Looking Back and Moving Forward: 2025 Highlights

As 2025 draws to a close, we look back with gratitude and pride at a year defined by commitment, innovation, and tangible progress for Asian elephant conservation in Laos.

Thanks to the dedication of our Lao and international teams – and the unwavering support of our partners, visitors, and donors – the Elephant Conservation Center (ECC) has strengthened its role as the country’s leading hub for elephant welfare, science-based conservation, and education.

Dear readers, supporters, and ECC family,

As many of you know, our official Instagram account was suddenly and permanently suspended without warning. We have lost a community we’ve built for years, an important space where we share our elephants’ stories, our conservation work, and updates from the forest.

Instagram has been one of our main ways to reach people around the world, raise awareness for Laos’ elephants, and connect with those who care about ethical conservation.

Rebuilding this community is essential for the future of our work.

To mark the 10th anniversary of the Elephant Caravan, the Elephant Conservation Center is proud to launch “Walking with Giants” on YouTube.

Exactly ten years ago, this extraordinary expedition crossed the province of Sayaboury – home to 75% of Laos’ elephants – walking alongside 20 elephants and their mahouts from Paklay and Thongmixay all the way to Luang Prabang, the former royal capital of the “Land of a Million Elephants.”

As Luang Prabang celebrated its 20th anniversary as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, these elephants – Laos’ often forgotten cultural and natural heritage – peacefully reclaimed their place in the national story.

Directed by Franck Cuvelier, based on an original idea by Sébastien Duffillot, ECC’s Founder, “Walking with Giants” is both a tribute and a call to awareness, reminding us that elephant conservation is inseparable from culture, history, and people.

The film premiered on December 12 2025, and is now freely available online to inspire continued support for elephant protection in Laos.

English: https://youtu.be/w1VEgyevZVw

In 2025, the Elephant Conservation Center reached a decisive milestone with the purchase of Thongkhoun, a mature male breeder elephant, made possible entirely through the generosity of supporters worldwide.

Acquiring a breeding bull is a rare and complex undertaking in Laos, yet it is essential in a country facing one of the lowest elephant birth rates in Asia. Thongkhoun’s arrival strengthens ECC’s long-term reproduction strategy, ensuring genetic diversity and offering renewed hope for rebuilding the national elephant population.

Thanks to Thongkhoun, one of ECC’s female elephants is now nine months pregnant, offering renewed hope for a species facing critically low birth rates nationwide.

This achievement reflects the power of collective action: every donation contributed directly to securing a future where elephants can reproduce under conditions that respect welfare, natural behaviour, and science-based management.

Thongkhoun is not only an elephant—he is a living symbol of what committed supporters can achieve together.

Building on its conservation and education mission, ECC will launch three new visitor programmes in 2026, offering deeper, more meaningful engagement.

• A Yoga and Meditation programme will invite guests to reconnect with nature in the peaceful setting of Nam Tien Lake.
• The Back to the Wild scientific expeditions will take small groups of nature lovers into Nam Pouy National Protected Area, joining ECC’s wild elephant monitoring team for hands-on conservation fieldwork.
• Finally, the long-awaited one-week Conservation Volunteering programme will allow participants to actively contribute to elephant care, research, and habitat restoration.Together, these programmes reflect ECC’s vision: tourism that educates, inspires, and directly supports the survival of Laos’ elephants.

In 2025, the WILDMED Mobile Elephant Clinic continued to serve as Laos’ frontline veterinary response for elephants in distress. Operating like a wildlife ambulance, the team deployed across remote provinces to provide emergency treatment, preventive care, diagnostics, and follow-up monitoring for both captive and wild elephants.

Beyond saving lives, WILDMED plays a critical role in capacity building, training Lao veterinarians, mahouts, and students in modern elephant medicine through a One Health approach that protects animals, people, and ecosystems alike.

Every mission in the field strengthens national expertise and turns urgent interventions into long-term solutions.

