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Hampshire-based adventurer and conservationist Holly Budge was quite literally on top of the world when she summited Mount Everest to raise global awareness of the devastating impact of the elephant ivory trade and of her award-winning campaign, How Many Elephants.
Holly is no stranger to world records: she’s bagged two already, for being the first woman to skydive Everest and for racing across Mongolia on semi-wild horses in just nine days.
Holly will attempt a third Guinness World Record today (01 September) at the Alresford Show, where she will showcase a 3.96m tall papier-mâché elephant to simulate the world’s highest African bull elephant. The current world record for the largest papier-mâché structure is 3.82m.
To add to the challenge, Guinness World Record rules won’t allow for any structural frame, so the elephant will be made just from papier-mâché made from newspaper print and wallpaper paste, that will be moulded into 500 ‘tiles’ to create the elephant structure.
Holly is also looking for a home for the ‘elephant’ after the Alresford Show, and is open to receiving ideas from interested parties.
This Guinness World Record attempt will raise further awareness of Holly’s campaign ‘How Many Elephants’, which has won a community award from the Mayor of Winchester for hosting over 1,000 school children from local schools, plus the general public, at her recent exhibition in White Space Alresford.
Louise Caldwell, a Year 2 teacher at St Swithun’s School at Alresford, said, ‘Holly is committed to building a fantastic network of engaged young people in our district, inspiring the next generation of conservationists. The children in our school were excited to have Holly come to the school, as it’s not every day a real life adventurer who has summited Everest, raced across Mongolia on horseback and skydived off a mountain comes to visit!’
‘Holly’s voluntary workshops have also empowered our children, teachers and parents to live with purpose, to embrace challenges and to realise we are never too small to make a difference’, Louise added.
Holly has recently returned from showcasing her exhibition at a world-class conservation conference in Cape Town. She then travelled north to the Kruger National Park and trained with the Black Mambas, the first all-female front line, anti-poaching team.
Holly documented the work of these brave and courageous women on film, and presented a £5,000 cheque from her charity to the Black Mambas for a new patrol vehicle, which will have the charity’s How Many Elephants logo on the side.
Through her adventures and campaign, Holly has raised over £300,000 for a diverse range of charities.
How Many Elephants fundraising continues with Holly’s next major event, a Masquerade Ball on 15 December at the Hilton at The Ageas Bowl, Southampton.
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