The goal of this project is to stabilize a healthy asian elephant population in DAK LAK province, viet NAM, which is a critical hotspot for asian elephant conservation

This $400,000 Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of the Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service under the Asian Elephant Conservation Fund (CFDA 15.621) is supporting efforts to stabilize the endangered Asian elephant population in Dak Lak Province, Vietnam. The primary objectives include better understanding elephant population dynamics through GPS-collaring and monitoring, improving human-elephant conflict mitigation and community engagement, and enhancing habitat protection to ensure long-term conservation. The lead implementer is World Wildlife Fund, Inc. (WWF), which is partnering with WWF-Vietnam to carry out on-the-ground activities such as adapting human-elephant conflict strategies, strengthening community-based response teams, and improving habitat quality in key corridors. This 3-year project aims to build a sustainable conservation program for the critically important Asian elephant population in this region of Vietnam.

According to the latest report from the general department of forestry, only about 75-130 individuals remain in the wild, primarily distributed along the borders of viet NAM with laos and cambodia. With this dwindling but vital population, the conservation of elephants in this area is a key priority for the viet NAM government and WWF. The eastern plain landscape (EPL) in viet NAM houses the largest elephant population, with 60-70 individuals living within YOK DON national park (ydnp). This park is located in DAK LAK province and is the second largest protected area in the country. The elephants in ydnp account for 70-75% of the wild elephant population in viet NAM. But these populations are at risk from factors such as habitat loss and degradation and human-elephant conflict (HEC). The mixed deciduous dipterocarp and semi-evergreen forest in ydnp that are a source of food for elephants have declined and ydnps natural waterholes dry up during the dry season. Due to lack of food and water sources during this period, wild elephants often move into neighboring villages, which leads to HEC. As such, HEC stands as one of the foremost threats to the survival of elephants in viet NAM. Twenty-six elephants have been found dead in DAK laks forests between 2009 and 2017, and the causes of these deaths are, as yet, unknown but are suspected to be a result of HEC, herbicide poisoning, or potential natural causes. There is a need to support the government to better understand the root-causes for these deaths and develop a mitigation strategy. There are also gaps in knowledge on movement patterns that do not allow for informed conservation decision making. Changes in movement patterns may be due to a variety of reasons, and understanding detailed movement patterns will be essential for identifying and protecting appropriate habitat corridors, key habitat areas, and managing HEC.building on past conservation programs in ydnp, WWF-US, WWF-viet NAM, and the DAK LAK elephant conservation center (decc) will lead a series of activities to stabilize the elephant population in DAK LAK province through better understanding elephant population dynamics, improving coexistence with communities, and habitat protection. Proposed activities under objective 1 include GPS-collaring and tracking data analysis, camera trapping for monitoring, and identifying the root causes of elephant death to prevent population decline, all to better understand the elephant population status in DAK LAK province. Activities under objective 2 include adapting the HEC strategy and supporting implementation using the C2C: conflict to coexistence approach, strengthening community engagement through community-based response teams, and raising awareness of HEC through communications campaigns, all to improve HEC management and minimize the impacts on local communities. Finally, activities under objective 3 include improving habitat quality to meet elephant resource needs, enhancing efforts to protect elephant habitat in key corridors to enable movement, and strengthening transboundary collaboration between provinces in viet NAM and cambodia, all to ensure a stable habitat for the perpetuation of a healthy elephant population. This project will, overall, help build a sustainable long-term elephant conservation program in DAK LAK province.