Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation

We are the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, though many know us by our acronym, the BOS Foundation. We are a non-profit organization based in Indonesia, and since our beginning, we have dedicated ourselves to a single, vital purpose: protecting the critically endangered Bornean orangutan. These incredible, intelligent primates are found only on the island of Borneo, living high in the canopy of its ancient rainforests. For them, the forest is everything—their home, their source of food, and their sanctuary. Our promise is to ensure they always have a safe forest to call home.

Our story began in 1991, during a time of crisis for Borneo’s orangutans. Vast areas of their rainforest habitat were being cleared at an alarming rate. Huge trees were cut down for logging, and immense tracts of land were burned to make way for farming plantations. This destruction had a devastating effect on the orangutans who lived there. As their homes disappeared, mothers were often lost, leaving behind young, orphaned babies who could not survive on their own. Tragically, many of these infants were illegally captured and sold into the pet trade, facing a life far from their natural world.

Faced with this urgent situation, we were founded to provide a lifeline. Our mission was, and remains, a three-part journey for every orangutan we help: rescue, rehabilitate, and release. We work to rescue orangutans who are injured, displaced, or illegally held as pets. We then bring them to our specialized centers to provide them with care and prepare them for a life back in the wild. Finally, our ultimate goal is to return every healthy, capable orangutan to a safe and protected area of the rainforest, giving them a second chance at freedom.

When a rescued orangutan first arrives at one of our centers, such as Nyaru Menteng or Samboja Lestari, they are often frightened, malnourished, or in need of medical attention. Our first priority is to give them expert veterinary care and nutritious food to help them recover their strength. For the many young orphans who come to us, however, the most important work is just beginning. In the wild, a young orangutan spends nearly a decade with its mother, learning all the complex skills needed for survival. Our challenge is to give them the education their mothers would have provided.

To do this, we created what we call ‘forest school.’ Here, in a safe, forested environment, young orangutans learn the fundamental lessons of life in the canopy. Guided by our dedicated human caregivers, they practice how to climb high into the trees, how to move confidently from branch to branch, and how to identify the hundreds of different types of fruits, leaves, and insects that make up their diet. They also learn crucial survival skills, like how to build a sturdy nest high in the trees to sleep in each night and how to recognize and avoid dangers, such as venomous snakes. This rehabilitation process is a slow and careful journey that can take many years, as each individual learns and develops at their own pace.

Graduation from forest school marks the beginning of the final and most hopeful stage of their journey: reintroduction. Returning an orangutan to the wild is our greatest objective, but it is a process that requires meticulous planning. We cannot simply release them anywhere. We work tirelessly to identify and secure large areas of rainforest that are safe from threats, well-protected, and have a plentiful and diverse supply of food to support a new orangutan population. This work involves close partnerships with the Indonesian government and local communities who live near these forests, as their cooperation is essential for long-term protection.

In 2012, we officially began our reintroduction program, a milestone that represented years of preparation. Since that day, we have successfully released more than 500 rehabilitated orangutans back into protected wild habitats. But our work doesn’t stop at the release. To ensure the forests remain a safe home, we actively work to protect the habitat itself. This includes patrolling for illegal logging, preventing fires, and engaging in reforestation projects where we re-plant native trees in damaged areas, helping the ecosystem to heal and thrive.

Even with these important successes, our mission is far from complete. The Bornean orangutan remains a critically endangered species, which means it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. The primary threats of deforestation and devastating forest fires continue to put their future in jeopardy. Our daily work of rescuing, rehabilitating, and releasing these magnificent animals is only possible because of a global community of supporters. Through donations from people around the world and our symbolic orangutan adoption program, we receive the resources needed to provide food, medical care, and forest protection. We continue this work every day, driven by our vision for a future where Bornean orangutans can live safely and freely in their natural habitat.