The Pressure is on the Girl Scouts about using Palm Oil in their cookies

About two months ago I received a phone call from my 6-year-old niece, asking me if I wanted to buy Girl Scout Cookies. Two words that have become associated with these popular cookies quickly came to mind: palm oil. But how could I resist? Not only would my niece not understand, but I do admit that I have been in love with Samoas since I sold Girl Scout Cookies. I caved and bought a few boxes.

It was after I received my cookies that I read an inspiring story about two young Girl Scouts who were determined to make a difference after they found out that their cookies contained unsustainable palm oil. As many know, palm oil production is the major cause of deforestation of rainforests. The shock came for young Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen was when they found out that the clearing of rainforests threatens the survival of orangutans.

Now there are advocates out there who are major proponents of sustainable palm oil, such as McDonald’s, but there are also major companies such as Burger King and HSBC that have both made big strides in no longer supporting Indonesian producers. So why are the Girl Scouts and their baking company, Little Brownie Bakers, still including the ingredient in their cookies? Madison and Rhiannon set out to find out and make a difference.

In 2008, inspired by both their Girl Scout training and the work of Dr. Jane Goodall, the two 11-year-old girls had a conference call with Barry Horowitz, Vice President and General Manager of Girl Scout Merchandise. They requested a switch from palm oil to a truly sustainable alternative. Horowitz seemed as though the issue concerned him and promised that he’d be in touch with next steps after contacting the cookie manufacturers.

According to the Girl Scouts website, palm oil is used because the “licensed cookie bakers tell us it continues to be necessary to use palm oil in specific cookies to ensure their shelf life, quality, and to serve as a healthful alternative to trans-fats. Many top bakers have tried to stop using palm oil, but without it, their products do not meet quality and production standards.”

As time passed, Madison and Rhiannon decided they wanted to do something more. They organized Girl Scout troops across the country to generate pressure on Girl Scouts of the USA and convinced Union of Concerned Scientists, Center for Biological Diversity, Cultural Survival, Orangutan Foundation International, and Rainforest Action Network to send letters of concern on their behalf to the national Girl Scout headquarters in New York City.

Three years later, the young girls still haven’t given up and both take a strong stance on palm oil. Head on over to The Understory to read more about Madison and Rhiannon’s quest for a sustainable alternative.

The good news is the Girl Scouts website states “Effective in 2011, Little Brownie Bakers and its parent company, Kellogg, have committed to covering 100% of their global palm oil use through the purchase of GreenPalm certificates. Funds from GreenPalm certificates help growers invest in the transition to sustainable palm oil.”

Next year, the Girl Scouts will be celebrating 100 years of “building girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.” We can only hope that perhaps it will be on this celebratory year that a major change will be made once and for all.

Shown in the photo above: Rhiannon (left) and Madison (right) campaigning to save orangutans in seventh grade. Photo via: The Understory.
Story Credit Here

Four Captive Orangutans have been released into the Jalin Jantho Nature Reserve

Banda Aceh. Four formerly-captive orangutans have been given the chance to resume a normal life after they were released into the Jalin Jantho nature reserve in Aceh on Monday.

KisKis, a six-year-old male orangutan, was released into the Jalin Jantho forests of Aceh on Monday. (JG Photo/ Dedek Geumpang)

This brings to six the number of orangutans released into the forest by the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program since last week.

Dr. Ian Singleton, director of conservation at the Swiss-based PanEco Foundation, a partner of SOCP, said the four primates had previously been cared for — illegally — by local Acehnese people.

Before they were released into the Jalin Jantho forest, they underwent health checks at SOCP’s quarantine center in Sibolangit, North Sumatra.
Located some 80 kilometers east of Banda Aceh, the Jalin Jantho pine reserves are notorious for being the place where police raided a paramilitary training camp run by suspected terrorists in February last year.

“The Jantho forests are great for orangutans because they are rich and densely packed with trees,” Singleton said.

The four orangutans released on Monday were all aged between six and seven years of age; three were female and one male. The two others, released on March 23, consisted of a six-year-old male and an adult female, which was rescued injured from a palm oil plantation in Rawa Tripa, Nagan Raya district.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists Sumatran orangutans as critically endangered. An estimated 6,600 remain in the wild.

“The primary threat to orangutans is destruction of habitat caused by illegal logging concessions,” Singleton said, adding that the capture orangutans for the pet trade was also a major problem.

Wild populations of Sumatran orangutans are only found in the northern parts of Sumatra, with the largest numbers in the Leuser ecosystem of southeast Aceh, Singleton said.

“Leuser is the safest area for orangutans because of its higher altitude,” he said. “At lower levels their population is dwindling because of logging of the forest.”

Singleton said an additional 30 orangutans, which were seized from people keeping them illegally in Aceh, were being quarantined at SOCP’s centre in Sibolangit.

After completing their quarantine period and being granted a clean bill of health, they will also be released in Jalin Jantho, he said.
Story Credit Here

2 girl scouts speak out about the palm oil used in their cookies

When Girl Scouts Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen of Ann Arbor, Michigan were in the sixth grade, they decided that for their Bronze Award Girl Scout community service project, they would raise public awareness about the plight of endangered orangutans.

With a little research, the girls soon discovered that orangutans' fragile rainforest habitat in Indonesia is directly threatened by unsustainable industrial farming of palm oil. Demand for palm oil -- a trans-fat free alternative to unhealthy partially hydrogenated vegetable shortening -- has risen drastically over the past decade.

In response, industrial farm operations seeking to cash in on rising palm oil prices have been all too quick to slash and burn acres of rainforest in Indonesia to make room for unsustainable palm oil plantations, seriously threatening already endangered populations of these highly intelligent great apes.

Unsustainably harvested palm oil, Rhiannon and Madison discovered, is a major ingredient in Girl Scout cookies baked in the United States. In fact, it can be found in every flavor.

The girls decided they could not in good conscience continue to participate in the traditional Girl Scout cookie sale fundraiser while working to save the endangered orangutan. So they boycotted their organization's famous Samoas and Thin Mints, and opted to sell magazines to raise funds for their troop instead.
But Madison and Rhiannon didn't stop with a personal cookie sale boycott. These intrepid young women, both just eleven at the time, launched a public campaign to convince the Girl Scouts of the USA to take unsustainably farmed palm oil out of their cookies.

That was four years ago. So far, Rhiannon and Madison, now high schoolers, have traveled to speak with Girl Scout executives, scored famed primatologist and animal rights activist Jane Goodall's signature on one of their petitions, had their activism featured in The Frisky, The Seattle Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Grist, and have been interviewed by Public Radio International.

