Nature Partners with Sesame workshop for Sesame Street and the Great Elephant Adventure special

 Join Elmo and his Sesame Street friends on a once-in-a-lifetime African safari adventure in a special PBS Nature primetime crossover. Sesame Street and the Great Elephant Adventure premieres on Wednesday, October 14 at 8/7c on PBS and PBS KIDS (check local listings) and will stream on pbs.org/nature, YouTube,pbskids.org, the PBS KIDS Video app, and the PBS app.  

After adopting an orphaned elephant online, Elmo, Abby Cadabby, and Nina travel to the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya to meet the young elephant and her keepers. In their first-ever safari, the Sesame Street friends embark on a journey that takes them from the caring confines of the elephant sanctuary to the unpredictable African bush, where they come face to face with some of nature’s most iconic wildlife, including lions, zebras, giraffes and hippos. 

The adventure begins at the group's safari lodge, where they meet the lodge manager and her young daughter, who introduce Elmo and Abby to Kenya's culture, nature and wildlife. Along the way, Elmo struggles with the idea of leaving his adopted elephant behind but comes to learn that the greatest way to care for his new friend is to let her thrive where she belongs: in the wild.

'Collaborating with Sesame Workshop on this special Nature episode is an incredible opportunity to introduce young audiences to the wonder of the natural world', said Fred Kaufman, Executive Producer for Nature. 'Through Elmo and Abby’s adventure, we hope families will be inspired to explore together and to discover why protecting wildlife is so important'.

“Bringing Elmo and the Sesame Street friends into the world of Nature allows us to tell a unique story filled with adventure, discovery, and heart,” said Sal Perez, executive producer for Sesame Workshop. “We hope this special event sparks curiosity in children and encourages them to see themselves as explorers and problem solvers, while reminding viewers of every age that some of life's greatest lessons come from experiencing nature."

Nature: Sesame Street and the Great Elephant Adventure is a Sesame Workshop and The WNET Group production. The special is directed and produced by Benjamin Lehmann. For Sesame Workshop, Sal Perez and Kay Wilson Stallings are Executive Producers. For Nature, Fred Kaufman is Executive Producer. Bill Murphy is Series Producer. Janet Hess is Series Editor, and Danielle Broza is Digital Content & Strategy Lead. Nature is a production of The WNET Group and PBS.

Major support for Nature: Sesame Street and the Great Elephant Adventure was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional support is provided by Sandra Lyu and Rusty Foreaker, Sarah Lyu, Claire and Meyer W. Frank and Leanne Frank Charitable Foundation, and Elise, Lynette and Richard Jaffe. Series funding for Nature is made possible in part by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Sarah and Sandra Lyu in memory of Seung and Dorothy Lyu, Charles Rosenblum, Kathy Chiao and Ken Hao, Lillian Goldman Charitable Trust, Paul L. Tilley and Family, Colin S. Edwards, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Filomen M. D’Agostino Foundation, Gregg Peters Monsees Foundation, Koo and Patricia Yuen, Seton J. Melvin, Madeline and Stephen Anbinder, Yung and Ming Hsien Wang, Kitty Hawks and Larry Lederman, Sandra Atlas Bass, and public television viewers. Additional funding is provided by Bradley L. Goldberg Family Foundation, Arlene and Milton D. Berkman, Perpetual Kindness Foundation and Sun Hill Renewal Fund.

Since 1982, Nature has pioneered a television genre that is now widely emulated in the broadcast industry, bringing the natural world to millions of viewers. The series has won more than 800 honors from the television industry, the international wildlife film communities and environmental organizations, including 21 Emmys and three Peabodys. Nature is available for streaming concurrent with broadcast on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS App, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO. Classic episodes are available on various FAST channel platforms and on PBS Passport.

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