In 2025, the WILDMED Mobile Elephant Clinic once again proved to be a vital lifeline for elephants across Laos.

Operating in remote and often difficult conditions, the team carried out 53 preventive health checks, helping detect problems early and reduce long-term suffering.

WILDMED also responded to 27 emergency cases involving captive elephants and one critical wild elephant emergency delivering rapid veterinary care where no other services exist.

Beyond elephants, the team rescued four wild animals, underscoring WILDMED’s broader role in wildlife protection.

At the same time, more than 100 biological samples were collected for health monitoring, disease surveillance, population genetics and conservation research—turning each field mission into an opportunity to save lives today while strengthening knowledge for tomorrow.

One of the major milestones of 2025 was the full deployment of ECORE – Education, Conservation & Research.

• ECC is now ready to welcome students, researchers, and academic partners from around the world, offering access to field sites, long-term datasets, laboratory facilities, and hands-on conservation work.
• Our research laboratory and biobank allows for studies on hormones, behaviour, welfare, and reproduction – helping transform daily care into globally relevant knowledge.
• Study-abroad programmes and long-term research stays allows participants not just to learn about conservation, but to actively contribute to it.

In a region where applied conservation science remains rare, ECORE aims at becoming a regional reference platform.

This year, Anabel Lopez Perez successfully defended her PhD thesis titled: “Effect of Management on Metabolism and Stress Physiology, Social Structure, and Reproduction in Captive Asian Elephants in Thailand and Lao PDR.” She and her team conducted further research at the ECC, examining the effects of management on elephant metabolism, stress physiology, social structure, and reproduction.

The Center also contributed to two peer-reviewed scientific publications, “Socializing a group of male Asian elephants in a semi-captive facility in Lao PDR” and “Metabolic Profiles of Captive Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus) in Lao PDR and Thailand”, reinforcing ECC’s role as a reference site for elephant research in Southeast Asia.

ECORE’s progress was further strengthened through:

• The acquisition of a portable elephant scale via collaboration with Elephant Care International
• Advanced hormonal analysis capacity, with Dr. Pavina Chaleunsouk now independently performing ELISA analyses
• The establishment of a fully operational diagnostic laboratory at the ECC hospital
• The construction of a dedicated ECORE workspace for students and researchers
• The successful organisation of the 4th Wildlife Course for final-year veterinary students from the National University of Laos

In 2025, ECC continued to invest in infrastructure that directly supports elephant welfare, research excellence, and visitor experience.

A brand-new Exhibition Center, improvements to the hospital, laboratory, new accommodation (Premium lakeside bungalows, Family lakeside bungalows), a new 16-bed dormitory and educational spaces have ensured that elephants, staff, students, and guests all benefit from a safe, functional, and inspiring environment.

These developments are not cosmetic – they are essential tools that allow ECC to care for elephants year-round, host researchers and study-abroad programmes, respond to emergencies, and offer visitors an ethical, immersive experience rooted in respect and conservation impact.

Significant infrastructure improvements were completed, including stairways, land levelling, viewing platforms, and access paths, allowing safe exploration while protecting the site.

The Elephant bamboo forest continued to grow steadily throughout 2025, with 45 different bamboo species that will go on display in 2026-2027, the area highlights the ecological importance of bamboo for elephants, ecosystems, and local livelihoods.

This developing forest supports elephant nutrition, habitat restoration, and research on sustainable resource use.
Beyond its practical role, the bamboo forest demonstrates ECC’s commitment to long-term ecosystem health—reminding visitors that protecting elephants also means restoring the landscapes they depend on.

In 2025, ECC inaugurated a brand-new Exhibition Center, designed to inform, inspire, and deepen understanding of elephant conservation in Laos.

The space presents clear, accessible information on Asian elephant biology, behaviour, culture, and conservation challenges, alongside the history of ElefantAsia NGO and the creation of the Elephant Conservation Center.