Most recently, the girls have forged a partnership with Rainforest Action Network and successfully convinced corporate food giant Kelloggs, which owns one of the bakers of Girl Scout cookies, to announce that it will both move toward using sustainably-produced palm oil and donate to rainforest preservation efforts to mitigate the environmental damage caused by palm oil currently used in the Girl Scout cookies made in its factories.

But what Madison and Rhiannon haven't yet managed to do is convince the Girl Scouts of the USA to ban unsustainably-farmed palm oil from its cookies. So they haven't given up the fight to protect endangered wildlife by changing the Girl Scout organization from within.
Watch the girls make their case in this Rainforest Action Network video here

Loggers tie up and beat 2yo Orangutan and ate her mother

God what is wrong with people. The people that did this should have the same thing done to them. My god how can anyone do this to a wonderful being? Just goes to show that they are the animals! I only wish a horrible life for those people that did this.

Although tragic Helen does pull through physically and is a healthy fat little Orangutan now.

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HELEN the orphan orangutan escaped a horrific death after forestry police found her strung up from a pole in Indonesia.


The pitiful two-year-old ape had been beaten and starved after her mum was eaten by logging workers.
Story credit and photos of what Helen looked like when they rescued her and how she looks today.

Fayette Progressive Preschool has adopted an Acre of Rain Forest to help the Orangutans

What a great idea, this not only gives the children awareness of what is happening to our Great Apes, but gives them the chance to help, get involved and watch the progress. Good for the teachers at the Fayette Progressive Preschool. A special thanks goes out to the teachers, students and parents that participated. What a great idea which other schools can also do.
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The process of educating Fayette Progressive preschool students about the importance of rain forests has been anything but boring.
Preschool teacher Erin Elliott and her teacher's assistant Kristen Whitmer, are using unique and creative methods to teach the students about some of Earth's greatest biological treasures and their true value. The morning and afternoon classes started by decorating the classroom in their best attempt at recreating the look of a rain forest.

"We had the kids do something called the rain forest walk where they walked up and down the hallway...and the parents would pledge a small amount of money for how many laps they would do," said Whitmer. "Per lap, they would pledge about 10 cents or a dollar...something like that."
As is stands currently, the pledges total approximately $550 and those funds are to the Adopt an Acre of Rain Forest program, which goes to small conservation groups in tropical countries that work to stop rain forest destruction. Donations support the purchase and sustainable management of rain forests.
Each class not only adopted one acre of rain forest in El Salvador, but each class adopted an orangutan as well. The students named one of the orangutans "Lear" and the other "Mr. Bernie." Trees for each class were also adopted through the program.
The kids were able to choose the acres of rain forest, trees and orangutans they adopted.
"They'll send us pictures and information to keep track of the growth of the orangutans," said Whitmer. "Some of them are just babies. At first the kids thought we were actually getting an orangutan at the school, but we had to explain that they're still going to be in the rain forest. We're just helping feed them and things like that. But the kids are very excited."

Not only are the kids excited by the project but they have been extremely eager to learn more about rain forests. The preschoolers are particularly interested in the animals that live in the rain forest, such as the snakes and jaguars.
"I'm beyond impressed by the response to this activity," said Elliott. "I was not expecting this type of donation to the walk either. The response was so much more than we expected. It's been great for the students and they're really understanding it very well for preschoolers."

Teresa Borden, the early childhood director, agreed.
"I'm very proud of the kids for their dedication to this activity and their understanding of it," said Borden. "And the staff continues to amaze me with their creativity. They truly believe that these little guys can learn just about anything and that's just awesome."

Fayette Progressive School serves infant/toddler and preschool children who are at risk environmentally and developmentally.
Story credit and photo Here

Nyaru Menteng a refuge for Orangutans is getting a new Waste Water Treatment System

The orangutans of Nyaru Menteng in Kalimantan, Indonesia are about to get a new waste water treatment system thanks to Lismore’s Ecoteam and Tony Gilding who owns and runs the Macadamia Castle at Knockrow.

Feeding time at Nyaru Menteng.
Nyaru Menteng is a refuge for orangutans who are predominantly the victims of habitat loss, and they have up to 600 animals across four sites.

Director of Ecoteam, Dr Keith Bolton said the infrastructure hasn’t kept up with the growing demand on the centre in the past 20 years.

The waste water system, as well as having to deal with the human waste of up to 50 staff and volunteers, has to deal with food scraps and monkey poo from the cages where the orangutans are kept in at night.

“It’s a fairly rudimentary system they’ve got at the moment that consists of septic tanks with no bottom which is creating pollution of the ground water. There is a lot of overland flow of sewage too which is creating a parasite issue in some of the younger oragutans which reduces their health and increases infant mortality,” he said.

Dr Bolton and the team at Ecoteam have come up with a wetland based water treatment system that will be installed across the four sites.

“It will treat the raw sewage to a high quality secondary treatment level which can then be discharged into a water course.”
Ecoteam have donated their services to design and implement the system, but Dr Bolton says he has an ulterior motive.
“I get to go and hang out with orangutans,” he said excitedly.

Dr Bolton and North Coast plumber Nik Hyde will fly over to complete stage one in the next few months and will be supported by a team of Indonesian tradespeople. Materials and travelling costs are being provided by Borneo Orangutan Survival Australia, of which Tony Gilding is vice-president.
Story Credit Here

3 Orangutans released back into the wild

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Malaysian researchers are testing whether three young orangutans reared in captivity can adapt to life in the wild outside Borneo, while activists insisted Wednesday the experiment was a flawed way of trying to help the endangered primates.

The project is spearheaded by a private foundation that runs Orangutan Island, a research center and tourist attraction in northern peninsular Malaysia. The facility has bred orangutans in captivity over the past decade despite criticism by animal rights groups that conservation programs should focus instead on protecting existing orangutans in the jungles of Borneo and Sumatra.

D. Sabapathy, the center's senior manager, said researchers released three captive orangutans on a neighboring island last week. They are expected to remain there for up to six years before officials determine whether they can be let loose, either in peninsular Malaysia or Borneo.

The project marks the first time that orangutans have been allowed to roam on their own in peninsular Malaysia. Activists estimate some 50,000 orangutans live in the wild in Malaysian and Indonesian territory in Borneo, while another 7,000 can be found on Indonesia's Sumatra island.

