Project ETH

elephant transit home

Project ETH

The Elephant Transit Home (ETH) is situated in the Udawalawe National Park and takes care of orphaned elephant calves from all over Sri Lanka until they are independent enough to be released back into the wild. The ETH is a temporary orphanage and is under the responsibility of the Sri Lankan Governmental body called the Department of Wildlife Conservation. The baby Elephant are brought to ETH when they lose or are separated from their mothers. Although many doubted its feasibility and opposed the initiative at the start, Dr Nandana Atapattu, the former Head of the Division of Wild Animal Health at the Department of Wildlife Conservation in Sri Lanka, worked tirelessly towards its establishment. With minimum resources and manpower, the ETH has grown to be a successful entity in a short period and has been recognised as one of best wild animal rehabilitation centres in the world. You can participate in Grassland Management and various other activities at ETH.

Frequently Asked Questions

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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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