IFAW launched the Asian Elephant Security (AEP) problem in 2000, defending Xishuangbanna, Pu’er, and Lincang, the three last remaining Asian elephant habitats in Yunnan province. For higher than 20 years, the problem has been promoting human-elephant coexistence by implementing following strategies: 

Human-elephant battle mitigation 

For the earlier 20 years, IFAW has supplied human-elephant battle (HEC) prevention trainings to not lower than 500 township authorities officers and higher than 100,000 native residents from higher than 50 communities in areas affected by elephant actions. 

In collaboration with the federal authorities in Xishuangbanna, IFAW launched the first HEC prevention ranger group in 2020. IFAW designs a curriculum and trains rangers on strategies to carry out HEC prevention trainings. Rangers then keep trainings at villages in need all 12 months lengthy, providing additional in-depth and effectively timed assist. Since launch, IFAW has supported 16 rangers to supply over 310 trainings to higher than 80% of the villages which have elephant movement in Jinghong.

IFAW has moreover supplied trainings to higher than 500 employees and tour guides from scenic spots on strategies to advertise Asian elephant conservation to people visiting Yunnan. By the use of interactions with the IFAW problem, many native communities in Yunnan have regained pleasure in defending the Asian elephants in China.

Neighborhood enchancment 

IFAW has been supporting eco-alternative livelihoods for people whereas developing group resilience and tolerance to HEC, so that individuals and elephants can coexist. 

From 2000 to 2005, IFAW supplied microcredit loans to native communities to help them shift to totally different crops which is perhaps economically useful and unfavorable to elephants. This method coated 210 households from seven villages and achieved a 35% frequent enhance in income with a 100% reimbursement charge.

In 2020, IFAW started a pilot beekeeping problem in a village known as Daotangqing, which connects elephant habitats with a nature reserve in Xishuangbanna. The 10 households that participated partly 1 of the problem each commit one to 2 days yearly to assist elephant habitat restoration near their village. 

In September 2021, IFAW, Swire Coca-Cola (China) Co Ltd, and Xishuangbanna Tropic Rainforest Conservation Foundation (XTRCF), joined forces to extend the prevailing initiative, named the Carbon Sequestration Neighborhood problem. The problem objectives to determine an eco-friendly group enchancment model which integrates Asian elephant conservation and carbon sequestration. 

Aside from growing the group beekeeping problem to additional villages in Yunnan space, IFAW moreover helped the group residents to maneuver from rising rubber plantations to additional eco-friendly crops with higher carbon sequestration price.

Moreover, photovoltaic panel gear with an put in functionality of 16 kilowatts was put in in Daotangqing. Contributing to carbon emission low cost in China, surplus electrical power generated by the panel shall be associated to the grid, offering further electrical power free for the group’s enchancment.

As of August 2022, 415 beehives had been supplied to native villagers and 1808.2 kilogram of honey had been collected, producing an extra income of virtually 100,000 yuan ($14,480 ) in complete.

The problem moreover empowers native ladies to not solely current income to their family however as well as contribute to group enchancment. Out of the 25 collaborating households, 11 ladies are vigorous members.

In March 2023, with the honey produced throughout the problem, IFAW launched Zero Carbon Elephant-friendly Honey together with Chinese language language retail massive Freshippo. The entire income from the co-branded honey shall be given once more by Freshippo to the group for extra group enchancment.

The zero-carbon certification of the honey product was carried out by expert certification institution Ceprei Certification Physique. It calculated the carbon dioxide emissions of the manufacturing and transportation processes, which was completely offset by the carbon elimination facilities and actions throughout the Carbon Sequestration Neighborhood problem.

IFAW will further refine and scale up the eco-friendly group enchancment model to cowl additional areas affected by human-elephant battle. 

Achievements

Between 2009 and 2014, AEP launched China’s first early warning system in Pu’er Metropolis to warn of potential threats the place Asian elephants’ actions might intersect human train. The system coated 40 communities in 4 mountain townships which is perhaps dwelling to Asian elephants and totally different wildlife.

In 2016, AEP supported the Asian Elephant Early Warning Monitoring Coronary heart in Menghai County of Xishuangbanna to reinforce its monitoring capabilities and equipped 20 forest and group rangers with monitoring devices. With real-time alerts defending over 50,000 native residents that share habitat with Asian elephants, the system effectively prevented about 57 human-elephant battle incidents.

In 2012, IFAW collaborated with Xishuangbanna education authorities and native schools to develop the first animal-themed faculty textbook, Determining Elephants, and a group of applications on Asian elephant security, reaching higher than 30,000 faculty college students from not lower than 60 native schools.