The three apes include Sonia, born at the center eight years ago, and two others - Ah Ling, 17, and Nicky, 23 - found by wildlife authorities in Borneo a decade ago and brought to the center. Sabapathy said he was not sure whether Ah Ling and Nicky had lost their mothers or were rescued from poachers.

"It's a rehabilitation program," Sabapathy said. "It's not that we simply will release them anywhere."
The orangutans' lives are expected to change dramatically. On Orangutan Island, they were kept in a 5-acre (2-hectare) enclosure, where they were fed by workers and observed by tourists.
During their stay on the neighboring island, they will enjoy freedom across a 14-acre (6-hectare) forested area, where workers have hidden bananas and tapioca for them to find until they are accustomed to obtaining food such as wild fruit and termites on their own.

Researchers are using binoculars to monitor their behavior, including how they build nests and interact with their environment without human contact.

Marc Ancrenaz, co-founder of French-based conservation group Hutan, said however that resources for orangutan conservation research could be used more effectively elsewhere.
"There's no reason why they should do this. ... We (already) have a wild population" of orangutans in Borneo, Ancrenaz said.

Orangutans in the wild face threats such as the loss of habitat due to illegal logging and agriculture, as well as illegal hunting of the apes for private collections or use in traditional medicine.

The Orangutan Island center houses 25 orangutans, including 17 born there. Orangutans are known to live up to 60 years in captivity, but not as long in the wild.
Story Credit Here

Girl Scout Cookies have palm oil which hurts the Orangutans

Girl Scout cookie season, but Michigan scouts Rhiannon Tomtishen and Madison Vorva are finding other ways to support the organization’s mission of "building girls of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place" than selling those famous Thin Mints and Tagalongs. Many varieties of Girl Scout cookies include palm oil, the No. 1 culprit behind deforestation in Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia.
When Madison and Rhiannon found out that Girl Scout cookies were destroying the forest homes of endangered wildlife like orangutans, pygmy elephants, and Sumatran tigers -- and displacing indigenous people -- they sprung into action. First, they stopped selling the cookies, and then launched an effort to encourage the Girl Scouts to switch to more environmentally friendly (and healthier) alternatives like canola oil. The Girl Scouts USA and their CEO Kathy Clonginer, however, have refused to act despite efforts by Girl Scouts across the country and the encouragement of organizations like the Union of Concerned Scientists and Center for Biological Diversity.

Now, thanks to a post on the animal welfare blog Please Do Not Tap on the Glass, we learned that the Girl Scouts’ British sister organization, the Girl Guides, have eliminated palm oil from their cookies, and are offering to help the Girl Scouts USA and Girl Guides Canada do the same. The English bakers also found, unsurprisingly, that replacing unhealthy palm oil with olive oil and canola oil doesn’t only save forests, it also resulted in a 60 to 70 percent reduction in saturated fat.

I hope the Girl Scouts USA do the same. When you read about the effects of palm oil cultivation on orangutans and other wildlife, it’s pretty horrifying. Here’s a recent report from Rhett Butler at MongaBay on the effects of palm oil expansion:
Michelle Desilets, executive director of the Orangutan Land Trust, says she started to see the shift about five years ago. Relegated to ever smaller fragments of forest, wild orangutans began to face starvation as their food sources were depleted, forcing them to venture into newly established oil palm plantations where they feed on the young shoots of palms, destroying the tree before it produces any oil seeds.

Viewing the wild orangutans as pests, plantation managers started paying $10 to $20 for each dead orangutan -- a strong incentive for a migrant worker who may earn just $10 per day.

"Our rescue teams began to be informed of wandering wild orangutans in human settlements," Desilets told me, while cradling a baby orangutan in Nyaru Menteng. "We have found orangutans beaten to death with wooden planks and iron bars, butchered by machetes, beaten unconscious and buried alive, and doused with petrol and set alight. Since 2004, more and more orangutans in our centers have been rescued from areas within or near oil palm plantations, and over 90 percent of the infants up to three years of age come from these areas."

I think even the Cookie Monster would pass on that one. Unfortunately, so far, the Girl Scouts seem to be engaging in the type of greenwashing that one expects from giant food conglomerates like Cargill, instead of an organization that’s supposed to be cultivating honesty and strong values in our nation’s youth.
The Girl Scouts could be a great organization that, among other things, cultivates a love for nature and the outdoors. But it should follow the lead of its British sister organization and find a way to support itself in a way that doesn’t undermine its values, or the survival of our fellow creatures. Until then, no Peanut Butter Patties, Thank U Berry Muches, or Daisy Go Rounds for me!
Story Credit Here

Conservationists say releasing 1000 Orangutans is like going into a Killing Field

More than 1,000 captive orangutans set for release into the wild on Borneo island are being sent into a "killing field" of illegal logging and poaching, conservationists say.

Dr. Karmele Llano Sanchez from International Animal Rescue checks Monte, a 13-year-old pet orangutan, after members of the West Kalimantan Conservation and Natural Resources Board (BKSDA) seized him from a residence in Bengkayan in West Kalimantan province.

Photograph by: STRINGER/INDONESIA

Credit: REUTERS

Indonesia has reserved 86,450 hectares (214,000 acres) of forest in Muara Wahau, East Kalimantan province, for the rehabilitation of 1,200 captive big apes over the next four years.

But the independent Centre for Orangutan Protection (COP) warned that the endangered mammals were being sent to their deaths unless the government also managed to stop illegal logging and poaching, which is rampant in the region.

"Without law enforcement and security guarantees from the government, releasing them to the forest is like sending them to a killing field," COP chief Hardi Baktiantoro told reporters.

He said local communities were responsible for most of the destruction of flora and fauna in Muara Wahau.
In the last three months of 2010, the COP rescued four orangutans which locals had caught and were offering for sale for up to 2.5 million rupiah ($280) each.
"The forestry ministry should deploy the forestry police to protect orangutans in the wild from poaching and save their habitat from illegal logging," Baktiantoro said.

Experts say there are about 50,000 to 60,000 orangutans left in the wild, 80 percent of them in Indonesia and the rest in Malaysia.

They are faced with extinction due to poaching and the rapid destruction of their habitat.

Story Credit Here

47 babysitters brought in from nearby Villages to sit with orphaned Orangutans

Conservationists hoping to save orphaned orangutans in Borneo have enlisted the help of 47 babysitters to help care for the infant apes.

