San Francisco based chai brand, David Rio, is supporting rhino conservation one cup of tea at a time. The award-winning, premium chai and tea company has made it part of their corporate philosophy to support animal welfare, working with organisations like International Fund for Animal Welfare, In-Kind Donations and others.

The plight of the black rhino was brought to the attention of the David Rio team after the passing of Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, in 2018. After learning that the same threats that have almost wiped out the northern white rhino continue to threaten black rhino populations, David Rio have made 2019 “the year of the black rhino”.

“We choose the black rhino because we saw the opportunity to have a direct impact on a hopeful prospect through out partnership with Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya,” the David Rio team write on the fundraising page. “Ol Peteja is one the leading conservancies in the restoration of black rhino populations.”

So what does The Year of the Black Rhino look like at David Rio?

• They have named their next chai in the endangered species line after the Black Rhino in honour of Sudan. Their newest product is the Black Rhino Cocoa Chai.
• They have partnered with Ol Pejeta to launch the “Feel the Charge” Black Rhino Campaign, which aims to raise USD 10,000. Anyone who donates will be in with a chance to win a canister of David Rio black rhino cocoa chai if they take a screenshot of their donation receipt and Direct Message (DM) it to @davidriosf.
• They will match up to USD 5,000 in donations to the Feel the Charge Campaign.

We are truly thankful for partners like David Rio who support our conservation efforts. If you are interested in partnering with us towards raising funds for wildlife conservation please contact elodie.sampere@olpejetaconservancy.org.