This photo by Darma from Nature For Change shows a Sumatran tiger footprint near a village in the Bukit Lawang area. A tiger footprint is exciting for us when we see one in a restoration site, far from people, but it’s a frightening prospect for farmers who face losing cattle or even coming face to...
Will the COVID19 pandemic give conservationists a chance to save the world’s most endangered great ape, the Critically Endangered Tapanuli orangutan? The planned Batang Toru hydroelectric dam poses serious threats to the survival of the Critically Endangered Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) – the world’s rarest great ape, with just over 700 individuals estimated to remain. The COVID-19...
Tawny Buck, founder and creator at Wellgood Projects, visited Sumatra in February 2020 and was inspired by the amazing work being carried out by Darsima and her team at Leuser Nature School. With her partner, Francis, she put together the film below – a call to action for people who want to support the school’s continued growth...
The Human Orangutan Conflict Response Unit (HOCRU) teams have been quite restricted in their activities during the COVID-19 lockdown in Sumatra, as many of the villages in the areas they cover have been closed to visitors. Despite this, they have evacuated six orangutans from danger and confiscated four infant orangutans from the illegal pet trade...
Should we be worried about the impact of Covid-19 on orangutans? Great apes are our closest living relatives and are known to be susceptible to catching respiratory diseases from people. Leading scientists have warned that the coronavirus pandemic could therefore wipe out populations of orangutans and other great apes. While no great apes have yet...
Last week, Lucy from Sumatran Orangutan Society attended a business event focused on sustainable palm oil. Hosted by the Future Economy Network, the event brought together people from the business sector, NGOs and researchers to discuss the sustainable palm oil industry, especially regarding what we should all be doing to help the industry reach its...
A new report by a leading international consultancy warns that the proposed Batang Toru hydroelectric project in South Tapanuli Regency, North Sumatra, is not only entirely unnecessary for meeting Indonesia or North Sumatra’s future energy needs, but is also a critical threat to the local ecosystem and the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan. The report, entitled Analysis...
All areas designated as forest are off-limits to plantations under Indonesian law, but permits have historically been easy to get from local officials who bypass the legal requirements and even solicit bribes. A Supreme Court ruling, delivered at the end of 2019, will make it harder for plantation companies to operate in protected forests, and...
While most of the world was on holiday from work for the festive season, the OIC HOCRU team kept working to rescue orangutans in need. On 29th December, they worked together with the forestry authorities in Aceh province to rescue a female orangutan who is estimated to be only around one week old. Later named...
A male orangutan was recently evacuated from an oil palm plantation belonging to a local resident in Krueng Bate village, South Aceh district of North Sumatra province. The orangutan, later named River, was safely tranquillised and quickly evacuated from the plantation. A health check by the team’s vet revealed that River is around 20 years...
Nanda has been working for Orangutan Information Centre’s restoration team for almost 5 years, and is based at the Bukit Mas restoration site. Nanda grew up in a small village adjacent to the Leuser Ecosystem and witnessed deforestation in action around his home. Now, he works hard to plant trees, restore damaged and degraded rainforest...
SOS and OIC’s newest restoration site is an 890-acre piece of land which used to be an oil palm plantation. Until recently, it was referred to by its old name, PT Mutiara. SOS asked their supporters to help give it a new name to reflect the amazing community effort that went into raising the funds...