At the Nyaru Menteng centre women have been recruited from nearby villages in central Borneo to help the 650 orangutans as they move through nursery, Forest School One and Forest School Two. When fully ‘educated’ they are hopefully able to head out for a new life in the jungle.
The little apes are often driven out of the forest by loggers or killed by villagers who see them as pests. Sadly, surviving infants left clinging to their dead mothers are then sometimes sold as pets.

The centre was set up 12 years ago by ­Danish conservationist Lone Dröscher-Nielsen who came up with the new system to give the traumatised young apes the care they need to survive.

Orangutans share 97% of the same DNA as humans and often behave just like children. “They know we protect and take care of them,” 24-year-old sitter Mia Puspita told the Reader’s Digest. “When they want attention, they come to you with a pitiful face, cry for a touch or sit next to you and put their arm on your lap. But our greatest joy is to see baby orangutans smile.”
Story Credit Here

Twin Orangutans born to blind Mom and Dad

Although this is a great story about how mom was given a chance to give birth for her quality of life, the story of Dad is horrible. Bless these 2 little infants so that they can stay with mom and grow up to be released back into the wild. Congrats Mom and Dad
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JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A blind orangutan at a rescue center in western Indonesia has given birth to a healthy pair of twins.

Gober, an elderly female Sumatran orangutan who is blind in both eyes due to cataracts, lies down with her twin babies at a rehabilitation center in Sibolangit, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011. The twins were born on Friday Jan. 21, 2011 from both blind parents. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara) (Binsar Bakkara - AP)


Ian Singleton, who works with the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program, said Thursday that Gober, the mother, so far appeared able to care for the babies herself.

"But vets and staff are ready to step in if necessary," he said, adding that Leuser, the father, also is blind.

There are around 50,000 orangutans left in the wild, 90 percent of them in Indonesia, with more than 2,000 others in rescue centers.

Some of those at centers were seized in the illegal wildlife trade and others orphaned when their mothers strayed from rapidly disappearing rain forests in search of food.

The twins - a boy named Ganteng and a girl named Ginting - were born last Friday.

"It's hoped that both infants will eventually be released to a life in the wild, something that has been denied both their parents due to their blindness," Singleton said.

The twins' mother, who has cataracts in both eyes, was captured by vets two years ago in an area surrounded by palm oil plantations.
They were worried she'd be killed by villagers for routinely raiding crops and took her to the rescue center.
The father arrived in 2006 after he was found outside a village far from a national forest in Jambi province with 62 air rifle shots to his body.

Several pellets were lodged in his eyes, leaving him sightless.
"Normally we try to prevent orangutans breeding at the center," said Singleton.

"But we decided to make an exception," he said, because having babies to care for would dramatically help to improve the mother's quality of life.
Story Credit Here

Orangutan DNA more diverse than human

Researchers have mapped the genome of the red-haired great ape with some surprising results
January 25, 2011 - Among great apes, orangutans are humans’ most distant cousins. These tree dwellers sport a coat of fine reddish hair and have long been endangered in their native habitats in the rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo in Southeast Asia.

Now, a team of scientists, led by Washington University, has decoded, or sequenced, the DNA of a Sumatran orangutan. With this genome as a reference, the scientists then sequenced the genomes of five more Sumatran and five Bornean orangutans.

Diversity puzzle

Their research, published in Nature, reveals intriguing clues about the evolution of great apes, including humans, and showcases the immense genetic diversity across and within Sumatran and Bornean orangutans.

Diversity is important because it enhances the ability of populations to stay healthy and adapt to changes.“The average orangutan is more diverse – genetically speaking – than the average human,” says lead author Devin Locke, a geneticist at university’s Genome Centre.

“We found deep diversity in both Bornean and Sumatran orangutans, but it’s unclear whether this level of diversity can be maintained in light of continued widespread deforestation.”
The scientists catalogued some 13 million DNA variations in the orangutans. This valuable resource can help conservationists assess the diversity of orangutans both in the wild and in captivity.

The orangutan genome adds detail to the evolutionary tree and gives scientists insights into the unique aspects of human DNA that set man apart from the great apes, their closest relatives. Overall, the researchers found that the human and orangutan genomes are 97 per cent identical.

Slow to evolve but stable

However, in a surprising discovery, the researchers found that at least in some ways, the orangutan genome evolved more slowly than that of humans and chimpanzees, which are 99 per cent similar.

“In terms of evolution, the orangutan genome is special among apes in that it has been extraordinarily stable over the past 15 million years,” says senior author Richard Wilson, director of the Genome Centre.

“This compares with chimpanzees and humans, both of which have experienced large-scale structural changes of their genome that may have accelerated their evolution.”

The genome book
A genome reads much like an instruction book for creating and sustaining a particular species. The chromosomes are the chapters and within every chapter are paragraphs, sentences, words and single letters, which are like the individual bases of the DNA sequence.

“If you are editing a book on your computer, you can highlight a paragraph and copy and paste it, delete it or invert it,” Wilson explains. “Duplications, deletions and inversions of DNA are types of structural variations.

When we look at the genomes of humans and chimps, we see an acceleration of structural changes over the course of evolutionary history. But for whatever reason, orangutans did not participate in that acceleration, and that was a surprise.”

Story Credit Here and please visit their website to find out all of what they do for our wonderful Orangutans

520 Orangutans will be released back into the wild between now and 2015

A conservation group on Wednesday finally got the go-ahead to release captive orangutans back into the wild, following a nine-year hyatus marked by zero releases.

Restorasi Habitat Orangutan Indonesia, a subsidiary of the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, was awarded a concession for an orangutan release area by the Ministry of Forestry in August 2010.

The concession covers 86,540 hectares of previously logged land in East Kalimantan, for which the RHOI must pay a license fee of Rp 13 billion ($1.4 million) over the next 60 years.

But the sluggish bureaucratic process meant the group only now received approval to start releasing the apes back into the wild.

“In addition to the concession we’ve been granted by the Forestry Ministry, we plan to add another 23,000 hectares in the northern part of East Kalimantan, because not all the land we got is suitable as an orangutan release habitat,” said Togu Manurung, chairman of the BOS Foundation.

“The topography is the main challenge — at 900 meters above sea level, it’s too high an elevation for orangutans.”

He said each orangutan would ideally require at least 150 hectares of forest in which to roam, given its wide home range.

“We’ll release the orangutans in several phases through 2015,” Togu said.

“We’ll start with the release of at least 127 orangutans, not all at the same time, in East Kalimantan. We also plan to release around 520 orangutans in Central Kalimantan.”

