Passports from the Heart

  • About
    • Bio
    • Press
      • Clips of My Work
    • Privacy
    • Where I’ve Been
  • Work With Us
    • Contact Me
    • Travel Bloggers Influencer Network (#TBIN)
  • Shop
  • Travel
    • Africa
    • Dominican Republic
    • England
    • Greece
    • Hidden Gems
    • Hotels
    • Impact Travel
    • Thursday Traveler
  • Philanthropy
    • Brands that Give Back
    • Disaster Relief
    • Inspiration
    • Shot@Life

Comfort for a Cause: The Elephant Pants

October 31, 2017 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

FTC Disclosure: Compensation was not received for this review. Opinions are solely those of the author based on product provided by The Elephant Pants.

Over the last year during my travels I’ve had encounters with elephants both in the United States and Africa. During my trip to Zambia last October, I remember telling my colleagues that I was praying to see an elephant in the wild. And boy did I get that and I may have shed a tear or two. I have a great love and respect for these beautiful creatures. Sadly, their population is declining at an alarming rate. Not only are they losing their habitat but did you know that every 15 minutes an elephant loses their life to poaching? Over the last two years, over 100,000 elephants have lost their lives to this. This is heartbreaking and at this rate we may very well have a world without this animal by 2050.

The Elephant Pants, a fashion brand created in 2014, is working to save the elephants. How? By selling PANTS! I wish I learned about this brand a while ago because they are my new go to. Not only are they stylish but they are COMFORTABLE. More importantly, by selling these pants, over $145,000 has been donated to organizations that work to save elephants.

The team behind The Elephant Pants are truly living up to ‘Be the Change You Wish to See in the World’. Don’t you think? This is the type of fashion I can get behind. Comfort and style for a cause.

Check out my shoot featuring The Elephant Pants

Photography By Andi Perullo Ledesma

Tyke Harem Pants

$24

Black Diamond Boho Pants

$28

 

 About The Elephant Pants:

Through strategic partnerships with organizations dedicated to making the world a better place for elephants, we make sure that a portion of every sale goes towards helping create a sustainable future where elephants thrive. By aligning ourselves with both global and localized grassroots operations, we aim to make a difference for elephants everywhere. While every elephant herd faces its own unique challenges, the tactics needed to overcome them all have one thing in common : humans working together. With partners on the ground wherever there are elephants, we aim to use our products and the lifestyle they inspire as a vehicle for real change.

Filed Under: Brands that Give Back Tagged With: Brands that Give Back, charity, elephant pants, philanthropy, save the elephants, Tusk, Tusk Organization

The Road to Maululu

January 20, 2017 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

Approximately 1-1/2 hours by car off the main road from downtown Livingstone, Africa is the Maululu Clinic. I was in the area with the United Nations Foundation and Shot@Life . Our goal was to see the work the community was doing to provide the locals with immunizations and other healthcare. I’ll be honest. The bumpy dirt pathway made me a bit car sick at times but I tried to focus on my surroundings and to prepare myself for what was to come. The rural areas we were driving through were most definitely a shock as it was certainly conditions I had not seen in person.

During the rainy season, this path isn’t accessible as it quickly overflows which makes it impossible to pass through even for 4 wheel drive vehicles. Our driver shared with us that underground springs and advanced irrigation allows locals to grow many vegetables. The men ride their bikes 2-3 hours in the mornings to deliver the vegetables to downtown Livingstone.

Clearly one of the biggest challenges this clinic holds is transportation. Requests for ambulances take at least 3 hours before they reach the clinic. That’s the minimum. The other challenge is electricity. They only have power for one room which is where the medical refrigerator that holds the vaccines is kept. If a woman goes into labor after dark, the nurses usually resort to holding their phones in their mouths for a source of light while delivering the baby.

The one existing solar panel and refrigerator was donated by the Japanese Government.

Despite accessibility  being such a challenge, this clinic serves over 1600 people. The intake building has three rooms. One which is the office, one to administer medications, and one to store medications. The clinic also has cement benches in the shade outside to help cool the women and their children off. The day I visited it was 105.8 F.

The head nurse, Annie, has been working at the clinic for 2 years. She is an encouragement to the young mothers who visit the clinic. When speaking to some of the women, she gave them gentle pushes to speak up for themselves when answering questions and to look us in the eye. She encouraged them to be confident. Many women in this area are taught to be seen and not heard. Annie believes they should have a voice too.

Nurse Annie

Something that I found fascinating at the Maululu clinic was that they had a mother’s shelter. This is where mothers stay and wait on the birth of their child reducing risk of delivering at home and facing problems without a nurse present. The mothers potentially can be there for several weeks.

Muntinta ,who was 9 months pregnant, and her mother Beatrice had been waiting at the mother’s shelter for at least one week when we met. It’s a three hour walk from her home so she was patiently waiting at the clinic to give birth. Her mother was very excited at the arrival of her first grandchild.

