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\u201cIf you really do understand science and persons - such as humans and orangutans, you must realize that that love is certainly not unscientific thing to give.\u201d -Leif Cocks

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In December, I spent ten days in Bukit Tigapuluh National Park in Central Sumatra. I was there with Leif Cocks, the founder of The Orangutan Project and hundreds of orangutans.

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We were deep in the rainforest, surrounded by all the sounds of the jungle, no phone, no wifi, no shower aside from a bucket. And even though I didn\u2019t see any tigers, they were there, as were monkeys, gibbons, elephants, spotted leopards, mouse deer and thousands of other species. And, I was with Leif, one of the world\u2019s most prominent orangutan experts. It was extraordinary.

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But it was also devastating. Because on the very many hour drive from the airport in Jambi, a drive that not that many years ago would have been hours and hours through rain forest, all I saw were palm oil plantations.

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There is very little of the rainforest left. Humans have destroyed 80 percent of it and the destruction is ongoing. And of course, millions of animals have died in the past couple of decades because of said destruction.

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\u201cWe're fighting over scraps of the last remaining rainforest.\u201d - Leif Cocks

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Leif has spent the past 35 years working with and for orangutans. He first met them when he was in his early 20s, working as a zookeeper at the Perth Zoo in Australia. He quickly realized two things, they are one of the most intelligent species on the planet and they don\u2019t belong in captivity (like all non-human animals) and that if we don\u2019t do something quickly, we are going to lose them.

So, in 1998, while still at the zoo, Leif founded the Orangutan Project and since then he has been a key player in developing conservation plans for orangutans and influencing positive change for their protection and survival.

It was a gift to be able to see Leif\u2019s work in person and to meet his many, many soulful and wise orange friends. He is fighting for them and for what\u2019s left of the rainforest in Sumatra and Borneo and he and the Orangutan Project need our help.

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Links:

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The Orangutan Project: https://www.theorangutanproject.org/

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Donate to the Orangutan Project: https://www.theorangutanproject.org/donate/

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theorangutanproject/

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theorangutanproject

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/OrangutanTOP