Critically endangered
A world where orangutans are free from the threat of extinction and can live in the wild, unharmed by humans.
Our mission
BOS Australia directly supports the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation in Indonesia, which runs the biggest orangutan reintroduction program in the world.
We work to save the orangutan through rescue and rehabilitation, with an ultimate goal of releasing them back to the forest where they will be safe from human development, poaching and farming.
Our impact
Every number here is an orangutan that had a name, a nanny, and a release date.
556
Released back home
Orangutans returned to protected forest.
340+
In our care
Living across two sanctuaries in Kalimantan.
470+
Indonesian staff
Nannies, vets, technicians and rangers on the ground.
2001
Fundraising since
Two decades of Australian supporters behind them.
The threats
The crop that replaced the forest
Oil palm is grown on land that was rainforest. Lowland forest — exactly the habitat orangutans depend on — is the cheapest and most productive to convert, so it goes first.
Our work
Rehabilitation is not a rescue photo. It is a curriculum that takes years, run by more than 470 devoted local Indonesian staff.
Confiscations from the pet trade, orphans found after fires, adults displaced by clearing. Every arrival begins with quarantine and a full veterinary workup.
Dedicated nannies teach them what a mother would have: what to eat, how to climb, how to build a nest, how to be wary of people. It takes years, not months.
A final unsupervised test on a forested island. Candidates must prove they can feed and shelter themselves without any human support at all.
Into protected forest, then monitored from the ground. 556 orangutans have made it all the way through and are living wild today.
Meet the family
Habitat destruction results in hundreds of orphaned orangutans, who rely on our care every year.
How you can help
By donating, you are helping bring this noble yet endangered species back from the brink of extinction and on a path to freedom — from rescue to rehabilitation and release.
👋 Hi! Ask me anything about our orangutans, adoptions, or Forest School!