He said the BOS Foundation currently housed 620 orangutans at its Nyaru Menteng rehabilitation center in Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, but not all the animals were ready to be released back into the wild.

“Some of them are suffering from illnesses such as hepatitis and tuberculosis,” Togu said.

Initially, the foundation will release between 24 and 30 orangutans back into the wild this May, he said.

The BOS Foundation, a non-profit organization established in 1991, focuses on preparing orangutans to be reintroduced to their natural environment at its rehabilitation centers.

Togu said the BOS Foundation had been unable to release any apes since 2002 because of the difficulty in finding suitable habitats for them.

Between 1992 and 2002 the group released 450 orangutans in East Kalimantan.

“This is a serious matter because orangutans are on the verge of extinction,” he said.

Some of the orangutans currently at the Nyaru Menteng rehabilitation center could be released in May. (JG Photo/Fidelis E. Satriastanti)
“None of the trees that have been planted in the concession area for orangutan release since 2002 should be cut down. We should keep them as they are because this will benefit the orangutans and other species in the wider ecosystem.”

Togu said now that the land was officially dedicated for orangutan releases, the BOS Foundation’s next challenge would be to finance the release of each of the apes.

“Preparing each orangutan for release will cost around Rp 2 million to Rp 2.4 million,” he said.

Given the number of orangutans the foundation plans to release, “that adds up to a lot of money,” he said.

He proposed the government waive the $1.4 million license fee in exchange for the foundation carrying out ecosystem restoration efforts.

“That’s because we’ll be doing what is essentially the government’s duty to protect orangutans, which are considered an endangered species,” Togu said.

“The government should be responsible for this duty.”

He added his organization would also seek to raise funds for the orangutan release program through carbon-trading schemes within the concession area it was granted by the government.
Story Credit Here
To learn about The BOS Foundation and to watch and wonderful video of mom and baby Here

Tell Pizza Hut to stop slicing up the rainforest. It is killing our Apes

Pizza Hut's headquarters in Dallas, T.X. recently got a visit from a live orangutan. OK, so it wasn't a real ape — it was a guy sporting an orangutan costume. The fake ape provided a very real message, though: Pizza Hut's use of unsustainable palm oil is killing Indonesia's rainforests and the animals that call these regions home.
The "orangutan" and his human accomplice showed up at Pizza Hut's headquarters courtesy of Greenpeace. The non-profit has been running a campaign for the past several months asking major food providers to switch from rainforest-killing palm oil to certified sustainable oils. The pressure pushed Nestle, Burger King, Kraft, and other major purveyors to ditch Sinar Mas, an unsustainable palm oil provider, and start sourcing their oils from eco-friendly operations. Pizza Hut, however, seems to be sticking to the status quo.

The orangutan and his Greenpeace buddy didn't make it any further than Pizza Hut's lobby before they were stopped by security. The two hoped to deliver — in pizza boxes — more than 7,000 signed petitions from folks who want the pizza purveyor to switch to sustainable palm oil. The two were even asked to stop filming the event, but you can check out the duo's unsuccessful attempts at petition delivery here.

The real issue here is Pizza Hut's reliance on Sinar Mas, an unscrupulous supplier that dominates the world's palm oil industry. The majority of global palm oil comes from Southeast Asia — namely, Indonesia. The country is home to pristine rainforest ecosystems, and the islands of Borneo and Sumatra are some of the most biologically diverse habitats on earth. The palm oil trade threatens to destroy these sensitive regions and send their native flora and fauna spiraling into oblivion.

Though Sinar Mas is the most popular global palm oil supplier, it's also the most environmentally destructive. Clear-cutting rainforest and bulldozing peatlands in order to plant oil palm plantations is regular practice in Indonesia. Sinar Mas sources much of its oil from these unsustainable operations. Not only do plantations like this destroy rainforest ecosystems and contribute to global warming, they threaten the existence of the plants and animals that live in these habitats. The situation is especially dire for species like the orangutan and Sumatran tiger, which teeter on the brink of extinction. A little spike in the popularity of stuffed-crust pizza could move these species' statuses from "endangered" to "extinct."

Certified sustainable palm oil providers certainly exist, so there's no reason that any company should continue to rely on Sinar Mas. Consumer pressure already pushed Burger King, Kraft, Nestle, and Unilever to ditch their unsustainable palm oil providers. Let's help Greenpeace get Pizza Hut to do the same. Sign Greenpeace's petition asking Pizza Hut and Dunkin Donuts to immediately drop Sinar Mas and switch to using sustainable palm oil.
Story credit here and to sign the petition please

Mother Orangutans are being slaughtered while their babies are hanging on

Mother orangutans are being slaughtered with machets by hunters while their babies are still clinging tightly onto them !! The hunters are after the babies to sell them !! THIS VIDEO DOES NOT SHOW ANY ORANGUTANS BEING KILLED. What it shows is a conservation organisation that are helping them. Listen to some of the stories , and meet the some of the baby orangutan orphans that were rescued.
A Must See Video Here

Landmark deal for protection of releasing Orangutans back into the wild in Borneo

Conservationists are celebrating a "landmark" deal to give more protection to a site for releasing orangutans back into the wild in Borneo.

The Orangutan Foundation has secured the support of government representatives, local villages, community organisations and two palm oil companies for an agreement to strengthen the buffer zone around the 56,000 hectare Lamandau River Wildlife Reserve in Indonesia. The reserve is home to many endangered species, including orangutans.

Some 160 of the "red apes" have been released into the reserve and 40 new orangutans have been born there.

It comes as the Orangutan Foundation launches a £200,000 fundraising appeal to mark its 20th anniversary. The charity has said the money raised will go to support projects including wildlife reserves and the creation of new conservation areas to protect orangutans.
Story Credit Here
Their website here

Hangki, the Orangutan at the Orangutan Foundation International is climbing trees again

As you read the title of this article, the thought might have occurred to you that an orangutan climbing a tree is not really news worthy. We would normally agree; indeed, if we were to write a news item for every time that an orangutan climbs a tree at the Care Center, there would be no time left for rehabilitation, feeding, enrichment, or anything else! However, in the case of Hangki, climbing a tree is an amazing and extraordinary achievement.

Hangki was a rehabilitated ex-captive orangutan living comfortably in the wild when she was struck down by an unknown viral disease which left her paralyzed from the hips down. Subsequently, she was brought back to our Care Center. She has been living here for several years now, where she enjoys regular outings to the forest. While in the forest, Hangki takes things very slowly. Because she cannot move her legs, she gets around by using her arms to drag herself towards branches and tree trunks, or by doing some very unique head-over-feet summersaults. Most of Hangki´s movements and activities in the forest serve one sole purpose, and that is to find food!

