the ELEPHANT RETREAT CENTRE (ERC)

 
 

As in many places in Asia, elephant owners can not afford to keep and feed their older elephants. In Chitwan National Park Nepal, retired elephants represent a tremendous daily cost, but with no income. So in most cases, elephants are forced to work until their last breath. But we think these old captive elephants deserve to end their lives in peace and dignity. After decades of hard work, and after being sold many times over for hard logging and other painful jobs, we feel they need a break and a comfortable retirement. ERC will offer older elephants:


  1. Bullet Freedom to roam on a large land area with river (with no chaining)

  2. Bullet Important social interaction with other like elephants

  3. Bullet Perfectly balanced food with nutritional supplements, if needed

  4. Bullet Long baths and gentle walks with experienced mahouts

  5. Bullet The best medical care from experienced veterinarians

WELCOME TO erc

"Your project gives the full picture why and how an elephant retreat is possible and important. I will support you and also speak to the National Park service as well as the Parliament and ask GoN to provide the land for free."


-- MP Sunil Babu Pant,

Nepali Parliament

OUR Project

Our Mission

Our mission has 5 main goals:

  1. 1) To give older elephants a complete retirement life in an appropriate environment (acquire land, set up stables, build & staff clinic, etc.)

  2. 2) To negotiate with elephant owners a fair price for sending their older elephants to the retirement community (either by purchase or by rent).

  3. 3) To provide jobs at the centre for the best mahouts, and give them a fair salary and training on the humane treatment of elephants.

  4. 4) To educate all on the needs of working elephants (outreach).

  5. 5) To become as sustainable as possible (reduce donor requirements) by producing revenue through dung paper sales and eco-tourism.

how you can help...

There are many ways to help ERC retirees and potential retirees. Volunteering at the centre while visiting Nepal on vacation is one, and donating needed funds is another. See How to Help for more ways to help rescued animals and to help build the centre

WHY THE ELEPHANT RETREAT CENTRE IS A SUSTAINABLE PROJECT...


Our best guarantees of success are our strong will, our good knowledge of the country and the huge number of people visiting CHITWAN NATIONAL PARK. That's why we chose to settle in this park (instead of BARDIA PARK for example). CHITWAN is the third most visited place after KATHMANDU and POKHARA.


In 2005, 42,600 people came to CHITWAN. This number has tripled in 4 years. In 2009, 114,300 visitors came to the National Park area (mainly foreigners).


People usually stay a few days in lodges around the park or in the few luxury lodges situated into the park. All of them have an elephant rides and most of them make the same tour: visit of the Elephant Breeding Center (belongs to government) - visit of some THARU villages - visit of SAURAHA... Elephant Retreat Centre will offer guides and lodges an extra place to visit for their customers.


Among these places to visit, ERC will be the only charity for elephants and we can expect quite generous supports from some visitors.


We will also put a "charity box" on the desk of the largest lodges of CHITWAN and will dispatch leaves with a short presentation and a "how to help" guide in which visitors will find information on our website, our Facebook pages, and other info on how they can donate through PayPal.