|
ELEPHANT AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION IN WASGAMUWA
Help
conserve the Elephants and other wildlife of Sri Lanka in Wasgamuwa
National Park.
Go back to basics in
stunning rural Sri Lanka and play a part in the conservation and
protection of the country's majestic giants while getting involved in the
local community. A real
gem of a project!
The
activities on this project are diverse - one
moment you could be laying cameras to identify new leopard trails, and then
next you could be staying overnight in a tree-house to watch for elephants.
|
►SUMMARY
FACTFILE |
| Start Dates |
All year round - you choose your
start and finish dates! |
|
Duration |
Minimum stay 2 weeks and up to 1 year, subject to visa
requirements |
| Requirements |
No qualifications needed, just a
big heart and a desire to provide care and support. |
|
Price |
From £995 /
US$1,495 for 2 weeks, ranging to £2,835 / US$4,345 for 12 weeks.
Full Price List and other
Currencies |
| What's included |
►Accommodation
►Food
►Meeting you at the Airport
►Transfer to your accommodation
►Full pre-departure support
►Local in-country team support
and backup
►24-hr emergency support
►Two free T-shirts. |
|
What's not included |
Flights, Insurance. |
|
Who can do this Project? |
All our projects are
open to all nationalities.
Unless otherwise stated, you need to be aged between 17 and 70+ |
Also on this
page:
PROJECT OVERVIEW
The National Park of Wasgamuwa is a
dedicated area of conservation, a stunning expanse of grasslands and hills
described by locals as the most beautiful place in the whole of Sri Lanka. Elephants
are synonymous with Sri Lanka, and have lived alongside the people of
this incredible country as long as the civilisation has existed. Be a
part of the conservation effort and get to know the real Sri Lanka!
The project, run by SLWCS, one of
Sri Lanka's top Conservation Societies, is well structured and enormously
beneficial to the local people and environment. In 2008, the SLWCS was selected by the United Nations
Development Programme to be a recipient of the prestigious Equator Prize 2008.
The Equator Prize is an international award that honours community-based
projects that represent outstanding efforts to reduce poverty through the
conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
The main aim of the project is to "save
elephants, other biodiversity and their habitats by helping people". The
activities undertaken on this project are vast, and you could find yourself
involved in any number of things while working and living in Wasgamuwa. One
moment you could be laying cameras to identify new leopard trails, and then
next you could be staying overnight in a tree house to watch for elephants.
If you want to go back to the very basics, in a
stunningly beautiful part of the world, helping local people and the
local wildlife this project is perfect for you. You’ll be doing work
that is really valued and that makes a significant difference to
people’s lives. The location is breathtaking with incredible scenery and
wildlife set in the remote hinterland of the island, given the accolade,
by natives, as the most beautiful place in Sri Lanka.
WHAT YOU'LL GAIN FROM DOING THIS PROJECT:
WORK CONTENT:
The work you can get involved in is diverse and fascinating.
It also covers a broad range of elements and activities. You’ll be
conducting all the work yourself, but will of course have the
supervision and guidance of either the project researcher or his
assistant. The work might not only be vigorous but can also be mentally
challenging, due to the warm and humid climatic conditions (especially
in summer) but the work is also extremely satisfying and rewarding!
There can be a lot of physical activity involved in the project, you may
be walking up to 10 kilometres a day and / or cycling up to 15
kilometres a day! You’ll also be monitoring the ‘elealert’ electric
fence that the SLWCS has developed. This greatly reduces the
human-elephant conflict in the area as it protects the locals farmland,
which is their livelihood. The elephants are kept out by the electric
fences and in turn, protected themselves (as they are not ruining the
local populations livelihood, the locals have no reason to attack and
hurt the elephants.) The project has a broad scope and volunteers will
be expected to help out in any of the research projects and operational
needs summarized below to accomplish the objectives of the Society. Not
all these activities will be available at one time – you’ll likely be
involved in several, or a selection, depending on the needs of the
conservation society we work with. Below is a list of the current
activities, but some of these can change depending on what is required
at the you’re there and on other factors , such as the weather:
ELEPHANT RESEARCH
-
Tank (where
the elephants bathe) monitoring
-
Trail transects (a hike to
identify if elephants have been in the area) on the trails that range from
5-10 kilometres on undulating to steep terrain.
-
Road transects outside
(buffer zone) of the national park.
-
Park ID - identification