Over the years, several different caregivers have worked with Hangki and tried to improve her physical abilities and range of motion. A common exercise involved spreading treats around in the forest and keeping Hangki physically active by making her work to find these snacks. Using peanuts as rewards always led to the most success; there is very little that Hangki won’t do for a peanut! But whenever a peanut was hidden up in a tree, Hangki would turn to her caregiver with a look that seemed to say: “I’m not going all the way up there just for one tiny peanut!!”

Here at OFI, we have always believed that Hangki has the potential to once again climb trees. Because she had so much experience exploring the forest canopy before she was paralyzed and because of the well developed strength and flexibility that remain in her arms, we’ve always maintained high hopes that her time in the trees was not yet over. For Hangki, however, there never seemed a good enough reason for her to bother trying to climb trees. That, however, was before she was introduced to the rattan balls that our enrichment team makes! These wicker-like balls can be filled to the brink with peanuts and this made Hangki’s motivation to obtain the reward rise to new heights (literally)! When a rattan ball full of peanuts was positioned on a tree branch a few meters off the ground, Hangki gathered together all her strength and went for it! Take a look at the amazing results!!

Hangki grabs the first branch within reach and takes a good look at the rattan ball up in the tree.

With the first flexing of her muscles, Hangki pulls herself upright and gets ready for a big climbing adventure

Hangki lifts herself completely from the ground while holding the first branch and then she slowly reaches higher.

With two hands firmly on the second branch, Hangki gets ready to pull herself up and towards the rattan ball. She is already halfway!

After Hangki pulls herself up to the second branch, she doesn’t have the strength to cling onto it with one arm and to reach for the rattan ball with the other. Instead, she bites deep into the branch and uses her strong jaw to hold on.

As the branch begins to bend under the weight of big Hangki, she stretches out with her long arm and manages, with the very tips of her fingers, to push the rattan ball off the branch and into the soft grass.

The rattan ball is on the ground right in front of Hangki and she is very much looking forward to pulling it apart and obtaining the peanuts hidden inside. You would expect Hangki to drop to the ground immediately…

… but instead it seems as if Hangki is enjoying being in the trees once again and, just for the fun of it, she plays around a little more on the branches before landing on the ground to enjoy her treat.
And enjoy it, she does!
Story Credit and other photos of Hangki, the Orangutan
To donate to this wonderful Foundation click here

The Growing Palm Oil Industry is putting the Orangutans in a crisis

Surrounded by the South China Sea to the north and northwest, the Sulu Sea to the north east, the Celebes Sea and the Makassar Strait to the east, and the Java Sea and Karimata Strait to the south, Borneo is, at 743,330 Km2, the world’s third largest island, and lies to the east of Sumatra. Borneo is divided between three countries; the state of Brunei-Darussalam, the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah, and the Indonesian territory of Kalimantan, and has a human population of around 16,000,000 , with the majority of settlements and cities lying near to, or along, the coastline or Borneo’s extensive river system (Smith, 2007).

Like Sumatra, Borneo is extraordinarily rich in biodiversity. The major forest type throughout the island is evergreen lowland diptercarp rainforest, with hill diptercarp, mangrove, fresh water, peat swamp, ironwood, heathland and montane forests all also found (Rautner at al, 2005), and harbouring 3,000 species of trees, 15,000 species of flowering plants, 221 species of terrestrial mammals, including 13 species of primate, and 420 species of birds (Mackinnon et al, 1997). However, also like Sumatra, widespread logging, which began under the period of European colonization and has accelerated in the last 40 years, and the growing palm oil industry and related forest conversion, has seen the islands forest cover decrease by around 50% (Matthews, 2002). It is now estimated that the area under concession for logging and oil palm cultivation in Borneo is larger than that of the remaining forest (Rijsken & Meijaard, 1999).

The most recent estimates put the population of Bornean orangutans at around 54,000 (Wich et al, 2008), and the species, better known and generally better studied than its Sumatran cousin, has benefited from both a strong international NGO presence, and Borneo’s series of national parks, which, despite massive incursions and continued threats, today harbor significant populations of orangutans.

Kalimantan is divided in to four provinces, Central, West, East and South. The two national parks with the largest orangutan populations are found in Central Kalimantan. The most famous, Tanjung Puting, is a 400,000 hectare park renowned for its long term wild orangutan study and rehabilitation program. Despite its high profile and strong NGO presence, the park has been subjected to widespread illegal logging, conversion, for both palm oil production and agriculture, forest fires and illegal gold mining, and studies conducted in 2009 showed that just 66% of the park remains under some kind of forest cover (Infinite Earth, 2009). If current plans by the local government to decrease the size of the park by 25% take place, thousands of orangutans will be lost. Sebangau National Park was created as a national park in 2004 and covers an area of 568,700 hectares. Like Tanjung Puting, the park has been subjected to incursions, and historic draining of the parks’ peat swamps, to aid the extraction of logs from the forest, has left it prone to almost annual fires. Despite this, the two parks have a combined orangutan population of around 12,000 orangutans (Singleton et al, 2004).

Gunung Palung National Park is a 90,000 hectare park in West Kalimantan known for its high biodiversity and mixture of habitat types. Despite being the site of a long term wild orangutan study, having a strong international NGO presence and being one of the provinces most popular tourist destinations, the park has been heavily logged, and its 2500 wild orangutans are under constant threat. Two other national parks in West Kalimantan, Danau Sentarum and Betung Kerihun , have also suffered from logging, and studies indicate that the former contains an orangutan population of just 500 individuals (Singleton et al, 2004), and the latter has suffered from widespread poaching, with an unknown population (WWF, 2010). Although NGO presence and conservation initiatives in these parks are increasing, efforts are hampered by the fact that large numbers of orangutans occur in legally unprotected forests outside the park borders.

Kutai National Park in East Kalimantan was once one of the most pristine and bio-diverse parks in Indonesia, but in the last few decades, the park has been invaded by logging concessions, industrial complexes, open pit coalmines and settlements, ravaged by forest fires, and it is likely that just 10% of the park remains forested, with an orangutan population of just 500 (Singleton et al, 2004). Media reports in 2009 suggested the population could be even lower, and reported that the park now contains an airport, gas stations and even a prostitution complex (Mongabay, 2009).

