Introduction to Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus)

The program will introduce as well provide e-Volunteers with a broad understanding about Asian elephants, their ecology, their role in culture and the need for their conservation. It will help e-Volunteers to learn and improve their knowledge about Asian elephants as well as continue to participate and contribute to elephant research and conservation efforts.

Introduction to Marine Research & Conservation

In this program e-Volunteers will learn how marine research differs from land based research and its importance. e-volunteers will participate in some basic marine research methodologies and learn firsthand about threats to the marine environment, the challenges of conducting marine research and the tremendous need for marine conservation efforts. The program will also focus on the endangered sea turtles and their conservation.

Camera Trapping to Monitor Biodiversity

The program will educate e-Volunteers about the importance of monitoring biodiversity and how remote camera traps can be used for that purpose. E-Volunteers will learn techniques that scientists use to monitor biodiversity, since camera trapping is an interesting research tool with a “wow” factor, this will easily inspire e-Volunteers to develop an interest in biodiversity conservation. E-volunteers will learn how to set up a remote camera in their own backyard to learn interesting behavioral facts about common backyard animals that we pay scant attention to.

Project Orange Elephant (POE): A holistic initiative to mitigate human elephant conflict

This program is for people who love elephants and want to contribute to their protection and to mitigate human elephant conflicts (HEC).

The program is designed to conduct activities such as planting orange trees, collecting data, report writing, writing newsletters, updating the database, analyzing data and fundraising. It is essential to provide farmers with orange trees and to monitor the plants that are already planted. The orange trees act as a deterrent to elephants while providing the farmers with a sustainable income. POE has very effectively minimized HEC for 468 farmers in 27 villages creating an environment where people and elephants can coexist. POE is a critical and important program of the Saving Elephant by Helping People project of the SLWCS. The SLWCS needs the support of e-Volunteers to maintain the continuity of Project Orange Elephant.

e-Volunteers will have the satisfaction of helping poor farmer’s to safeguard their crops, properties and lives from wild elephants while at the same time protecting elephants from getting harassed, injured or killed.

Individual Identification of Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus)

The identification of individual elephants is one of the first steps in studying elephant behaviour, demography, and conservation. Very few studies of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) are based on individual identification hence the importance of our project and this program. By studying individually identified elephants, helps us to understand how social behaviour drives movements, reproductive output, determines population dynamics and ensures long lasting social bonds. e-Volunteers learn in detail the traits that can be used to identify individual elephants, and examine the variability of different traits. Most importantly e-Volunteers will learn how by identifying elephants, we can understand their population dynamics, factors influencing elephant movements and even monitor their health. All of this information is crucial for their long term conservation.

For additional information on how to sign up and program costs please contact us at: info@slwcs.org