National Elephant Center

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:18:16 GMT

The National Elephant Center is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit managed by a Board of Directors. The Board establishes strategic direction, partnerships and governing policies and will manage The Center. The Board is responsible for fundraising to support capital development and operations. Members of The National Elephant Center board of directors are: Chairman, Mark C. Reed, Executive Director, Sedgwick County Zoo (Wichita, Kansas) Vice Chairman, Dr. Bill Foster, CEO, Birmingham Zoo Secretary, John Lehnhardt, Animal Operations Director, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Treasurer, Jerry Borin, Special Projects Director, Columbus (Ohio) Zoo & Aquarium Anne Baker, PhD., Executive Director, Toledo Zoological Gardens Rick Barongi, Director, Houston Zoo Mike Blakely, Director, Little Rock Zoo Mike Crowther, President/CEO, Indianapolis Zoo Dr. Deborah Jensen, President/CEO, Woodland Park Zoo (Seattle) David Jones, Director, North Carolina...

Elephant Tracks Newsletter

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 13:49:07 GMT

Sign up now to receive Elephant Tracks, the official e-newsletter of The National Elephant Center. We’ll share exciting project news, stories and photos to keep you informed of all the action and development taking place at The National Elephant Center.

Read the latest issue of Elephant Tracks:

October 2008

Help Us Care For Elephants

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:47:39 GMT

We care deeply about elephants. Unfortunately, today they face an uncertain future. That’s why we’re building a new model for elephant care and conservation, unlike anything else.

By educating millions of people each year and contributing vital funds to conservation initiatives around the world, accredited zoos advocate for elephants everywhere. The National Elephant Center takes this commitment to a new level to help ensure a future for elephants.

We need your support to make it a reality and to help the elephants.

You can help care for elephants today by contributing to The National Elephant Center in several exciting and impactful ways:

Elephant Friends

Care for elephants every day of the year – become a friend of The National Elephant Center. Your membership supports the care of elephants and allows us to provide truly exemplary care.

Become a National Elephant Center Friend Today!...

Pachyderm Paradise

We’re creating incredible habitats for elephants. Help us build a state-of-the-art oasis that is sure to have them trumpeting.

Help Now!

Conservation & Education Action Partner

Take an active role in the conservation, science and research that goes into helping elephants around the world. Help us spread the word by supporting education programs that connect people with these magnificent creatures.

Learn more...

Pachyderm Paradise

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:12:12 GMT

Designed to incorporate features from natural ranges, The National Elephant Center will be home to the ultimate elephant oasis.

Imagine a central meander where elephants can forage for browse, traverse giant dunes, discover new places to play and wallop in massive watering holes. Each feature is designed based on firsthand research and observation from elephant experts who have studied elephants for decades, and contains all the elements and activities that elephants love to do.

We’re excited to share these exciting features with elephants at The National Elephant Center but we need your help turning these designs to reality.

Which feature will you support?

The Grand Elephant Meander - $250

There’s nothing like spotting a herd of elephants on the open savannah. This 50-acre sprawling, winding, trail is the ultimate way for elephants to get around.

The Oasis Watering Hole - $500

The perfect escape on a hot day, this large central waterhole will be The National Elephant Center’s social hub.

Enrichment Zones - $750

Throughout the Meander, elephants can discover a variety of unique elements designed to stimulate their natural curiosity. Throughout the trail, elephants can discover mud banks, sift through browse gatherings and play in splash areas.

Elephant Friends

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:11:41 GMT

Care for elephants every day of the year – become a friend of The National Elephant Center. Your membership supports the care of elephants and allows us to provide truly exemplary care including a nutritious diet, veterinary services and daily exercise and enrichment.

Elephant Friend - $30

As an Elephant Friend, you will receive our newsletter with exclusive news and updates about elephants at The National Elephant Center and around the world.

Elephant Advocate - $100

As an Elephant Advocate, you will receive our newsletter and a personalized certificate of appreciation from The National Elephant Center.

Elephant Champion - $250

Champions receive our newsletter and a customized certificate of appreciation sealed with an authentic elephant “trunk kiss” to certify your commitment to The National Elephant Center.