As national parks throughout the island continue to struggle against the onslaught of huge palm oil expansion and logging, attention is being increasingly focused on the areas of forest outside of the national park system. In Central Kalimantan, conservationists are working to protect the 76,000 hectare Lamandau Nature Reserve, an expired logging concession comprised mainly of peat swamp, which acts as an rehabilitated orangutan release site, and the Belantikan Hulu region, which is home to an estimated 6,000 orangutans, the largest population outside of a protected area. NGO’s have also been working to protect the 377,000 hectare Mawas Reserve, home to 3,500 orangutans, in Central Kalimantan, and an ambitious plan by WWF to conserve 22 million hectares of land, an area that encompasses protected areas, reserves, sustainably managed buffer zones and wildlife corridors, called the ‘Heart of Borneo’, would, if successful, protect thousands of orangutans in the centre of the island. The publicity surrounding this scheme seems to have thwarted a plan by the Indonesian and Malaysian governments to establish the world’s largest palm oil plantation in this area, but the threat remains ever present.

Like Kalimantan, the orangutans in the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah have long faced rapidly decreasing forests, and the spread of palm oil plantations has forced remaining orangutans in to small, isolated populations in heavily degraded forests. Sabah contains a population of just 11,000 orangutans, and around 60% of this number are living outside of protected areas, in secondary forests often exploited by indigenous communities and forest industries (Ancrenaz at al, 2007). In depth studies in the Kinabatangan flood plain, which harbors 1,100 orangutans, has shown that they can survive in high numbers in degraded secondary forest (Ancrenaz et al, 2007), and the formation of the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary in this area is a promising step for the survival of orangutans in Sabah.

The Batang Ai National Park, a 24,281 hectare tropical rainforest, and the nearby Lanjak Entimau Wildlife Sanctuary are two of the last strongholds of the orangutan in Sarawak, with a combined population of around 1,500 (Singleton et al, 2004). Although these parks are generally well protected, hunting and illegal logging remains a problem in this area (McConkey et al, 2005), and the threat of these forests being converted in future to facilitate palm oil expansion remains strong.

The threats facing the forests of Kalimantan, Sabah and Sarawak, and the animals and people who depend on them, have never been greater. However, with continued environmental awareness, growing prosperity in both Malaysia and Indonesia and international pressure, it is hoped the future of these great forests can be ensured.
Story Credit Here

The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation can use your help

The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation focuses on three key areas in their work with Orangutans and by choosing Aware you are helping them to continue this great work. Read on to find out more.

Orangutan Orphanage

Nyaru Mentang is the largest Orangutan orphanage in the world. It currently looks after over 600 Orangutans of various ages who have been orphaned, left permanently scarred or injured as a result of some traumatic experience. The main goal of this centre is to rehabilitate these orangutans and hopefully reintroduce them back into a protected wild environment - the first planned release in over eight years to occur in 2011. This release is an exciting development for both BOS and the Orangutans themselves with a huge amount of planning, resources and financial support being invested to ensure its success
Orangutan Adoptions

As you can imagine, feeding and caring for orphan Orangutans is a costly project -but it is all part of the rehabilitation process and is essential if these animals are going to have a chance to make it back into the wild. However, we can all help this by adopting an Orangutan while it is living in the orangutan orphanage. It is through the adoption program, Orangutans are given a chance to go to school and learn through human carers what it means to be an Orangutan. Learning to climb trees, finding what food is ok to eat and building a nest for sleeping each day - this is what all Orangutans learn to do at Nyaru Mentang.

Land Protection and Rehabilitation

A big part of what BOS does is actually rehabilitating degradated land and trying to protect what is already there. Samboja Lestari is located in East Kalimantan and was once a barren wasteland - it was however brought back to life and now is a lush, reforested sanctuary - offering life for not only Orangutans but for the local community as well. Several activities are supported by the work done at Samboja Lestari including organic farming, community development programs like planting seedlings, research and providing clean water. Samboja Lestari also houses around 250 Orangutans which have been confiscated or left orphaned as a result of palm oil plantations, forest fires or the pet trade. It is hopeful that these Orangutans will also make it into the wild as part of the overall release strategy.

You are doing your part by supporting the Planet Palm Oil Free campaign. Please continue to support this great cause.

To find out how else you can join other Australians helping to secure a brighter future for the orangutans click here

Be Aware, Buy Aware And Save The Orangutans
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How you can help here

The Orangutans at Camp Leakey

In a Borneo jungle, Tom Neal Tacker meets orang-utans and the remarkable woman who fights for their lives.

A long, hairy arm extends over my shoulder; fingers tickle my torso. I reach around to hold her hand behind my back, like we're canoodling at the cinema and hoping no one will notice. She turns to me and smiles. Her mouth is full of stinky sweet durian and her lower lip protrudes comically.

Advertisement: Story continues below It's an intimate moment and I return the smile, smitten. Siswe and I share a simple wooden bench on the verandah of Dr Birute Galdikas's home at Camp Leakey in Borneo's Tanjung Puting National Park. Siswe is about 35 years old, the local orang-utan troupe's alpha female and as strong as 10 men.

''She could dislocate your arm as easily as you would snap a twig, you know,'' Galdikas says. ''But she likes men, particularly older men.''

Borneo's rainforests aren't for the faint-hearted. I've travelled two hours on a small boat up a river full of crocodiles to get here. Venomous snakes are everywhere; leeches, too.

Borneo is alive with things that bite, sting or suck. If I trip on a boardwalk and fall into the swamp that surrounds Camp Leakey, I might not live to tell the tale. But I've come to meet one of my heroes, Galdikas, and to get close to Indonesia's critically endangered orang-utans.

Once there were three Leakey angels working in the field; now there is one. Jane Goodall retired from studying chimpanzees in Tanzania more than 20 years ago to launch her own wildlife preservation foundation. Dian Fossey was murdered in 1985 while studying mountain gorillas in Rwanda. Galdikas continues her field research where it all started in 1971, in Indonesia's Kalimantan Province in Borneo. Her research station is called Camp Leakey in honour of her mentor, anthropologist Louis Leakey.

Before meeting Galdikas I wander around Camp Leakey. The orang-utans are supplied with fruit twice a day at various feeding stations in the surrounding forest, enough to supplement their diet but not enough to encourage dependence.

The hours between feeding times allow visitors to explore the camp unsupervised.
I find a black-handed gibbon in a small tree outside the cook's cabin. Normally gibbons are as high up in a tree as possible, invisible in the upper canopy. Without excellent vision, binoculars and luck, they're difficult to spot.

