How would you deal with human-elephant conflict? Play 'Trunk Tales' to decide

A female elephant being fitted with a satellite collar by Wildlife Rescue Rangers in Kinabatangan district, Sabah, on Sept 30, 2021. Sahana, as she was named, was later found dead of heavy metal poisoning, on Oct 9 that year. With habitat loss, elephants are coming into contact with human activities more, often to their detriment. — Sabah Wildlife Rescue Unit

TIME to tackle the elephant in the room. With the board game Trunk Tales developed by conservation group the Management and Ecology of Malaysian Elephants (MEME), everyone can.

MEME explained the game in a statement: “Trunk Tales is an educational role-playing game designed to showcase the complexities of multi-stakeholder management of human-elephant conflicts to achieve coexistence.

“Players assume roles such as Researcher, Wildlife Department, Village Head, Plantation Owner, and Government. Each player is then tasked with steering through their distinct objectives, utilising strategic action cards to fulfil the goals associated with their role, which simulates the complexities of conservation efforts.”

The game, according to MEME co-investigator Dr Cedric Tan, encourages players to put themselves in the shoes of others.

“It has two modes: a competitive or a cooperative approach. The interactive gameplay and diverse strategies create a game experience that differs every time,” he said.

Yatela unveiling the ‘Trunk Tales’ board game with Tan on June 8. — MEME

The board game was unveiled by Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) chief executive officer Dr Yatela Zainal Abidin during a World Environment Day event on June 8, 2024.

The event included an awareness programme featuring an exhibition and talk as well as an innovative choose-your-own-adventure immersive theatre production titled Why, How and When Did the Elephant Cross the Road?

Some 50 people attended the event, including representatives from YSD, University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM), and affiliates and collaborators of the coexistence with elephants coalition, as well as family and friends from the network.

In her speech, Yatela said significant strides have been made across the years towards understanding and mitigating human- elephant conflicts, with innovative actions implemented to promote sustainable coexistence.

“Our launch of the Trunk Tales board game marks another collaborative step in YSD’s commitment to educating and engaging communities about elephant conservation.

“We are proud to have supported MEME with the development of this educational tool that truly reflects our belief in the power of informed communities to effect positive change, specifically in the way the community views conservation and coexistence with wildlife,” she said.

YSD has supported MEME since it was set up in 2012, with a total sponsorship of almost RM9mil. Its sponsorship also covered scholarships awarded to seven PhD and nine Masters students at UNM.

Prof Dr Mohd Shahir Liew, UNM Vice Provost of Research and Knowledge Exchange, thanked YSD for being a responsible global corporate player in understanding the need to master the interaction between wildlife and humans.

“This is especially valuable in a time of land exploitation, climate change, and the urgent need to decarbonise, all of which will affect the ecological ambience of wildlife, which needs to be studied closely and mitigated so that future generations of humankind and wildlife can benefit,” he said.

MEME’s long-term goals are to increase capacity-building and tolerance among communities, smallholders, and plantations to promote human-elephant coexistence on a national scale, and to enhance the protection of wild elephants and their habitats.