Sumatran Orangutan Society

Inspiration

The Founder was Lucy Wisdom, who sadly lost her battle with cancer several years ago. It was actually Lucy's illness that had led her to set up Sumatran Orangutan Society. She used to be a circus performer and an acrobat, and when she was diagnosed, she set off to travel the world and ended up volunteering in an orangutan rehabilitation program.  She used her skills to teach orphaned orangutans how to climb trees. Her goal was to give all wild Sumatran orangutans a brighter future. I think she would be very proud of what we are achieving today, and all of our plans for the future.I, Helen Buckland, have been leading SOS for over 10 years. I 'discovered' conservation fairly late in life - I was around 20 years old when I realized that this was something that I could actually dedicate my life to. I have always loved wildlife, and was really interested in the intelligence of the Great Apes, so I volunteered with some chimpanzees that had been taught to speak sign language. I came back from that trip; my head swimming with information about the threats facing apes in the wild. That was the start of the story for me really. I travelled to Indonesia to conduct research for my Masters degree in Primate Conservation, and that was it, I was hooked on orangutans. After my studies, I wanted to get involved with Sumatran orangutan conservation, as the species is critically endangered but received so much less attention than its Bornean cousin.

About Sumatran Orangutan Society

Sumatran orangutans are critically endangered.As their rainforest habitat is cleared for farmlands and roads, these gentle apes, one of our closest relatives in the animal kingdom, is being pushed to the edge of extinction.SOS is dedicated to turning this situation around.

Our Vision

SOS has a long term vision of a viable, thriving and growing population of Sumatran orangutans living wild and free in their healthy and protected rainforest home.  Local communities are actively engaged in activities which sustain the forest, and protected areas are free of encroachment.  Illegal activities have ceased as laws are effectively enforced. People, both in Sumatra and around the world, are passionate about forest and orangutan conservation.

Our Approach

SOS works to protect orangutans, their forests and their future. We deliver impact through frontline projects and international campaigns which tackle the causes of deforestation as well as the symptoms. We take a holistic approach, supporting and enabling vital work on the ground in Sumatra through developing effective conservation programs and partnerships, capacity building and fundraising for frontline organizations, and advocating globally for changes to government policy and corporate practice to enhance conservation outcomes.

We do this by:

1) Supporting grassroots projects that empower local people to become guardians of the rainforests. We help communities living adjacent to orangutan habitat to understand and embrace their role in protecting the forests. We have built a network of ‘conservation villages’ in Sumatra – communities who are taking action to support the protection of the Leuser Ecosystem. Working closely with them to develop bespoke ‘conservation action plans’, these forward-thinking communities have identified ways to help save orangutans and create sustainable livelihoods at the same time. Examples include agroforestry, permaculture, and tree nursery management.2) Restoring damaged orangutan habitat through tree planting programmes. We have been working with local communities since 2008 to restore and protect this precious habitat, undoing the damage caused by illegal conversion for agriculture, especially oil palm plantations. We have planted more than 1.5 million tree seedlings to date, and wildlife is returning to these once-barren landscapes.3) Orangutan rescue, rehabilitation and release: As a critically endangered species, every orangutan life is precious. We established and support the orangutan rescue team in Sumatra, who evacuate isolated orangutans, trapped in condemned forests that are being targeted by bulldozers, and return them to safe forests, as well as rescuing orangutans from the illegal pet trade. Orphaned or injured orangutans need longer-term care and rehabilitation before they can have a second chance at life in the wild, so we also support this vital work, which boosts the survival prospects of the species.4) Campaigning on issues threatening the survival of orangutans in the wild. We are committed to finding genuine solutions which break the link between development and deforestation, and our campaigns tackle the critical issues which are threatening orangutans and their last remaining habitat, especially deforestation by the palm oil industry and the illegal pet trade.

