Greetings!
It’s a new year and with that comes the start of IEF’s 2022 conservation project support! Because of you and your commitment to elephants our 23 projects in 14 countries stretch from the jungles of Sumatra to the deserts of Namibia to research labs in Texas! Despite the current global challenges and setbacks we are all navigating our reach is truly global and making an impact for elephants. We are excited to share the African Savannah elephant projects with you in today’s eNewsletter, but stay tuned for future eNewsletters covering Asian elephant, African Forest elephant, and ex-situ projects.

In 2022 the African Savannah elephant conservation projects you’re supporting cover everything from anti-poaching patrols, training community conservationists, educating people and seeking solutions for human-elephant conflict. Human elephant conflict is the negative interactions between humans and wild elephants that lead to harmful results for people, their property, and for elephants. Examples of HEC are elephants raiding crops and damaging property caused by increasing human expansion into historic elephant habitat. Check out this year’s projects:

Big Tusker Project: Providing aerial surveillance and on the ground support to Kenya’s last remaining population of Big Tuskers protects these iconic elephants carrying exceptionally large ivory at over 100 pounds per tusk.

Conservation of elephants in key areas of Murchison Falls Conservation Area (MFCA) and Kadepo National Park: Building on previous work to take back Uganda’s protected areas from poachers, this project supports the construction of additional ranger stations in the heart of poaching country.

Habitat Fragmentation Monitoring and Community Capacity Building for Elephant Conservation in Kafta-Sheraro National Park, Tigray Ethiopia: This important study provides scientific evidence to policymakers regarding habitat fragmentation, elephant populations, and environmental problems to inform the country’s comprehensive elephant management plan.

Human-Elephant Conflict Mitigation in the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA), Zambia: Studying one of the world’s largest conservation areas, this project monitors wildlife movement corridors, landscape utilization, and connectivity between cross-border elephant populations. It also teaches communities about low-cost conflict deterrents like poliwire fencing.

Mount Kenya Horse Patrol Team: The Mount Kenya Horse Patrol Team protects this UNESCO World Heritage Site expanding the reach of local law enforcement to reduce poaching and other illegal activities.

PEACE (People and Elephants Amicably Co-Existing) Eastern Area Conflict Mitigation Program: Focusing on areas where people are frightened and frustrated by elephants, this project teaches these communities, villages, and farmers how to peacefully live alongside elephants and uses education to replace fear with understanding.

Support of the Anti-Poaching Teams 9-1 & 9-2 of Northern Rangelands Trust Conservancies, Kenya: The joint anti-poaching teams are composed of armed rangers that protect wildlife and the communities of NRT, the gold standard of conservancy programs, leading to significant declines in elephant poaching and crime in the region since 2010.

Support to DNPW/CLZ K9 Unit Operations in Lower Zambezi, Zambia: Trained for tracking and detection of illegal wildlife products like ivory, bushmeat, pangolin, rhino horn, rifles, and more, the K9 Unit works to help law enforcement during patrols, vehicle searches, and security checkpoints.

Using Social Network Analysis to Achieve Faster Conservation Education Outcomes, Uganda: Using the concept of a key person who inspires or guides the action of others this project teaches elephant conservation ethics to student influencers with the intention of more quickly creating an understanding throughout the community of wild elephants and their behavior.