Yao Ming stands tall for Elephants: "Say No To Ivory"; trio - Prince William, David Beckham & Yao Ming - for Rhinos

Prince William, David Beckham and Yao Ming for WildAid

The Duke of Cambridge, David Beckham, and Yao Ming are speaking out to protect rhinos for future generations in this WildAid message. The trio met in London in September 2013 to film two messages that began airing globally, with targeted outreach in China and Vietnam, beginning in January 2014 as part of WildAid's demand reduction campaign and the Royal Foundation's United for Wildlife Collaboration.

“'The End of the Wild' aired last week in China, and it airs on Animal Planet this Autumn. Yao Ming is an incredible ambassador for +WildAid & also now for United for Wildlife!”

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Yao Ming: "Say No To Ivory"
To better understand what’s happening to these species as a result of Asian demand for ivory and rhino horn, Yao Ming traveled to Africa for the first time to come face-to-face with some of the world’s most majestic species - the elephant and the rhino.

In a recent interview with The Washington Post, Yao Ming opened up about his heartbreaking journey to Kenya and South Africa each year, 30,000 elephants are killed for their ivory tusks, “Before that [journey], it was more of a number for me — how many tons of ivory, how much money comes out of this business. Sometimes the number is cold,” he said. “After you visit Africa, it is very unique. I felt that I built some kind of special connection with the animals.”

Ivory has long been used for lavish gifts, including jewelry, guns, and sculptures; in China, ivory carving dates back centuries. But the ivory trade continues to decimate the world's elephant population. Demand for the rare material risen in China along with the country's growing wealthy class; the price of ivory has tripled in China over the last four years.

It’s estimated that each year, 30,000 elephants are killed for their ivory tusks, according to WildAid. “The Chinese hold the key to the elephants’ future,” Iain Douglas-Hamilton, founder of Save the Elephants, told the New York Times last year. “If things continue the way they are, many countries could lose their elephants altogether.” Ming originally partnered with WildAid in 2006, standing up for a ban on serving shark fin soup.

Now, Ming is hoping people in his home country will once again open their eyes to another animal cruelty. In addition to the documentary, his "Say No To Ivory" campaign has also involved television ads, billboards, and petitioning the Chinese government to ban ivory sales.

“China is a rising economic country. More and more people are living in better economic conditions now, but we have to balance our desires,” Ming told the Post. “If we don’t balance that, it is pretty obvious we cannot live alone on this planet. If there is a list of species going extinct, I am pretty sure we won’t be last on that list.”

This undated image released by Animal Planet shows retired Chinese professional basketball player Yao Ming with a baby elephant. Ming sets off to help save Africa's elephants and rhinos from extinction by changing a 1,000-year-old Chinese tradition and ending the trade of illegal ivory and rhino horn in his native China in an Animal Planet special airing in the fall.

Since retiring from the Houston Rockets in 2011, basketball player Yao Ming has set his sights on some impressive new goals -– this time without a net. Ming, a native of Shanghai, China, has vowed to put an end to the ivory tusk trade in his home country to stave off the endangered African elephant’s path to extinction. To bring his mission to the masses, Ming, 33, traveled to Africa with the WildAid foundation to document the poaching crisis for a new documentary, “The End of the Wild.”
The metaphors are perhaps too easy: basketball’s gentle giant aiming to save Africa’s gentle giants: The 7-foot-6 Yao, 33, said in a recent interview that he had connected with Africa particularly because “many animals there are bigger than me.” As a shy, nervous 22-year-old NBA rookie, Yao Ming confronted the concentrated power of Shaquille O’Neal for the first time - and came out a winner. Now, more than a decade later and long retired from the game, the former Houston Rockets star faces a challenge perhaps as daunting as it is radically different: to wean the Chinese nation off its love of ivory and save Africa’s dwindling elephant population. The metaphors are perhaps too easy: basketball’s gentle giant aiming to save Africa’s gentle giants; the man who built a bridge between China and the United States now trying to bridge another vast cultural divide, between his nation’s nouveau riche and the people and animals of Africa. The 7-foot-6 Yao, 33, said in a recent interview that he had connected with Africa particularly because “many animals there are bigger than me.”
Yao Ming has traveled the world for his basketball career, and now he is on a new journey, aiming to use his star power to reverse centuries-old Chinese traditions that result in dwindling rhino and elephant populations

Prince William, David Beckham and Yao Ming are teaming up to spread the word and protect endangered elephants and rhinos. "Imagine if all the people in the world could fit into one stadium," Beckham opens up a new WildAid public service announcement that was shot in September 2013 and started airing last month.

"Sadly, all the wild rhinos in the world can -- with room to spare," the Duke of Cambridge says after Beckham. "For some species, it's almost too late. There are only seven Northern White Rhino left." The trio are seen walking into Wembley Stadium in awe of the great rhinos walking around on the grass. Beckham asks the viewers to tell their friends and family never to buy rhino horns.

"Together, we can save our wild rhinos," William says.
The final line is "When the buying stops, the killing can too." Peter Knights, the executive director for WildAid, calls the PSA one of the "most ambitious" announcements ever.

*update*
Clumsy Baby Elephants - Published on Nov 10, 2014

Adorable Clumsy Baby Elephants
(The Huffington Post (By Ryan Grenoble) -
Dear Mother Nature,
We aren't sure what you were thinking when you made baby elephants. Were you aware their ears and trunk would flop everywhere comically, or did that just happen by chance and you decided to roll with it? How did you fit so much cute into one clumsy little creature? Regardless, we just wanted to drop you a line to say thank you...

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Photo courtesy Animal Planet / Associated Press, Twitter/@si_vault, WildAid / YouTube, and Yao Ming Blog