mission, goals and accomplishments

The loss of the orangutans' rainforest habitat is the ultimate problem that we need to tackle. Deforestation is caused by lots of different drivers, the most notorious being the palm oil industry - huge swathes of rainforest have been replaced by plantations. We also see local communities chipping away at the protected forest one or two hectares at a time for smaller-scale farmlands, which adds up to thousands of hectares lost, and there are several illegal roads being built through the forest, which opens up the area for poachers. Linked to deforestation is human-orangutan conflict. Orangutans become trapped in farmlands as the forest is bulldozed around them. They may raid or destroy crops, threatening the livelihoods of the local people, and at risk of starvation, being shot in retaliation, or captured for the pet trade.Our programmes in Sumatra tackle the root of the problem - we work with communities to support them in developing alternative livelihoods that don't involve the exploitation of the forest, such as organic farming and agroforestry. The Human Orangutan Conflict Response Unit (HOCRU) evacuates orangutans that are trapped in farmlands and returns them to safe forests, and has been involved in the confiscation of orangutans from the illegal pet trade. The forest restoration work is bringing back valuable habitat in areas that were illegally destroyed. Our campaigns shine an international spotlight on the realities of conservation in Sumatra, and for example, try to break the link between development and deforestation. There is enough space, with careful land-use planning, for orangutans and humans to coexist in Sumatra.When we started out, a lot of what we did was around raising awareness of the situation in Sumatra and the threats facing wild orangutans and their habitat. That's still a key aspect of our work, after all - people need to know about something in order to feel inspired to take action, but our frontline programmes and campaigns have developed a huge amount over the years. For example, we have now planted over 1.5 million trees to restore lost orangutan habitat, rescued more than 70 orangutans and given them a second chance at life in the wild, and have worked with and trained thousands of local people living next to the Leuser Ecosystem, the last stronghold for the Sumatran orangutan, helping them become guardians of the forests. I am really proud of our holistic approach and how far we've come. Of course, there's still a lot of work to do, and we're a small but ambitious organisation. We have seen that grassroots programmes really can turn back the tide of deforestation and that people who were once illegal loggers can become serious advocates for conservation.However, there is still a lot of damaged forest that needs to be restored, and a lot of isolated orangutans, trapped in tiny fragments of forest, that need to be returned to safe forests. In the year ahead, we will be working closely with an alliance of organisations in Sumatra to influence government policy and corporate practise to change the fate of Sumatra's wildlife and wild places, and together we will reclaim, restore and protect vital orangutan habitat in the Leuser Ecosystem, the only place in the world where orangutans, tigers, rhinos and elephants roam together.

Getting involved

As well as attending the fundraising dinner at Sanctuary Bistro on August 7, there are lots of ways to support our work.a. Join us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (OrangutansSOS) - and share our news from the frontline, projects and campaigns with your own networks.our website: http://www.orangutans-sos.org/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orangutanssos/Twitter: https://twitter.com/OrangutansSOSb. Donate! All contributions are appreciated, especially a regular monthly donation of any size, as that enables us to plan our projects and campaigns, with the confidence that you're standing alongside us and backing us.c. Raise funds for SOS. You could donate your birthday, asking friends and family to donate in your name instead of receiving cards and gifts this year, take on a challenge (such as a marathon or even a trek in the Sumatran jungle!), or do some fundraising in your community. We'll support you every step of the way, and even have a special schools fundraising pack.

Community and compassion are our mission in what ways.. how do you exemplify this?

SOS is a small but ambitious organization that punches above its weight, and one of the ways we're able to do that is through partnerships. Our supporters and partners around the world help us shine a brighter spotlight on Sumatra, and working with like-minded organizations and individuals means that we are all able to amplify our impact - which can only be a good thing for orangutans at the end of the day.

7. What could we each do to live a more compassionate lifestyle?

Stewardship of our planet and all of its inhabitants is a shared responsibility. The often hidden footprint of the food we eat and the fuel we put in our vehicles can send shockwaves round the world, and being aware of this, and making positive choices, really can make a big difference to the fate of species and habitats on the other side of the world. Fundamentally, there is enough space on this planet for humans and wildlife, and it is completely inconceivable that orangutans could disappear. It cannot, must not, happen.