South Africa (Kariega Game Reserve) — and runs a distributed team of approximately 10 employees plus volunteers and interns worldwide.

The foundation's core programs include symbolic elephant adoption offerings for African and Asian elephants, the BTEH Lab Elephant Research Program (operating since 2019, focused on wild Asian elephants and human-elephant coexistence), an Elephant Coexistence initiative addressing human-wildlife conflict, a Rewilding program, and an Elephant Identification research effort testing new individual tracking technology in South Africa. Its technology stack is built around wildlife camera traps (sponsorship-funded starting at €10), systematic Body Condition Scoring for Asian elephants, and Zooniverse-based citizen science for individual elephant identification. Field research has covered 410 km across 21 villages, recording 328 elephant signs.

Revenue is generated entirely through charitable giving mechanisms: individual donations (including monthly recurring), symbolic elephant adoptions, camera trap sponsorships, and paid 10-day volunteer research expeditions to South Africa. Distribution is primarily direct-to-consumer via the organization's own website (bteh.org) and social channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, YouTube), with institutional partnerships providing programmatic support — notably the Coexistence Impact Fellowship with Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (since July 2024) and collaborative fieldwork with the Kariega Foundation in South Africa.

Name

Bring the Elephant Home Foundation

Legal name

Bring The Elephant Home

Website

https://bring-the-elephant-home.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bring the Elephant Home Foundation is a Dutch nonprofit founded in 2004 that runs community-led conservation programs for African and Asian elephants across the Netherlands, Thailand, and South Africa, funded through individual donations, symbolic elephant adoptions, camera sponsorships, and paid volunteer research expeditions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wildlife Conservation Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

akta.pro primary industry

Conservation, Research & Volunteer Experiences (THAJAIAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wildlife & Animal Care Volunteering (EDAIAGAE), Animal Shelters & Adoption Services (BPAGAIAA), Forestry & Reforestation (BPAGAGAD)

Keywords

• Elephant conservation
• Wildlife research
• Habitat protection
• Human-elephant coexistence
• Symbolic adoption programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Netherlands

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: One-time and recurring donations from individual supporters worldwide. Monthly donor program for ongoing conservation support.
2. Elephant Adoption Programs: Symbolic adoption of African or Asian elephants supporting research programs in southern Africa and Thailand.
3. Camera Trap Sponsorship: Sponsorship of wildlife cameras at various funding tiers, starting at €10/$11, supporting research-based monitoring.
4. Volunteer Expeditions: Paid research expeditions to South Africa for volunteers to participate in elephant conservation fieldwork.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Bring the Elephant Home Foundation is a Dutch nonprofit organization founded in 2004 that runs elephant conservation programs in Thailand and South Africa. Its core offerings include symbolic elephant adoption programs for African and Asian elephants, a BTEH Lab Elephant Research Program studying wild Asian elephants, an Elephant Coexistence project addressing human-elephant conflict, Olifant Rewilding, Olifant Identificatie (identification technology), wildlife camera trap sponsorships, and paid volunteer research expeditions to South Africa.