of elephants within the park
-
Fence monitoring - in both
Pussellayaya and Weheragalagama
-
Observations of elephants
from tree hut and at tanks.
LEOPARD RESEARCH
-
Leopard transect - Transects are “lines” in
the forest that scientist use to collect data on their study animal. To
observe leopard sign, you will walk several trail transects, carefully
noting and recording the presence of pugmarks, scats, and scrapes. While
searching for leopard sign, you will also be recording data on elephants.
While sound¬ing very basic, monitoring transects is the first and most
important step to investigating wildlife by more sophisticated methods.
-
Leopard camera trapping
-
Camera checking
SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND AGRO/SOCIAL FORESTRY
RESEARCH
-
Village Headman (GND) Surveys
-
HEC (Human-Elephant Conflict) and HLC
(Human-Leopard Conflict) assessment surveys
-
Project Orange Elephant (alternative crops
project that is providing locals with oranges to farm as well as their usual
crops. Elephants do not eat citrus fruits, so even if the farmland was
destroyed by elephants the livelihood of the locals would not be ruined as
they still have the oranges to sell.
BIODIVERSITY RESEARCH
FARMING & AGRICULTURE
-
Data on farming operations (such as number of
eggs produced, milk production, health issues, paddy/fruit production)
OPERATIONS AND BASIC HOUSEKEEPING
-
Cleaning and maintenance of vehicles,
bicycles and other equipment
-
Clearing / Cleaning of field bases and
equipment
-
Packing / Storing and Stock taking of all
equipment before departure of groups of volunteers / at least every two
months.
GIS RESEARCH
WHAT THE PROJECT
GAINS FROM YOUR VOLUNTEERING:
“The volunteer program is an
integral component of the sustainable initiatives we are implementing in Sri
Lanka. There has been a completely new economic development at the local
level just based on the volunteer program. You can observe this in the
growth and development of so many of the local stakeholders who are directly
and indirectly benefiting from the program. Even for the Wasgamuwa National
Park we provide their biggest revenue. We hope to initiate a study just to
assess the economic impact of the volunteer program at Wasgamuwa.”
Dr Ravi Corea, President and Founder of the Sri Lankan Wildlife Conservation
Society ABOUT WASGAMUWA NATIONAL PARK:
The
location is amazing, with breathtaking scenery and wildlife set in the
remote hinterland of the island, given the accolade – by natives – as
the most beautiful part of Sri Lanka.
This placement is ideal if you enjoy wildlife and the
outdoors - there is plenty to keep you occupied in this beautiful
region. The surrounding jungles and villages can be explored easily by
foot or bike and trips to other parks in the region can be arranged.
This
beautiful and untamed region is full of photo opportunities -
outstanding rivers, lakes and wildlife that make for a photographer's
paradise. There is no other entertainment, thus you'll enjoy serenity
and spending time alone.
The
Maduru Oya National Park, which is about an hour away by jeep, is
renowned for its Elephant population and Elephant sightings during an
organised safari are very common - the amount of wildlife in this area
of Sri Lanka is just incredible!
This is
a remote area with very basic facilities but will give you a true Sri
Lankan experience.
The teaching project in Wasgamuwa was
initiated by the Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Society (SLWCS) as a way
of reducing the human-elephant conflict in the region. Through community
participation the SLWCS aims to resolve this conflict over the coming years. The
on-going goal is to increase the level of English amongst villagers. Read more about the
goals of the SLWCS
programme and how your work as a volunteer will assist with these.
In 2008, the SLWCS was
selected by the United Nations Development Programme to be a recipient
of the prestigious Equator Prize 2008. The Equator Prize is an
international award that honours community-based projects that represent
outstanding efforts to reduce poverty through the conservation and
sustainable use of biodiversity.
REQUIREMENTS: CAN YOU DO THIS PROJECT?
-
You don't need any qualifications to
participate in this project.
-
Please bear in mind that this project
is only suitable for those people who enjoy reading and solitude as there is
nothing to do in the evenings except socialise with the other volunteers!
-
BUT, if you want to gain an excellent
cultural experience that is worthwhile and gives you much, much more than
you'd get as a mere tourist, then this is an excellent placement.
Interesting
interview with innovative thinkers in Sri Lanka today who are
working towards creating a balance between human development and
elephant survival with untraditional methods and sensitive thinking. |
|
|






OPTIONAL ADD-ONS


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION





Volunteer sitting in a hide to observe animals



A leopard caught by a camera trap in the dead of night
Read Volunteer Reports on
Wasgamuwa
MAP OF SRI LANKA
The Project House and the amazing view!
|