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Wetlands are one of the most important and productive habitats on the planet as they provide a range of services to our ecosystem varying from water filtration, protection from storms, controlling of floods and recreation. The project undertaken by Eco Team was aimed at 10 urban wetlands approved by the SLLRDC was to identify these lands as National Wetland Conservation Areas, with the sole purpose of enhancing the quality of the eco-systems in the city itself.

In order to succeed in conserving these wetlands, it requires the collective effort of the surrounding residential communities. Therefore, through the application of the citizen science approach, we’re helping to educate the peripheral households and communities with the relevant knowledge to uplift the urban eco-system.

Our guests participating in this project will have the opportunity to meet locals following this lifestyle and have a glimpse of their daily lives while enjoying the wildlife of the surrounding urban wetlands. We’re proud to say that this project can also be converted into a more scientific or research based one as well as making this a great option for educational institutes to include this into their syllabus, because early education and prevention is always better than cure!

 

 

Our policy in discouraging Animal Cruelty, Tourist Traps and Staged Tourist Shows

Animals Are Friends Too: Discouraging Animal Cruelty, Tourist Traps and Staged Tourist Shows

We at ExJ stay away from tourism experiences that are staged and involve animal cruelty and shopping traps that are contrived to exploit and deceive clients.

Even though some of the popular ‘attractions’ are not included in our programmes due to the above reasons, we have no objections in our clients making their own arrangements with our Drivers to visit these places.

 

Why we do not promote following attractions

 

Turtle Hatcheries

As this concept has serious negative aspects in terms of conservation, we do not encourage our visitors to patronize the turtle hatcheries, as not all of them are really turtle-friendly. We instead encourage them to observe turtles in their natural habitats.

Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage

When we became aware that the animal welfare standards there were questionable, we stopped encouraging our clients to visit the orphanage. We are pleased to observe that the Born Free Foundation has now adopted similar measures.

Elephant back rides – Habarana

There’s uncertainty surrounding the attitude of this place towards animal welfare. There may be a few ethical operators, but in general, we are not in agreement with how the place is run. We all would love a photo of us riding an elephant, but is a lifetime of pain caused to these magnificent mammals really worth a few fleeting likes on social media?

Traditional Village Tour with a Canoe Trip and Bullock-Carts – Habarana

This is a tourist trap where a lot of the trip is ‘staged’ for commercial purposes. Such fake touristic experiences will not give our visitors an idea of what life in the country is really like, so join us as we show you the real side of Sri Lanka. And at the end of every vacation, always ask yourself, “Did you feel that your holiday was ethical, eco-friendly, and reduced environmental impacts?”


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