Hope Attenborough is the official elephant mascot of Positive Academia and the symbolic guide of The Fables of the Academic Zoo. She was born in South India and traveled to the UK as a present for Nila Sathish. Hope was named by the resourceful doctoral student Togan Kılıç, and Lisa Thomas during our very first Positive Academia workshop at KEDGE Business School in Marseille, symbolizing the start of what aims to be a lasting and meaningful partnership between Positive Academia and KEDGE.
Hope emerged as a symbol of care, compassion, belonging, and collective flourishing within academic life. Hope is dedicated to David Attenborough, who turns 100 years old at the same time our collaboration with KEDGE is born. Inspired by David Attenborough, Hope encourages academics and doctoral students to observe academia differently–not simply as a system of productivity, competition, and performance, but as a living ecosystem shaped by relationships, behaviors, environments, emotions, and communities.
Hope believes that academia becomes more caring when people move together rather than alone. As an elephant Hope symbolizes:
- Relationality
- Care
- Memory
- Emotional intelligence
- Mentorship
- Protection
- Wisdom
- Resilience
- Collective movement
Like elephant herds in nature, Hope reminds academics that survival should never come at the expense of humanity, kindness, care, or belonging. Within the world of the Academic Zoo, Hope acts as a gentle observer and guide, helping individuals navigate the landscape of their academic life. Rather than ignoring the realities of academic pressure, Hope encourages communities to respond through compassion, solidarity, and ‘every little action’ that contributes to a culture of care.
Hope Attenborough is especially known for:
- Walking alongside others
- Supporting cultures of care
- Encouraging reflective storytelling
- Protecting vulnerable voices in the Academic Zoo
- Reminding academics to slow down, listen, reflect, and care for one another.
Her favorite saying is:
“Elephants never walk alone.”
And through growing collaborations, she hopes academia never will either.