Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation

Stand Between Fire and the Forest

Imagine watching the only home you have ever known disappear in flames.

For wild orangutans in Borneo, this is not a hypothetical scenario. It is happening now.

Forest and land fires are threatening the habitats orangutans depend on for food, shelter, and survival. When their forest burns, there is nowhere else to go. Trees that took decades to grow disappear in hours, displacing wildlife and damaging entire ecosystems. 

And this year, the threat has become a reality. 

Between January and July 2026, an estimated 33,800 hectares (nearly 83,600 acres) of forest and land across Kalimantan were affected by fires.

Now the crisis has reached our doorstep. As of September 22, active fires around our Mawas Conservation Area have affected approximately 171.5 hectares (424 acres), an area larger than 300 football fields.

The fires are here. Now, we must do everything we can to keep them from spreading further.

Orangutans are already feeling the impact 

The consequences are no longer limited to the forest.

Dropping water levels have forced teams to take additional precautions at our pre-release islands, including moving some orangutans to areas where water remains available.

At our rehabilitation centers, teams are securing clean drinking water and setting up cooling measures during the prolonged hot and dry conditions. 

The thick haze is taking an immediate toll: 38 orangutans are currently under close medical monitoring for respiratory symptoms by our Animal Welfare and Veterinary teams. Among them is Rumba, a young orangutan that is currently learning survival skills at forest school. 

The impact is already being felt. We cannot allow it to grow. 

Fighting the Fires. Protecting What Remains. 

For 35 years, BOS Foundation has worked to protect Bornean orangutans and their forest home. Today, our teams are working to contain active fires, protect forests that have not yet burned, and prevent new fires from taking hold.

Right now, our teams are: 

• Monitoring and containing active fires.
• Patrolling forests day and night, wetting high-risk areas and deploying pumps, hoses, and firefighting equipment.
• Maintaining canal blocks and peatland water levels to keep vulnerable peat wet.
• Work alongside local communities to strengthen forest protection and fire preparedness. 

Every fire contained, and every hectare protected gives orangutans more forest to call home. 

Protecting Orangutans Means Protecting the People Who Stand With Them 

Behind every orangutan is a team of people working through the same smoke, heat, and hazardous conditions to keep them safe. 

Our firefighters, patrol teams, veterinarians, caregivers, and field staff are on the front lines every day to protect orangutans and their forest home. They need the right equipment, protective gear, and resources to continue this work safely. 

And while the emergency is happening now, our work cannot end when the last flame is extinguished. We need to respond today while building stronger protection for tomorrow. 

You Can Help Hold the Line

Your support helps us fight active fires burning today, care for affected orangutans like Rumba, keep frontline teams safe, and strengthen the infrastructure needed to prevent future fires.  

$25 -  Support Orangutans and Frontline Teams 

Help provide monitoring, communication, navigation, and protective equipment for forest patrols.

$50 - Strengthen a Critical Fire Patrol

Help provide monitoring, communication, navigation, and protective equipment for forest patrols.

$100 - Help Stop Fires From Spreading

Help provide fire hoses, spray nozzles, and other essential firefighting equipment for rapid response.

$250 - Protect Critical Orangutan Habitat 

Help support bore wells, peatland water management, canal block maintenance, forest patrols, habitat restoration, and future fire preparedness.

Your gift does more than respond to today’s emergency. It helps give our teams the tools, water, and infrastructure needed to protect these forests now and in the future.

A Forest Standing Is a Future Still Possible

Every orangutan deserves the chance to live a wild and safe future. But there can be no future in the wild without a forest to call home.

The fires are already here. But so are our teams. 

There is still forest standing. There are still orangutans depending on it. And there is still time to protect what remains. 

DONATE TODAY. HELP US HOLD THE LINE.

Protect the Forest. Protect Orangutans. Protect the People Who Protect Them.

SUPPORT NOW