Conservation & Education Action Partner

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 20:44:15 GMT

Elephants are under a barrage of threats – from poaching to habitat loss, human conflict and climate change. Every year nearly 4,000 elephants are killed to sustain the illegal trade of ivory. In order to understand the best way to protect elephants in today’s world, additional support for research, education and conservation programs is needed to ensure their future.

You can support The National Elephant Center as it works to protect elephants through partnerships with conservation programs and ongoing public education about elephants and their habitats. Your funds will help us develop new initiatives and help existing research and conservation programs expand their impact. Last year alone, accredited zoos participated in more than 85 elephant research projects, providing a world of new insights and discoveries regarding these magnificent animals.

Supporting The National Elephant Center supports all these causes while spearheading new initiatives and programs designed to ensure elephants remain part of our future.

With your help, our dedicated team of scientists, researchers and passionate conservationists can make a real difference for elephants.

GET INVOLVED

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:07:52 GMT

Our goal every day is to make a real difference for future of elephants. In order to be successful, we need the involvement of people like you who care about helping elephants. Join our advocacy team and support elephant conservation today with a donation to The National Elephant Center. Your contribution will help us ensure that elephants are in our future.

ASIAN ELEPHANTS

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:07:38 GMT

Asian elephants historically have a wide range throughout Asia and play a significant role in the culture and economy of the region. They are important religious symbols and have also been domesticated for logging and other manual labor. Today Asia’s forests are significantly smaller due to the dramatic increase in human development throughout the region. As Asia’s population continues to grow rapidly, the once-great forests that elephants roamed are now broken and scattered amongst emerging villages, towns and cities.

Elephants follow well-defined seasonal migration patterns that are passed down from generation to generation. When new farms arise along these paths, Asian elephants come in direct contact with humans, often with tragic results as farmers forced to defend their crops will shoot elephants upon sight. In addition to stumbling upon farms, some Asian elephants are actively seeking out rice fields and other commercial agriculture sites in search of food.

Given their need for large dietary requirements, today Asian elephants simply do not have enough open space to sustain themselves naturally and crop raids are common.

Poaching is also a serious issue for Asian elephants. Since only Asian males have tusks, they are often under-represented in herds due to targeted poaching for ivory. Without males available to breed, it is difficult for the herds to maintain their numbers.

As a result of these pressures, scientists estimate there may be as few as 35,000 Asian elephants left in the wild, though some reports indicate even this figure may be generous. With no stop to Asia’s human population growth or development in sight, the Asian elephant is a species under immense strain that faces an uncertain future.

ZOO PROGRAMS

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:07:18 GMT

Accredited zoos are taking critical steps to ensure a future for elephants through education programs and conservation projects designed to draw attention to the plight of elephants and make a real impact in their home ranges.

In addition to inspiring millions of visitors each year to care about elephants, today’s accredited zoos are providing vital resources to help elephants. They support more than 85 elephant research programs that directly address many of the issues affecting elephants in the wild. Others are studying the animals to learn how we can best protect them. For instance:

A study on elephant vocalization at Disney’s Animal Kingdom is yielding clues in female elephant fertility patterns, important for successful breeding to maintain elephant conservation programs.
At the Oakland Zoo, researchers are discovering how elephants hear distant seismic vibrations and perceive them as environmental threats. This study illuminates how people can better protect wild elephant habitats, and shield elephants in this country from urban noise.
The St. Louis Zoo developed a means of using cell phone towers to track elephants in the wild.
An elephant vocalization study at the Pittsburgh Zoo is yielding insight into how the animals are affected by relocation from one habitat to another. This knowledge will help elephant conservationists work successfully.

Additionally, accredited zoos provide the majority of the funding for the International Elephant Foundation (IEF), a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization that supports a wide variety of elephant conservation and related scientific and educational projects worldwide.

Armed with dedicated teams of scientists, researchers and passionate conservationists, accredited zoos are making a real difference for elephants. The National Elephant Center will support these causes while spearheading new initiatives and programs designed to ensure elephants remain part of our future.