Product overview

Bring the Elephant Home Foundation operates as a conservation organization offering a portfolio of elephant adoption programs and field research initiatives. The core offerings include symbolic adoption programs for both African and Asian elephants, enabling supporters to fund conservation work. The organization runs several specialized research programs: the BTEH Lab Elephant Research Program (active since 2019 in Thailand studying wild Asian elephants), the Elephant Coexistence project addressing human-elephant conflict, the Olifant Rewilding initiative, and the Olifant Identificatie program using identification technology. Additional offerings include camera trap sponsorship programs and citizen science participation through Zooniverse. These products collectively support habitat protection, community-based coexistence solutions, and scientific research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Adoptie Afrikaanse Olifanten (Adopt African Elephants) Symbolic elephant adoption program allowing individual supporters to contribute financially to elephant research and conservation efforts in southern Africa.
• Adoptie Aziatische Olifanten (Adopt Asian Elephants) Symbolic adoption program enabling supporters to fund research and protection of Asian elephants, with gift options available, supporting field work in Thailand.
• BTEH Lab Elephant Research Program Field research program active since 2019 that studies wild Asian elephants and human-elephant coexistence around Kuiburi National Park in Thailand, including body condition scoring and internship opportunities.
• Elephant Coexistence Project offering practical, animal-friendly solutions for human-elephant conflict, including habitat protection, restoration, and collaboration with farmers and rangers.
• Olifant Rewilding (Elephant Rewilding) Rewilding program supporting the return of elephants to their natural habitats in southern Africa.
• Olifant Identificatie (Elephant Identification) Research program involving new elephant identification technology and individual elephant tracking for conservation purposes, tested in the South Africa research program.
• Sponsor een Wildlife Camera (Camera Trap Sponsorship) Sponsorship program for wildlife cameras at funding tiers starting at €10 / $11, supporting tech-driven wildlife monitoring solutions that help keep communities and elephant herds safe.
• South Africa Elephant Research Program (Volunteer Expedition) Ten-day paid field research expeditions in South Africa for volunteers to study elephant calf and juvenile behavior, conduct dung sampling for forage analysis, and test new elephant identification technology, conducted alongside the Kariega Foundation.

Quantifiable outcome

• 410 km walked across 21 villages, recording 328 elephant signs
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• GlobeGuardsminorOthersBring The Elephant Home is a member of GlobeGuards, an organization in the Netherlands focused on conservation and environmental protection.
• Kariega FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership for elephant conservation expeditions in South Africa. Volunteers contribute to vital conservation efforts alongside the Kariega Foundation and Bring The Elephant Home at Kariega Game Reserve.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW): Global animal welfare and conservation NGO operating wildlife protection, community coexistence, and policy advocacy programs including for elephants. Comparable as a broader incumbent with overlapping wildlife-and-community conservation mission.
• World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Largest global conservation NGO with active elephant and habitat programs in Africa and Asia. Comparable as a broad incumbent covering elephant conservation, community coexistence, and protected-area management.
• Wildlife Conservation Society: Major global conservation organization operating field programs across Africa and Asia, including elephant conservation. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping elephant and habitat-protection mission, though at vastly larger scale.
• Fauna & Flora International: International conservation NGO protecting threatened species and ecosystems through partnerships, research, and community programs across Africa and Asia. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping species-and-habitat focus and community-based delivery model.
• African Wildlife Foundation: Large Africa-focused conservation NGO operating habitat protection, wildlife management, and community programs across the continent. Comparable as a broader incumbent in the same wildlife-conservation space, with overlapping community-based and habitat-restoration approaches.

Direct peers

• Save the Elephants: Kenya-based nonprofit dedicated to securing a future for elephants through research, conservation, and community engagement. Highly comparable as an elephant-focused NGO combining scientific research, field monitoring, and community coexistence programs in Africa.
• Big Life Foundation: Kenya-based conservation NGO combining anti-poaching, community partnership, and wildlife monitoring for elephants and other species. Comparable as a community-led, field-operations-focused elephant conservation organization of similar scale.
• The Elephant Sanctuary: U.S.-based natural habitat refuge for endangered elephants offering adoption/sponsorship programs and educational outreach. Comparable as an elephant-focused nonprofit with similar donor-engagement and symbolic adoption revenue model.
• David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust: Kenya-based elephant conservation and orphan rescue organization operating field programs, rehabilitation, and community outreach. Comparable as an elephant-specialist nonprofit with adoption/sponsorship programs and field operations in Africa.
• Elephants Without Borders: Research-driven nonprofit focused on elephant conservation in southern Africa using field surveys, tracking technology, and transboundary programs. Comparable as a small, science-led elephant NGO working in the same African operational theater as BTEH's Kariega program.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/_bteh
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/bringtheelephanthome
• Facebookfacebook.com/BTEHpage
• Instagraminstagram.com/bring_the_elephant_home
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-bring-the-elephant-home

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bring the Elephant Home Foundation