This gibbon poses for me a few metres away, looking for companionship or a handout, or both. Not so the proboscis monkeys. They sit in the trees along the river in full view, catching the rays of the morning sun.

The local Dayaks call them the Dutch monkeys, drawing attention to the resemblance of the monkey's protuberant noses to those of the country's former colonial masters.
A family of wild pigs scampers about. Piglets squeal in an open area near the dining room. One of the adult female pigs is blind; she has no trouble avoiding tree stumps, unlike me - I continually trip over tree roots in the dimly lit forest.

Siswe is one of Galdikas's favourites and a regular at Camp Leakey. Though essentially a wild animal, she has adapted to occasional human company. ''Sometimes I hear her banging around on my roof while I'm trying to sleep,'' Galdikas says, ''but usually she's off somewhere in the forest reminding other orang-utans who's boss.''

It's difficult to imagine Siswe as a tyrant. Instead, her gentle caresses lead me to believe otherwise. Her giant hand rests easily on my shoulder, her fingers a bit grotty and sticky from the durian. Her intelligence is comparable to that of a three-year-old child. Like most kids, Siswe charms, cajoles, manipulates emotions and throws temper tantrums, yet I detect wisdom. She is a picture of calm sitting next to me yet still unpredictable, hence Galdikas's warning.

The light grows crepuscular; night descends quickly at this latitude. Heavy rain resumes. Siswe sighs melodramatically, scratches her head with her left hand, leaving her right around my waist giving me a slight squeeze.

''She gets depressed when it rains,'' Galdikas says; her shoulders slump in sympathy with Siswe's glum attitude.

''Maybe you two need to move to a drier climate,'' I suggest. Galdikas has a hearty, frequent laugh. Though her reputation for not suffering fools gladly puts her in strife with logging and mining companies, I find Galdikas an amiable companion.

When Suharto was president of Indonesia, Galdikas was kidnapped and beaten. Her deportation from the country was a frequent topic of discussion in government cabinet meetings.

Threats continue to thwart her work to save the rainforest environment and all the creatures that live in it, but now her work is supported by the police and forestry authorities.

She was given Indonesia's Hero of the Earth award as national recognition for her work to save not only orang-utans but all the remaining wild habitats of Indonesia.

Illegal logging and mining jeopardise the park's boundaries, though lately the damage in the park has been minimal. That's not so outside the park.

''Not far from where you're staying is a huge palm oil plantation,'' Galdikas says.

''The young male orang-utan you saw outside your cabin yesterday has nowhere else to go so he's travelling along the river looking for somewhere to cross into the park. There's no food or shelter for him or other orang-utans on the opposite side of the river.

''Gold mining upriver is polluting the eco-system, too.''

There is concern for the Dayaks who live on, wash in, drink from and fish in the river. Mercury poisoning is a threat.

Galdikas's mood shifts, not just from the rain. ''The whole system here is so caught up in corruption and greed. I've been fighting against it for almost 40 years, saving 95,000 hectares of land as a buffer for the park but the destruction continues. We have perhaps 4000 or 5000 orang-utans left in Borneo, fewer than 1000 in Sumatra. Unless the world does something quickly, they may not survive.

''I do what I can but it's not enough.''

Galdikas cares for about 300 orang-utans in her sanctuary. They are protected by 200 local employees. Her foundation runs on the sniff of an oily rag and her income is derived solely through donations.

Siswe chews her durian while we sit out the storm; she leans against me as if I can keep the raindrops away. Galdikas sips her coffee.

I'm sitting on a wooden bench with one of the world's leading anthropologists and one of its rarest apes. The combination this represents could not be more pertinent for me. Here in one of the planet's few remaining wildernesses, my thoughts focus on its future.

Galdikas's project has recorded more than 100,000 hours of observation of a single mammalian species, the longest in the history of scientific field research. As well as direct study of orang-utans and other primates and monkeys, Galdikas and her team have studied regional ecology since 1971.

It would be hard to find someone more qualified to speak the truth about the decimation of rainforest habitats throughout the world.

''The main problem in Kalimantan is the palm oil plantations,'' she says.

''Poaching is more of a problem in Sarawak and Sabah. While the logging clears the land, the logging roads allow access to the hunters hired by the logging companies.''

I am humbled by her stoicism. Others would have given up long ago. Galdikas's intellect, compassion and energy are remarkably constant.

''And now it's time we headed to the dining room, the third bell just sounded and we're making the staff late for their dinner,'' she says. ''They don't like it when I'm late and they won't start eating without me.'' Galdikas's employees know how hard she works and this is how they show their respect.

At dinner in the communal dining room, she insists that visitors stand and recount a brief history of how they came to be here, their work and family backgrounds. It's an important custom for the Dayak people.

Galdikas translates my words into Bahasa Indonesian. I explain that I am a writer interested in Indonesia's flora and fauna and that I have come a long way to observe the work being done at Camp Leakey to preserve Indonesia's remaining wild forests. I thank them all for their hard work and promise to help spread the word about their conservation project. They in turn thank me and welcome me to their land.

After midnight I reboard my boat and head downstream to Rimba Orangutan Lodge. I sit on the top deck under a canvas shelter, peering into a small circle of brightness illuminated by the boat's single light globe. Crocodile eyes cast reddish-orange reflections. Fireflies flutter around me. A water monitor lizard swims quickly into tall reeds. I write more notes.

Before I was introduced to Siswe on a path outside Galdikas's house, I met a younger female, Princess. Of all the orang-utans I encountered at Camp Leakey, Princess is the most famous. Sir David Attenborough filmed her while she paddled a boat across a small river. No one taught her to do it. Orang-utans don't swim. They hitch rides on floating logs … or they learn to paddle a boat.

Princess copied one of the workers at Camp Leakey while he rowed a small boat from one side of a stream to another. Her feat of ingenuity was the first recorded instance of an ape using a boat in the same manner as a human.

I return to my cabin once the boat is safely moored at the lodge. I've been allocated Julia Roberts's cabin. My guide, a long-time employee, announced enthusiastically upon my arrival at the airport a few days earlier: ''You are sleeping in Julia Roberts's bed!''

Surprised, I point out that she stayed here 10 years ago, when the 1998 documentary In the Wild, Orang-Utans with Julia Roberts was made.
''Yes, but it is a new mattress,'' he confirms.
That night, I sleep very well in Julia Roberts's bed.
Story Credit Here