Rewilding Thai Elephants
Donation protected
Thailand. Home to some of the world's most beautiful landscapes and islands, delicious food and wonderful smiles. Its beauty hasn't gone unnoticed, and the double-edged sword of tourism has rapidly swept through the country in the past decades. Thailand is also home to one of the largest populations of Asian elephants in captivity. They have been the centre of attention in many recent campaigns, since many of these gentle giants are being treated poorly in questionable 'sanctuaries' throughout Thailand. All those photos you see of people feeding, riding and washing elephants, chained or unchained, keep the tourism industry thriving. The horrors these elephants endure before and during their stay at these parks are strategically obscured from view.
Luckily, there are now organisations that exist only to improve captive elephant welfare and promote true ecotourism. I am heading to Thailand for three months this September to help assess the success of a rewilding programme, by studying elephants that have been released back into semi-wild surroundings.
Any donations are more than welcome! The money will go mostly towards the local village that will support my stay there, the foundation itself and of course transport and research means.
Background
Mahouts Elephants Foundation (MEF) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving welfare for captive Asian elephants, working in the tourism industry throughout Asia. Their mission is to work toward a shift in attitude within tourism that facilitates the return of captive, working elephants to a protected forest habitat. They also work closely together with local villages to create sustainable ecotourism. Everybody gets to be happy, including the elephants.
In 2015, MEF partnered up with the Centre for Compassionate Conservation, an education and research centre based at the University of Technology Sydney. Thanks to this partnership, students have been able contribute to the scientific research needed to inform future Asian elephant conservation and protection. "The CfCC/MEF collaboration is exceptionally positioned to facilitate research regarding Asian elephants, and the mahout-elephant culture. We know that this research has the potential to improve the knowledge we use to improve the lives of elephants and the people that work with them. To create a model of elephant conservation and ecotourism their combined long-term study will assess four key areas:
1) The transition of elephants from captivity to the forest.
2 ) The social behaviour and habitat use of transitioned elephants.
3) The relationship between local mahouts and the elephants.
4) Educational shift of ecotourists when presented with alternative "elephant-centric opportunities."
My own background
I have been a veterinarian for the past 4 years, working in the Amsterdam region. I work mostly with horses, but on occasion treat companion and zoo animals. I love working hands-on with animals, but haven't been able to shake the feeling that I want to contribute to animal welfare and conservation on a larger scale. I started looking around for opportunities to contribute to running projects and eventually decided to start a second Master's programme to gain more experience as a researcher. During the course of this Master's programme – Behavioural Ecology at the Utrecht University – I finished an extensive research project at a Dutch zoo, focused on improving the welfare of a bull Asian Elephant with severe stress-driven behaviour (stereotypy). I was so inspired by this magnificent creature and the problems its species faces in Asia, my mind was made up.
My research project
The project will be lead by Dr. Liv Baker, one of the leading researchers at the Centre for Compassionate Conservation, and executive director at the Institute for Compassionate Conservation. I will help conduct a behavioural study at both sites Mahouts Elephant Foundation currently uses for their rewilding programme, in the north-west of Thailand.
The current focus of the study is to design a framework that takes into account the diverse and less obvious factors that contribute to the wildness of captive Asian elephants, such as freedom of choice in daily life.
As we currently still defining the specifics of the research, more details will follow VERY soon.
Much love and thanks,
Mara! :)
P.S. You will be rewarded with updates and photos of the elephants in their protected forest!
Luckily, there are now organisations that exist only to improve captive elephant welfare and promote true ecotourism. I am heading to Thailand for three months this September to help assess the success of a rewilding programme, by studying elephants that have been released back into semi-wild surroundings.
Any donations are more than welcome! The money will go mostly towards the local village that will support my stay there, the foundation itself and of course transport and research means.
Background
Mahouts Elephants Foundation (MEF) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving welfare for captive Asian elephants, working in the tourism industry throughout Asia. Their mission is to work toward a shift in attitude within tourism that facilitates the return of captive, working elephants to a protected forest habitat. They also work closely together with local villages to create sustainable ecotourism. Everybody gets to be happy, including the elephants.
In 2015, MEF partnered up with the Centre for Compassionate Conservation, an education and research centre based at the University of Technology Sydney. Thanks to this partnership, students have been able contribute to the scientific research needed to inform future Asian elephant conservation and protection. "The CfCC/MEF collaboration is exceptionally positioned to facilitate research regarding Asian elephants, and the mahout-elephant culture. We know that this research has the potential to improve the knowledge we use to improve the lives of elephants and the people that work with them. To create a model of elephant conservation and ecotourism their combined long-term study will assess four key areas:
1) The transition of elephants from captivity to the forest.
2 ) The social behaviour and habitat use of transitioned elephants.
3) The relationship between local mahouts and the elephants.
4) Educational shift of ecotourists when presented with alternative "elephant-centric opportunities."
My own background
I have been a veterinarian for the past 4 years, working in the Amsterdam region. I work mostly with horses, but on occasion treat companion and zoo animals. I love working hands-on with animals, but haven't been able to shake the feeling that I want to contribute to animal welfare and conservation on a larger scale. I started looking around for opportunities to contribute to running projects and eventually decided to start a second Master's programme to gain more experience as a researcher. During the course of this Master's programme – Behavioural Ecology at the Utrecht University – I finished an extensive research project at a Dutch zoo, focused on improving the welfare of a bull Asian Elephant with severe stress-driven behaviour (stereotypy). I was so inspired by this magnificent creature and the problems its species faces in Asia, my mind was made up.
My research project
The project will be lead by Dr. Liv Baker, one of the leading researchers at the Centre for Compassionate Conservation, and executive director at the Institute for Compassionate Conservation. I will help conduct a behavioural study at both sites Mahouts Elephant Foundation currently uses for their rewilding programme, in the north-west of Thailand.
The current focus of the study is to design a framework that takes into account the diverse and less obvious factors that contribute to the wildness of captive Asian elephants, such as freedom of choice in daily life.
As we currently still defining the specifics of the research, more details will follow VERY soon.
Much love and thanks,
Mara! :)
P.S. You will be rewarded with updates and photos of the elephants in their protected forest!
Organizer
Mara van Maarschalkerweerd
Organizer
Amsterdam Nieuw West, NL