Beatrice and her daughter Muntinta 

Muntinta shared with us that she will make sure her child receives all immunizations as she wants to protect the baby from disease. Her biggest hope for her unborn child is that he/she will be healthy and go to school.

Twenty-three year old Jelina has two children Maria (3 years) and Feelnes (11 months). Both children have had all immunizations. Her hopes for her children are that they will become educated and maybe become nurses.

Prisca has seven children ages fifteen, eleven, ten, nine, seven, six, and seven months. She shared with us that she only became educated about family planning after the first four children were born. Many friends in her community also have seven children. Her dreams for her children are that they become educated as she sees it as a real opportunity for success. Her children have also received immunizations. She said, “when your children are immunized they are healthy and free from disease.”

While the women had their children checked out by Nurse Annie, the men had gathered for their village meeting. I snapped a photo from our car as we were leaving.

I left feeling inspired. Despite major challenges and lack of resources, people like Nurse Annie don’t focus on the negative. They focus on how they can change and save lives.

The United Nations Foundation and Shot@Life team outside the Maululu clinic.

 

 

 

 

*I visited Zambia, Africa as part of the United Nations Foundation Blogger Fellowship*

Filed Under: Africa, Shot@Life Tagged With: Africa, immunizations, Impact Travel, livingstone, Maululu Clinic, philanthropy, shot@life, Social Good, United Nations Foundation, vaccines, Zambia

A New Journey

November 8, 2016 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

 

cropped-PassportsFromTheHeart_FINAL-1-e1478625727336.png

For six and a half years, many have known me as the editor of Pretty in the Queen City. I created the site after the closing of my talent agency in 2010. At the time I was only seeking a creative outlet. I could never have imagined what would come from sharing my thoughts, feelings, and opinions.

The path provided me with incredible opportunities – my writing appeared on beauty sites for Tyra Banks and Beauty Stat, and I was named one of Charlotte’s Most Stylish by Charlotte STYLE magazine. I enjoyed a Pretty in the Queen City segment on the show Charlotte Today, sharing my expertise to Charlotte’s most stylish viewers. I was honored to create a limited edition lipstick with iMpact color cosmetics. I won the Most Impactful Woman Award through Women With Know How magazine, traveled the world, and met amazing people along the way. It’s been quite a journey. It has grown me into who I am today, but with that growth came a new mission for me, and a new calling.

For the last year I have really been focusing on my true passion….Travel and Philanthropy. It’s my desire to encourage individuals to not only travel but to also immerse themselves within the culture of the places they are visiting. It’s my desire to encourage individuals to make lasting impacts while traveling.  It’s my desire to encourage individuals to serve communities….to give back to those around them. It’s my desire to share stories of people from around the world. Stories that connect us all.

In the near future I will also begin sharing with you a t-shirt line meant to encourage, inspire, and empower. As I am sure you could guess…a portion of sales will go to charity.

I am grateful for the support of my friends and followers over the years and I am looking forward to sharing this new journey with you.

Welcome to Passports from the Heart. 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: charity, giving back, philanthropy, travel, Travel Blogger

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 8
  • Next Page »

I’m a Member!

Lonely Planet Pathfinders badge image
International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association    

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Sign up to receive email updates daily and to hear what's going on with us!

Looking for Something?

Shop Now

Follow us

  • 1,044 Fans
  • 53,513 Followers
  • 111 Subscribers
  • 18,290 Followers

The Latest

Romantic Mountain Getaway with Carolina Mornings

Romantic Mountain Getaway with Carolina Mornings

April 17, 2018 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

My husband and I just celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary and I wanted to arrange something very special for him. He's such a hard worker, travels the world quite often, and needed nothing more than a few days to relax. We only live two and a half hours from Asheville, so that was the perfect choice for a … [Read More...]

Travel

Romantic Mountain Getaway with Carolina Mornings

Romantic Mountain Getaway with Carolina Mornings

April 17, 2018 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

My husband and I just celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary and I wanted to arrange something very special for him. He's such a hard worker, … [Read More...]

My Journey to Mt Everest Base Camp (6 Months to Go!)

My Journey to Mt Everest Base Camp (6 Months to Go!)

April 16, 2018 By Amelia Old 2 Comments

It has been a year since I announced my insane idea of hiking to Mt. Everest Base Camp. It has been a year but it has all happened so fast. I … [Read More...]

Philanthropy

How One Life Insurance Company Eases Food Desert Needs

How One Life Insurance Company Eases Food Desert Needs

March 14, 2018 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

Only fifteen minutes outside of Asheville, a city known for its abundance of culinary delights, one Western North Carolina town is deep in a food desert. As with many swaths of Buncombe County, Swannanoa is in a … [Read More...]

International Women’s Day:Invest in Women with Kiva

International Women’s Day:Invest in Women with Kiva

March 8, 2018 By Amelia Old Leave a Comment

Today, March 8th, marks International Women's Day! A global day that celebrates the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. It's also a call to action for accelerating gender parity! What a … [Read More...]

Copyright, Passports from the Heart © 2018. All Rights Reserved. · Log in