AFRICAN ELEPHANTS

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:06:53 GMT

ELEPHANT AND HUMAN CONFLICT Elephants need a large amount of habitat because they eat so much. Humans have become their direct competitors for space to live. Human populations in Africa and Asia have quadrupled since the turn of the century, the fastest growth rate on the planet. Forest and savanna habitat has been converted to cropland, pastureland for livestock, and timber for housing and fuel. Humans do not always regard elephants as good neighbors. When humans and elephants live close together, elephants raid crops, and rogue elephants (aggressive male elephants during the breeding season) rampage through villages. Local people shoot elephants because they fear them and regard them as pests. Some countries have established culling programs: park officials or hunters kill a predetermined number of elephants to keep herds manageable and minimize human-elephant conflicts. OVEREXPLOITATION Although it is no longer legal in many African countries, hunting has been a major cause of...

CONSERVATION AND RESEARCH

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:06:32 GMT

Elephants are under a barrage of threats – from poaching to habitat loss, human conflict and climate change. Every year nearly 4,000 elephants are killed to sustain the illegal trade of ivory. In order to understand the best way to protect elephants in today’s world, additional support for research, education and conservation programs is needed to ensure their future.

The National Elephant Center is poised to become a leader in this effort through research, advocacy, education and conservation:

REASEARCH - Wild populations of elephants are increasingly becoming managed due to shrinking habitat, changing population dynamics and encroachment by human development. Population management research at The National Elephant Center will provide conservationists with tools and techniques for managing these populations in the wild.
ADVOCACY - The Center envisions becoming a voice for elephants nationally and internationally through advocacy and collaboration that will speak up for elephants on issues that affect their continued survival.
EDUCATION - Though not open to the public, The National Elephant Center will educate school children locally and support formal education programs at accredited zoos throughout the country, which teach millions of visitors each year about elephants and their status in the wild.

CONSERVATION - The Center will provide an important space for research that will help zoos aid the Asian and African elephant populations in the wild. North American zoos already help support more than 85 research projects in zoos and in the wild to learn more about elephants.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:06:09 GMT

What is The National Elephant Center? The National Elephant Center is a new model for excellence in elephant care and conservation. Specifically, it is a permanent, high-quality facility located on 300 acres of land in central Florida. It is poised to become a world leader in elephant population management, conservation, scientific research, training and elephant care. Working with accredited zoos and other conservation organizations, The National Elephant Center will contribute to the survival of the species in zoos and around the world through ongoing scientific research and conservation projects Why create The National Elephant Center? For many years, curators, keepers, veterinarians and others associated with the care of elephant at Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) institutions wanted a facility to provide short- and long-term solutions to help manage the nation’s nearly 290 elephants that live at 77 different AZA-accredited facilities. In 2004 the idea of creating a...

A Message from the President

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:05:34 GMT

Caring about elephants seems to come naturally to people. It is that care and commitment to the future of elephants that led to the creation of The National Elephant Center, a new model for collaboration and wildlife species conservation. I’m pleased to report that after months of planning, research and persistence, the Center has an established home, broad support from the conservation community, and a mission that is critical to the future of elephants. We are now poised to become a world leader in elephant population management, conservation, scientific research, training, and elephant care. It is a commitment to wildlife that brought together The National Elephant Center with our corporate collaborator, Waste Management, which is providing the Center support and a 345-acres site in Okeechobee, Fla., that is perfect for elephants. The Center will be adjacent to property that Waste Management maintains as a natural area certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council. This is a unique...

THE NATIONAL ELEPHANT CENTER'S MISSION

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:05:03 GMT

To achieve excellence in elephant care and management and to promote elephant conservation research with the result of saving the declining Asian and African elephant populations. We will accomplish this through bold, innovative collaborations among AZA-accredited zoos and other national and international elephant experts and advocates; scientific research; training; education; and a deep commitment to the future and wellbeing of elephants.

THE CENTER'S VISION

To be a world leader in elephant population management, conservation, scientific research, training, and elephant care to help ensure a sustainable future for elephants.

