Project Grant F24AP01573

THE PROJECT AIMS TO WORK IN COLLABORATION WITH ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE COUNTRIES TO ACCOMPLISH PRIORITY TARGETS OUTLINED IN THE KATHMANDU DECLARATION FOR ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION TO IMPROVE THE CONSERVATION STATUS OF ASIAN ELEPHANTS THROUGH ASSESSMENT CONSERVATION PLANNING AND CONSERVATION ACTIONS.THE CHALLENGE OF CONSERVING ASIAN ELEPHANTS IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM IS NOT CONFINED TO THE BORDERS OF ANY ONE COUNTRY. HABITAT LOSS AND FRAGMENTATION HUMAN ELEPHANT CONFLICT EXTIRPATION OF SMALL POPULATIONS POACHING AND ILLEGAL TRADE ALL THREATEN ELEPHANTS THAT SURVIVE IN ASIA TODAY. FRAGMENTATION OF ELEPHANT HABITATS RESULTS IN A REDUCTION OF AVAILABLE UNDISTURBED SPACES CAUSING ESCALATION OF CONFLICT IN ADJOINING HUMAN DOMINATED LANDSCAPES RESULTING IN THE LOSS OF MORE THAN 600 HUMANS AND 450 ELEPHANTS EVERY YEAR IN ASIA.RECOGNIZING THE ABOVE CHALLENGES AND BASED ON KEY PRIORITIES IDENTIFIED FOR THE CONSERVATION OF ASIAN ELEPHANTS THE ASIAN ELEPHANT SPECIALIST GROUP HAS COLLABORATED WITH GOVERNMENTS AND ORGANIZED THREE ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES MEETING MALAYSIA 2006 INDONESIA 2017 NEPAL 2022 TO DELIBERATE ON CONSERVATION ISSUES RELATED TO ASIAN ELEPHANTS ACROSS THEIR RANGE. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT PLATFORM FOR GOVERNMENT DELEGATES OF THE RANGE STATES TO WORK COLLECTIVELY IN CONSERVING ASIAN ELEPHANTS RESULTING IN THE RATIFICATION OF TWO CONSENSUS DECLARATIONS SHARING A COMMON VISION TO PROMOTE ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION IN ALL RANGE COUNTRIES THROUGH ENHANCED COOPERATION.THE 2017 ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES MEETING RESULTED IN THE SIGNING BY ALL DELEGATES OF THE JAKARTA DECLARATION FOR ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION. THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT ALL 13 ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES DECLARED A COMMON VISION TO PROMOTE RANGE WIDE ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION AFFIRMING THEIR INTENT TO COOPERATE BASED ON THE PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SCIENCE EDUCATION AND TRAINING AND DECLARED THEIR COMMITMENT TO DEVELOP NATIONAL ELEPHANT ACTION PLANS TO CONSERVE ELEPHANTS.IN 2022 BUILDING UPON THE JAKARTA DECLARATION GOVERNMENT DELEGATES ATTENDING THE THIRD ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES MEETING IN NEPAL ADOPTED THE KATHMANDU DECLARATION FOR ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION OUTLINING NINE TARGETED PRIORITY ACTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED BY 2025.THE PROJECT AIMS TO WORK WITH AND ASSIST GOVERNMENTS FROM ALL 13 ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE COUNTRIES IN ACHIEVING PRIORITY TARGET ACTIONS AS OUTLINED IN THE KATHMANDU DECLARATION SPECIFICALLY PROMOTE THE DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL GUIDELINES ON WILDLIFE FRIENDLY LINEAR INFRASTRUCTURE THE RANGE STATES SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF A RANGE WIDE ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION PLAN THE RANGE STATES INITIATE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL ASIAN ELEPHANT DATABASE THE RANGE STATES WORK TOWARDS CREATION OF AN ASIAN ELEPHANT FUND. ALONGSIDE THESE ACTIVITIES THE PROJECT AIMS TO HOST THE TWELFTH SPECIALIST GROUP MEETING IN VIETNAM IN 2024 AND THE FOURTH ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES MEETING IN A RANGE COUNTRY IN LATE 2025.THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT KEY DELIVERABLES TO ADDRESS THE PRIORITY COMMITMENTS IN THE KATHMANDU DECLARATION WILL BE DEVELOPED WITH AT LEAST TWO NATIONAL GUIDELINES FOR WILDLIFE FRIENDLY LINEAR INFRASTRUCTURES A RANGE WIDE ASIAN ELEPHANT ACTION PLAN AN ASIAN ELEPHANT DATABASE A SCOPING REPORT FOR CREATING AN ASIAN ELEPHANT FUND AND AN UPDATED DECLARATION ADOPTED BY ALL 13 RANGE COUNTRIES DURING THE FOURTH ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE STATES MEETING.THE PROJECT OUTCOMES WILL IMPROVE THE CONSERVATION STATUS OF ASIAN ELEPHANTS THROUGH THE COMPLETION OF AT LEAST 70 PERCENT OF TARGETED OF THE KATHMANDU DECLARATION AS WELL AS PRODUCE A NEW DECLARATION IN 2025 ADOPTED BY ALL 13 ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE COUNTRIES TO COLLECTIVELY PROTECT ASIAN ELEPHANTS WITHIN THEIR RANGE. THE INTENDED BENEFICIARIES ARE THE 13 ASIAN ELEPHANT RANGE COUNTRIES COMMUNITIES NEAR FOREST FRINGE AREAS ELEPHANT EXPERTS SPECIALIST GROUP MEMBERS AND INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS WORKING TOWARDS ASIAN ELEPHANT CONSERVATION.