Objectives of the Elephant Village and Elephant Park Project

in Luang Prabang

The Elephant Park Project initiative at the Elephant Village in Luang Prabang has clear objectives in the work with Elephants and tourists in Luang Prabang, Laos. The first set of aims concerns the protection, preservation and conservation of Asian elephants especially in Laos. The second one intends to support the local communities which are connected with the project outside of Luang Prabang in the project area. The initiative in cooperation with Tiger Trail Outdoor Adventures has gained high reputation and helps both, animals and men to achieve a better life!

 

Concerning the Asian elephants in Laos the
Elephant Park Project, Elephant Village is working to:

- Providing medical care for the Elephants

- Protect the Asian elephants, which are endangered species, especially here in Laos.

- Preservation with hands-on-activities in cooperation with local communities.

- Free elephants from brutal logging work and offering them a comfortable retirement and better future in tourism activities

- Help elephants with professional medical care and experienced mahouts to ensure their well being (elephants keepers)

- Provide selected and nutritious food for the elephants while they stay in the elephant camp through feeding programs and daily delivery

- Provide the elephants with a natural environment around Luang Prabang near water, rivers, streams and forest.

 

One of the mandates of the "Elephant Village" is to rescue ill-treated and overworked elephants from logging and to provide them with a home where they can spend the last of their days in peaceful retirement.   The elephants we buy are often very sick upon arrival, and sadly, not all are able to make a complete recovery from their days of trauma and abuse.

 

Concerning the local economy, the "Elephant Village":

- The Elephant Village and Project in Luang Prabang supports the village economy and the rural development by buying food to the local farmers to feed the elephants (1 elephant eats about 200 kg per day)

- The Elephant Village provides jobs for locals from the surrounding villages: like Mahouts, local activity guides, farmers, boat drivers, maintenance staff, cooks and waitresses… The team now has about 30 staff members in the field

- The Elephant Village and project funds activities in the neighboring village Xiem Lom. It also includes regular support to the local school.

- Create and manage a new tourist attraction for Luang Prabang

From a general point of view our project provides a good example of sustainable tourism and how to successfully link conservation with tourism.

 

 

 

 

All tours booked via Tiger Trail Outdoor Adventures and including elephant riding, Elephant safari, Elephant adventure tours, trekking, biking and water sports activities benefit the communities in the area. About 40 % of the money collected for elephant riding is investing directly into the Elephant Park Project and the activities of the Elephant Village.

See our pictures gallery

 

 

 

By booking an elephant ride at the Elephant Park Project, you are contributing to the well being of Asian elephants in Laos and you support the elephant protection and conservation… YOU make the difference!!

 

rights for this article by:
http://www.etravelblackboard.com/index.asp?id=76264&nav=13

published on 07 April 2008

 

Tourism is being viewed as a possible way to save Laos’
elephants from extinction, by restoring locals’ pride and financial interest in the animals.

Conservationists warn that Laos, once known as the Land of a Million Elephants, could lose its herds within 50 years if it does not move quickly. "[The situation is] critical," Sebastien Duffillot, co-founder of ElefantAsia, a French-based non-profit organization, told Reuters. "Destruction of habitat has huge impact on wild elephant groups. Domesticated elephants are overworked in logging and thus do not reproduce." ElefantAsia last year began organizing an annual Elephant Festival which was held for the second time recently in the dusty town of Paklay in far western Laos. It attracted 70 elephants and around 50,000 visitors, mostly domestic tourists.

Another tourist attraction is Elephant Park Project, which was set up in 2003 with the aim of saving elephants from the logging industry. It targets tourists with a two-day "Live like a Mahout" program to learn the skills of an elephant keeper, and offers elephant treks near the UNESCO World Heritage listed city of Luang Prabang.

There is also an elephant watchtower, which allows visitors to stay overnight and see wild elephant herds from up high. Markus Neuer, manager of the Elephant Park Project, said until recently there had been no concerted effort to save elephants in this largely impoverished nation.

"Until now, there was no station for breeding and no real control over the numbers, registration and a real lack of professional medical care," he told Reuters.

However, funding is a constant issue, as elephants are expensive to keep, and squabbling between the various groups -- those privately funded and NGOs -- has also hampered efforts. And as more companies and provinces eye elephant trekking as a revenue stream, industry watchers expect the debate about elephants being exploited to only get louder.

Dr. Klaus Schwettmann, a former adviser of the elephant watchtower which is now managed by villagers, said tourism might not be the perfect solution but realistically it was the best. "Advantages include opening to the outside world, jobs and opportunity for the villagers to learn and understand. Whether we like it or not, jobs and money are always the key," he said.