What started as an emergency response grew into a 10 year long, strong partnership. Here is to the many more to come!
At Save the Orangutan, we believe that strong local partnerships are key to making a lasting difference where it matters the most.
That is why we are both proud and delighted this year to celebrate 10 years of partnership with Borneo Nature Foundation (BNF) – an Indonesian organisation that, for more than 25 years, has brought together research, conservation and community education to protect Borneo’s rainforests.
Together, we are working to protect the rainforests that orangutans – and, ultimately, all of us – depend on.
From emergency support to a long-term partnership
It all began in 2016, when Borneo was ravaged by severe forest fires and Save the Orangutan stepped in to support BNF’s efforts to fight the fires.
That emergency support later evolved into a trusted, strategic partnership with a long-term focus: if the forests are to be protected, the people who live in and around them need to be part of the solution.
BNF already had strong relationships with local communities, but lacked the resources to develop broader community development programmes. The partnership with Save Orangutan since made it possible to strengthen this part of the work, marking an important shift in BNF’s strategic approach to conservation.
The future of orangutans depends on investing in people
Protecting orangutans and rainforests is not just about protecting the forest. It is also about giving people the opportunity to build secure livelihoods without having to rely on activities that harm the natural environment.
Poverty, food insecurity, limited opportunities for sustainable livelihoods and lack of access to environmental education all put pressure on nature.
That is why our partnership is built on a simple belief: If we want to save orangutans, we need to invest in people.
True guardians of the forest
The best caretakers of the rainforest are often the people who have depended on it for generations – but who are now under increasing pressure.
Hence, a significant element of our partnership with Borneo Nature Foundation focuses on supporting indigenous Dayak communities apply for so-called Social Forestry permits. These permits give communities legal rights to the forests of their ancestors.
Today, more than 30 villages are part of the initiative, funded by Danish CISU – Civil Society in Development, and in 2025, two of them successfully secured Social Forestry rights to a total of 3,448 hectares of forest.
But legal rights alone are not enough. That is why the programme also provides training, advice and technical support, helping local communities manage their forests sustainably – both now and for generations to come.
BNF also places a strong emphasis on educating children and young people living close to threatened forest areas. They learn why peatland ecosystems matter and why protecting wildlife is so important. These same children became a huge source of inspiration for Danish schoolchildren through BNF and Save the Orangutan’s collaboration on the Bio Rap Project
Sustainable livelihoods – sustainable future
Important initiatives are also taking place for people living outside the forest.
Many families in rural Borneo have little access education, employment and infrastructure. This may leave them with little choice but to seek work in industries that put pressure on the natural environment such as illegal mining or plantation activities.
That is why we are also working with BNF to create green jobs and sustainable sources of income that can strengthen family economies while enabling local communities to lead the green transition themselves.
Since 2019, more than 450 people in 16 villages have been developing sustainable livelihoods, working in areas such as permaculture, aquaculture (fish farming) and sustainable handicrafts.
Our 10 years of partnership with BNF have given us valuable insights into how conservation and community development can go hand in hand. We are taking these lessons into the years ahead as we continue working towards a future where orangutans and their forests are protected, people have secure and sustainable livelihoods, and local communities are resilient in the face of a changing climate.
