Elephant Task Force final report

Posted by: Deborah Jensen, President and CEO

The Elephant Task Force—the citizens committee that has been evaluating our zoo’s elephant exhibit and program, including a health assessment of our elephants Chai, Watoto and Bamboo—has just released their final report. I wanted to make sure that you had the opportunity to review the report for yourself.

Full report available online.

In the report, you’ll find that the Task Force has unanimously adopted the medical assessment by the Expert Review Panel that recognizes the good health and well-being of our elephants, as well as providing multiple options for even better accommodations for our elephants.

The report recognizes that the elephant program plays a vital role in the zoo’s conservation mission and concludes that the program efforts should continue and consider further expansion to provide even more value to conservation education.

Chai, an Asian elephant at Woodland Park Zoo. Photo: Ryan Hawk/WPZ.

What’s next? Now that the Task Force has completed its charter and issued their final report, the zoo’s board and staff will spend time thoroughly reviewing the findings. We expect to make decisions in early 2014 that will guide the future of our elephant program.

We’re passionate about providing excellent care, visitor experiences that engage and inspire and conservation support across the globe, values I know you share. You can expect that, as with all of our animal programs, we’ll make decisions based on what is best for the animals, the zoo and the community.

Through your support, you have made Woodland Park Zoo a world-class zoo. You make it possible to serve a community that is so deeply committed to our shared vision of a world where people, wildlife and wild places thrive together. Thank you for your continued support and friendship. You can share your thoughts with us here, by email, or join us online on Facebook or Twitter.