Scotland student-illustrators to travel to Sri Lanka

Two Scotland-based Robert Gordon University (RGU) students, who illustrated a children's book about an elephant that saves lives in the face of a devastating tsunami, are to travel to Sri Lanka to meet some of the children who will benefit from their work.

Gray's School of Art digital media students Sophia Grant and Stuart Noble will be accompanied on their journey by former Grampian TV presenter Margaret Donald, who penned the children's tale.

Her latest book was inspired by remarkable true-life accounts of how elephants saved both people and animals in the run-up to the catastrophic Boxing Day tsunami in 2004.

All funds from the book, which is now on sale in India, will be donated to the Colombo-based Foundation of Goodness charity - set up by Aberdeen man Stewart Ritchie and dedicated to providing aid to those affected by the tragedy.

During their six-day trip to Colombo, which is being supported by RGU, the two students - who depart from Britain on Feb 14 - will not only get their first experience of book signing, but will also get to meet some of the children the book aims to help.

Publisher India Research Press has already asked Donald to write a sequel to the tale.