HISTORY

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:04:24 GMT

For many years, curators, keepers, veterinarians and others associated with elephants at Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) institutions wanted a facility to provide short- and long-term solutions to help manage the nation’s nearly 290 elephants that live at 77 different AZA-accredited facilities. In 2004 the idea of creating a national elephant center came as the result of an Association of Zoos and Aquariums Elephant Management Strategic Planning Meeting involving thought leaders and members of the Elephant Taxon Advisory Group/Species Survival Plan (TAG/SSP). Shortly thereafter, dozens of AZA-accredited zoos donated critical funding support to explore options for establishing a Center, which will be an important tool in elephant management and conservation.

An extensive search was launched to research potential sites to locate The Center. Ultimately, a team of elephant experts selected property offered by Waste Management near Okeechobee in central Florida.

In the coming year The National Elephant Center will break ground, build an infrastructure to aid in the care of the elephants staying there, and begin fulfilling our mission to make an impact on the conservation of elephants around the world.

SITE PLANS

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:03:24 GMT

Location Views from the Center Site Land Use Concepts Oasis Waterholes Site Overview Illustrative Aerial View The National Elephant Center is located on 300 acres owned by Waste Management in Okeechobee, Florida. It is adjacent to property that Waste Management maintains as a natural area certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council that provides food and nesting areas for threatened Florida sandhill cranes and several other endangered species. These protected areas ensure critical space for species under pressure, not unlike elephant populations that are endangered in Africa and Asia. PLANNED FACILITIES The National Elephant Center will feature state-of-the-art facilities and complex landscapes that work together with elephants’ natural behaviors. ...

Take a Virtual Tour of the Center

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 23:04:09 GMT

Video Gallery

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 22:58:36 GMT

To request these videos on b-roll, please contact
Jack Wlezien at 312-558-1770.

TNEC Site Overview Videos:

February 7, 2008 Press Conference

Refund Policy and Terms & Conditions of Use

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 20:02:29 GMT

Refund Policy All sales are final Terms & Conditions This Site is ruled by the terms and conditions set out below. They will be binding for you, so read them carefully and if you don't agree please exit the Site. By visiting this Site you unconditionally consent to the following terms and conditions, including the privacy policy section. You are aware that The National Elephant Center may modify, at its sole discretion, at any time and without previous notice, said terms and conditions so we ask you to visit again this webpage to check updates. This Site is for education, informational and conservational purposes and you can use it only for private, personal and not commercial use. Trademarks and copyright In this Site you will find information, images, photographs, trademarks, products, advertising, etc. which are exclusive property of The National Elephant Center and are protected by copyrights. Therefore you may not reproduce, totally or in part (except for private,...

Practice

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 16:23:53 GMT

National Elephant Center

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Elephant Tracks Newsletter

Read the latest issue of Elephant Tracks: October 2008

Help Us Care For Elephants

We need your support to make it a reality and to help the elephants.

You can help care for elephants today by contributing to The National Elephant Center in several exciting and impactful ways:

Elephant Friends

Pachyderm Paradise

Conservation & Education Action Partner

Pachyderm Paradise

Which feature will you support?

Elephant Friends

Conservation & Education Action Partner

GET INVOLVED

ASIAN ELEPHANTS

ZOO PROGRAMS

AFRICAN ELEPHANTS

CONSERVATION AND RESEARCH

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

A Message from the President

THE NATIONAL ELEPHANT CENTER'S MISSION

THE CENTER'S VISION

To be a world leader in elephant population management, conservation, scientific research, training, and elephant care to help ensure a sustainable future for elephants.

HISTORY

SITE PLANS

Take a Virtual Tour of the Center

Video Gallery

To request these videos on b-roll, please contact Jack Wlezien at 312-558-1770.

TNEC Site Overview Videos:

February 7, 2008 Press Conference

Refund Policy and Terms & Conditions of Use

Practice

Read the latest issue of Elephant Tracks:

October 2008

To request these videos on b-roll, please contact
Jack Wlezien at 312-558-1770.