BOS Foundation

The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOS Foundation) is an Indonesian and non-governmental organization that, alongside the Indonesian people, is dedicated to the conservation of the last remaining orangutans and their habitat.

BOS Foundation now manages the largest primate conservation project in the world and is proving an inspiration for many other projects involved with conservation.

BOS Foundation's activities are:

• Seizure, rehabilitation and the reintroduction of orangutans to the wild

• Protection of the orangutans' and many other animal species' habitat

• Public relations, environmental education, awareness raising, involvement of the local population and creating alternative livelihoods for local people

• Planting and cultivation activities, water management, fire protection and monitoring of the rainforest as protection against illegal logging

BOS's history began in 1989 when the Netherlands forestry scientist Dr. Willie Smits found an orphaned baby orangutan in a market in Balikpapan in Borneo. Smits named the female orangutan Uce, and nursed her back to health.
From this point onwards, more and more orangutans were brought to him. Under their own initiative some Indonesian school children helped to raise enough money to found the first rehabilitation station, Wanariset in East-Kalimantan, in 1991.

Also in 1991 the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation (BOS) was founded. Uce was reintroduced to the wild in the Sungai Wain Reserve in 1994 and has since born two offspring.

After 1997/98, when hundreds of orangutans fell victim to devastating forest fires, the capacity of the rehabilitation ward Wanariset was quickly exhausted. This led to the rehabilitation station Nyaru Menteng being opened in Central Kalimantan, Borneo headed by Lone Droscher-Nielsen.

BOS Foundation's employees are currently giving round-the-clock care to about 850 orangutans and 60 sun bears.

More than 500 orangutans have been reintroduced to protected rainforest areas since BOS was founded and over 150 animals are temporarily living on five wooded river-islands in Central Kalimantan.

BOS employs more than 400 people and provides local people with economic alternatives to the exploitation of nature.

BOS Foundation's financial audit