2025 Spring/Summer Appeal Letter
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Orangutan rehabilitationThe rainforest in Borneo is in crisis, and we urgently need your help now!
Your support has made an incredible difference over the years. Together, we have been able to rescue and care for hundreds of orangutans, plant hundreds of thousands of trees, and continue our important work – preserving one of Earth’s most vital ecosystems. But today, the stakes are higher than ever.
Around the world, wildfires have become the new normal. Borneo is no exception.
Fifty years ago, when I first arrived in equatorial Borneo, I already knew there were only two seasons: wet and dry. We arrived at the peak of the wet season. Raised in Canada, I thought I understood cold until my then-husband Rod and I huddled, soaked to the bone, beneath a wild orangutan’s nest in the pre-dawn downpour.
Then the dry season came, and everything changed. Fires swept through the forest. Locusts swarmed grasslands where forests had once stood before being cleared for crops. Local elders told us they’d never seen a dry season so long or so severe. Sadly, it was only the beginning. The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) — the natural weather cycle that governs rainfall — has grown increasingly erratic. El Niño brings drought, La Niña brings deluges. In recent years, we’ve seen two years of heavy rains suddenly give way to extreme drought, fueling devastating wildfires. In 2023 alone, we planted 152,000 seedlings, a monumental effort. But when drought and fire swept through, we were only able to save 2,000 of them. In 2023 and 2024, the flames didn’t spare older trees either. Hundreds of thousands of young trees planted in previous years, some already over seven feet tall, were lost.
After the fires, several members of our replanting team broke down in tears. It was heartbreaking. But when I looked into the eyes of Kujan and Ramil, two infant orangutans rescued this year, I was reminded of what’s at stake.
Kujan, with one blind eye and a courageous spirit, lost his mother in a palm oil plantation. Ramil was rescued as loggers destroyed the forest around him. But now, they’re safe in our care. They’re playful, full of life, and full of hope. These babies are survivors.
They deserve a future in the wild. And that future depends on us, on you. The Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) protects and patrols existing rainforests. But we must also replant what has been lost. To give Kujan, Ramil, and over 240 other rescued orangutans a home in the wild, we must act now before the next fire season begins. We need more vehicles, more staff, and more equipment. We need to plant again — and this time, plant stronger and faster.
Your gift today will help us:
- Replant critical rainforest habitat
- Equip our reforestation teams
- And give rescued orangutans a wild, free future
This is more than planting trees. It’s about rebuilding a world for wildlife, for the planet, and for generations to come.
Please, give what you can today. Help us turn ashes into hope. Help us restore the rainforest and secure a future for Borneo’s wild orangutans.
With deep gratitude,
Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas
President & Founder
Orangutan Foundation International