Visitors can explore a curated library, interactive displays, and a dedicated video booth featuring over 40 documentary films, offering multiple perspectives on elephants, people, and forests. This new facility transforms every visit into a learning journey, reinforcing ECC’s belief that conservation only succeeds when knowledge is shared.

The Exhibition Center now stands as a cornerstone of ECC’s education mission, welcoming visitors, students, researchers, and local communities alike.

In 2025, the Elephant Conservation Center was honoured with a Global Tourism Excellence Award, a prestigious accolade that recognises tourism experiences with outstanding impact, quality and sustainable practices.

The Global Tourism Excellence Awards celebrate the world’s most loved and highly rated tourism experiences based on verified guest reviews and industry-wide evaluation criteria, highlighting destinations that excel in visitor satisfaction and responsible tourism.

ECC’s award reflects our unique blend of ethical, conservation-driven tourism—where every visit contributes directly to elephant welfare, research, education and habitat protection.

The Elephant Conservation Center was proudly presented with TripAdvisor’s Traveller’s Choice Award 2025 thanks to outstanding guest reviews reflecting consistently excellent visitor experiences.

This visitor-driven accolade celebrates ECC’s unique combination of ethical elephant engagement, immersive nature experiences, and high-quality hospitality, underscoring how responsible tourism can directly support conservation impact.

None of this work would be possible without the generosity of our donors.

In particular, we extend our heartfelt thanks to Hollis Burbank-Hammarlund (Work 4 Wildlife) for organising the “Everything Elephants” philanthropic tour at the ECC in November 2025.

This exceptional initiative not only raised vital funds for elephant conservation but also deepened understanding and engagement around the realities of protecting elephants in Laos.

To all our supporters – long-time partners and first-time donors alike – your trust empowers every rescue, every field mission, every birth, and every child who learns to care about elephants.

Specials thanks to The British embassy in UK, International Elephant Project, MCA Cabinet d’expertise comptable, The Smithsonian Institution, Elephant Care International, IUCN France, Agence Française de Développement, Fondation de France, Office Français de la biodiversité, Fondation Egis, Fondation Audemars Piguet, Maisons du monde, Lao Skyway, Rosemary, Lynette, Debra Mc Roberts, Denver Zoo and Basmati.

Saving Laos’ elephants takes all of us.

At ECC, veterinarians, mahouts, researchers, and educators work as one – supporting individual elephants and new rescues, delivering emergency care on wheels through WILDMED, welcoming newborns into our nursery, and educating tens of thousands of Lao children.

Your visit already helps.

Now, you can go one step further:

Rescued elephants need sustained care: food, skilled mahouts, veterinary treatment, and time to heal and socialise. One elephant eats around 200 kg of vegetation every day, and many arrive injured or exhausted.
Sponsorship funds nutrition, medical care, rehabilitation, and – sometimes – the journey back toward reherding or rewilding.

WILDMED deploys within 24 hours to treat injuries, assess herd health, and collect data that prevents future crises.
Your support fuels vehicles, equips teams, and stocks life-saving medicines.

ECC’s breeding programme and nursery give calves – and their mothers – the safest possible start.
Donations provide secure enclosures, constant care, close monitoring, and immediate hospital access, turning fragile beginnings into resilient futures.

Through Kids in Conservation, more than 60,000 Lao students have already discovered elephants, ecosystems, and stewardship firsthand. Your gift covers transport and materials so an entire class can experience conservation up close.

As we look ahead to 2026, one thing is clear:
the challenges facing Asian elephants are still immense – but so is the impact we can create together.

• Support ECC with a donation to sustain elephant care, rewilding, and research.
•  Plan a visit and turn your journey into direct action.
•  Share our work with friends, institutions, and future partners.
•  Join ECORE as a student, researcher, or academic collaborator.

Every contribution – large or small – helps ensure that elephants remain living beings in living forests, not memories in history books.

From all of us at the Elephant Conservation Center,
thank you for being part of this journey.

With gratitude and hope,

The ECC Team
Protecting elephants in Laos – through respect, science, and action.