Information Availability and Evaluation of Websites Related to Asian Elephants in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Sri Lanka is a very small country in the Asian region. However, Sri Lanka is popular for elephants among the world. In the Sri Lankan context, Sri Lankan people have a longstanding relationship as well as a deep connection with elephants. The wild elephant population is approximately 4500-5000 in Sri Lanka. Most people are interested in searching for information on elephants. There are various means of gathering information related to elephants in Sri Lanka. Among them, websites play an important role in delivering information to the public. The main objective of this research is to identify the existing information on the websites related to Asian elephants in Sri Lanka and the other objectives are to categorize the information on the website and to evaluate the websites related to Asian elephants in Sri Lanka. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative methodologies were applied. This study is primarily a survey research. To collect primary data for the study, desk research and website evaluation tools were used. Desk research was conducted to collect existing information on the websites. Sampled websites were evaluated using WAVE, Google Page Speed and Hubspot Marketing Grader. The population of the study was all websites related to Asian elephants. Two websites were used to identify the existing information on the website and to evaluate websites. Websites of the Biodiversity and Elephant conservation Trust and Elephant Safari Sri Lanka were used as samples for the study. Analyzed data revealed that information approximating background, historical facts, contacts, activities, publications, safari details, accommodation are available on websites related to Asian elephants. According to the results of evaluation tools, websites of the Biodiversity and Elephant conservation Trust and Elephant Safari Sri Lanka get acceptable marks. However, more upgrades are required to improve the quality of websites. In order to address these discrepancies, some major moves are suggested to upgrade the rank of websites related to Asian elephants which include following WCAG and proprietary accessibility guidelines, establishing formal web accessibility lows and guidelines, upgrading online services and providing training to web masters. Additionally information about Asian elephants should be contained within a website and websites should be more accurate and up to date.