<a href="http://elizabethalkhas.com/wildlife/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/img_1464.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image" id="i-881" alt="Image" src="http://elizabethalkhas.com/wildlife/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/img_1464.jpg?w=487" /></a>

I spent the day with Luca Belpietro and Antonella Bonomi and two of their children, Lucrezia and Jacopo at Amboseli National Park. A short flight from Campi ya Kanzi, Amboseli is home to The Amboseli Elephant Research Project and approximately 1500 African Elephants.

A highlight of the day was the chance to meet and talk with Cynthia Moss, one of the world's top elephant behavior experts. In 1968, Cynthia Moss made a life-changing decision and moved to Africa to study elephants in northern Tanzania with Iain Douglas-Hamilton. Four years later, teaming up with Harvey Croze, she found ideal conditions for studying elephants in Amboseli National Park. Four decades later, her work is the longest-running study of wild elephants ever undertaken, documenting the lives and deaths of almost 3,000 elephants.

What a wonderful down-to-earth person she is. I enjoyed learning about current issues in the region and having the chance to ask some key questions I had for her in person. An honor.

For more information about Cynthia Moss and The Amboseli Elephant Research Project, please visit <a href="http://www.elephanttrust.org">http://www.elephanttrust.org</a>.

As these days pass in Kenya, I often find myself giving thanks to the universe for the people I have met, the education I have received, and the love I have felt from its people. Somehow, over the next few months, I will try to put into words what I have learned, what I feel for this country, and the elephants and wildlife that are keystones to this region of the world.

One might ask, why should I care about Africa when there are so many issues happening right in my own backyard where I live?

To sum, I believe that Africa is home to our history, as a people and to the animals around the world that have come from this place. Both are part of our genetic heritage, our memories as species living and breathing together on this small planet in the universe. And because of this, we must protect these creatures for today and future generations - for our children and our children's children - to have a world where man respects the divine right of other living creatures and the ability to co-exist in peace.

In Africa, and especially in Kenya, we <strong>can</strong> make a difference and I have witnessed the work being done by dedicated people and the possibilities that still exist.

I am looking forward to coming home to make a mark for these people and the animals. I hope you will join me in the effort.

Many thanks Cynthia for being such an inspiration in my journey.