This Sunday, a mighty team of eight Team Elephant athletes ran in the BMW Berlin Marathon for Wild Tomorrow! Read more about our heroic runners and the reasons they ran for wildlife below.

On Sunday September 29, eight sporty nature lovers ran their tails off for the 50th anniversary of the Berlin Marathon. It was a proud moment for Wild Tomorrow as it was our first year as an official Berlin Marathon charity partner, expanding our “Team Elephant” marathon program from New York City to Berlin (and beyond)!

This year’s first Wild Tomorrow Berlin team came together from across the US — Boston, New York, Houston, Philadelphia, and Yellow Springs, Ohio — joined by one runner from the UK and two runners from Germany.

Together, our runners raised an incredible $26,774 for our mission, dedicating each mile and Euro to saving threatened and endangered species and the places they call home.

We were blown away by our Team Elephant runners’ physical and fundraising feats and are über-grateful for their efforts. Congratulations and “danke schön” to Amy, Brandon, Emily, Francis, Kristen, Mariam, Michael, and Oliver!

Meet our runners and learn more about their dedication to wildlife conservation below!

Oliver provided a fun first for Wild Tomorrow: he ran the entire marathon in an inflatable elephant costume! He delighted spectators along the course, especially the children who shouted “Dumbo” and “elephant,” which gave him an extra adrenaline boost! Oliver was doubly motivated to charge the finish line in 2024 because his first marathon was Berlin in 1994, 30 years ago. When he’s not running, Oliver goes the extra mile for Planet Earth through his work in the solar industry. Thank you for everything you do, Oliver!

Emily and Mariam are both animal lovers. On an eye-opening trip to East Africa, Emily adored seeing wildlife, including her favorite animals, giraffes, in the wild and saw how vital it is to protect their habitat. Mariam volunteered caring for orphaned baby rhinos in South Africa in 2022 and decided to use her talents as a runner to help other endangered species.

It was Amy’s first marathon and her passion for rewilding drew her to Wild Tomorrow. Amy has volunteered for Rewilding Europe and has just completed the Frankfurt Zoological Society’s Spring School on project management in conservation. She is now studying for her master’s in Forest and Nature Conservation at Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

Similarly, Brandon jumped at the chance to raise money for a charity whose mission he lives daily. “I understand intimately the need to protect and restore land to regenerate biodiversity, that we need the detritivores just like we need the ocelots.” He and his wife are rewilding their 1.8-acre property in southwest Ohio, where they have removed half of the lawn and planted 120 native trees and shrubs and more than 60 species of wildflowers. Brandon is also an avid runner and was once the director of the Air Force Marathon!

Kristen’s three children love animals and, although they are only aged 1, 4, and 6, are aware of how our daily actions affect wildlife. Kristen chose to fundraise for Wild Tomorrow to show her kids that we can all make a difference in the future of the natural world. She was our top fundraiser for the team with her supporters donating an impressive $5,100 to Wild Tomorrow!

For many of our runners, Berlin was not their first marathon. Kristen, Michael, and Francis are all working towards their World Marathon Majors six stars (competing in six of the world’s major marathons), so adding Berlin to the list with Wild Tomorrow was a highlight on their sporting journey.

If you want to join Team Elephant, check out our website for opportunities to run and ride for Wild Tomorrow. You can cycle (or hike, snorkel, ski, climb...) for wildlife on adventure trips across the year and around the world with Climate Ride.

We have spots up for grabs for the Paris Marathon (April 13, 2025) and Berlin Marathon (September 29, 2025 – join the waitlist!) with details for Cape Town and Chicago 2025 coming soon!

TEAM ELEPHANT RUNS THE BERLIN MARATHON!