Protect Sri Lanka’s Wild Elephants
Call on the Sri Lankan Government to strengthen elephant protection and prioritise non-lethal solutions to human–elephant conflict. Sri Lanka is home to one of the world's most iconic wild elephant populations. But today, elephants and people are caught in a devastating human–elephant conflict.

Hundreds of elephants die each year in Sri Lanka, alongside significant loss of human life. Elephants are killed through shootings, electrocution, poisoning and other causes linked to conflict, while habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing, agricultural expansion and competition for food and water continue to intensify the problem.

This is not simply a problem of “problem elephants”. It is a complex conflict shaped by how land, wildlife and communities are managed.

We are concerned that lethal responses to human–elephant conflict are failing to address its underlying causes. Killing elephants does not restore fragmented habitat, resolve access to food and water, or prevent future conflict.

We are calling on the Sri Lankan Government to:

1. Prioritise non-lethal approaches to human–elephant conflict. Invest in and expand effective measures that protect both people and elephants, rather than relying on lethal responses.
2. Strengthen protection of wild elephants and their habitats. Address habitat fragmentation, protect important elephant corridors and ensure that development and land-use decisions take the needs of elephant populations into account.
3. Improve transparency around elephant deaths and human–elephant conflict. Publish accurate, accessible and regularly updated information on elephant and human deaths, the causes of elephant deaths, and measures being taken to prevent further conflict.
4. Investigate and prosecute illegal killing of elephants. Ensure that incidents involving the illegal killing of elephants are properly investigated and that existing wildlife protections are enforced.
5. Put long-term coexistence at the centre of policy. Develop evidence-based strategies that recognise that protecting communities and protecting elephants are not opposing goals.

Sri Lanka's elephants are part of the country's natural heritage. They should not have to disappear for people and elephants to coexist.

We are asking the Sri Lankan Government to treat the human–elephant conflict as an urgent national issue and pursue solutions that protect both Sri Lankan communities and Sri Lanka's wild elephants.

Add your name if you believe Sri Lanka can protect its people without sacrificing its elephants, sign this petition and share it.

Protect the Herd.