Rainforest 4 has added its support to the Orangutan Information Centre and their overwhelmingly positive action to protect and restore rainforest in Sumatra, which has included the planting of 1,775,153 trees!

The Orangutan Information Center nursery

Due to the ongoing destruction of their tropical rainforest habitat, Sumatran Orangutans are now Critically Endangered. Industrial agriculture (mostly palm oil), paper companies, illegal logging and a population of 50 million people all contribute to ongoing deforestation on the island. The destructive trend has been seen 80% of Orangutan habitat lost in the last 20 years.

Positive news for Orangutans is rare, however, in Sumatra, it can be found in the work of the Orangutan Information Center an organisation founded by Mr Panut Hadisiswoyo. Possibly the most impressive outcome has been the planting of 1,775,153 trees, however, their story involves many other achievements. In the past year alone, they’ve rescued and translocated 159 Orangutans from oil palm plantations and restored over 2,000 hectares in and around the Gunung Leuser National Park. Their staff also patrol over 304,389 hectares of rainforest to prevent illegal activities such as hunting and logging, resulting in the prosecution of 37 criminals.

Oil palms to the left and restored rainforest to the right

Importantly the Orangutan Information Center engage with the local communities near the Gunung Leuser National Park, providing education, training, and employment. The ongoing program of restoring rainforest involves cutting down oil palms illegally planted in the national park and restoring the rainforest with trees grown in six rainforest plant nurseries.

Kelvin Davies, the founder of Rainforest 4, began helping the Orangutan Information Centre over ten years ago. This involved supporting the Orangutan Information Centre’s staff in learning restoration techniques on two visits to Australia and the funding of their ongoing projects.

“We know many of our supporters want to see Orangutans protected and their rainforest habitat protected. The Orangutan Information Centre has delivered exceptional outcomes for rainforest conservation and it’s our privilege to support their projects from here in Australia” said Kelvin.

Orangutans have been found using trees planted by the project. 

In March Rainforest 4 added its support to the Orangutan Information Centre for their projects to restore rainforest in Sumatra. Thanks to our supporters, every month we’ll be funding the cutting down of oil palms and replanting of the rainforest.

Orangutan rescue and release into Gunung Leuser National Park in March 2019. 

In March the Orangutan Information Center team evacuated a female Orangutan from an oil palm plantation near Namu Buaya village, in the Aceh province of Sumatra. This Orangutan that later named Pertiwi which mean mother of earth, was in a malnourished condition. She was taken to the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP) to get medical help and will be released into the wild once she's recovered. 

For more information on our support for the Orangutan Information Centre please visit our project, Direct Action for Sumatran Orangutans.