Thank you very much for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page! 

I've decided to raise money for the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, a charity dedicated to saving the orangutan from extinction and protecting the species' rainforest home in Malaysia and Indonesia! 

In order to do this, I cycled a total of approximately 200 km, from Ponferrada to Santiago de Compostela (Spain) from 17th to 22nd July, 2010. It is a part of a famous pilgrimage route. 

 

Why save the orangutans?

"In pushing other species to extinction, humanity is busy sawing off the limb on which it is perched." Paul Ehrlich

Orangutans, whose name means “man of the forest”, are considered one of the most intelligent and friendly creatures on the planet.  Unfortunately, they are also one of the critically endangered species. In recent years, their number has dropped dramatically due to loss of their habitat through deforestation and poaching for the illegal pet trade.

In the wild, Orangutans can only be found on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia and Malaysia. Big international demand for cheap palm oil is fuelling the rapid rainforest destruction in these countries. If the palm oil industry continues to grow at the current rate, it is said that 98% of the Indonesian rainforest will be lost in the next 15 years. Illegal logging is also one of the main causes of deforestation.Orangutans are often seen as pests by farmers, and are shot when they go into palm oil and other agricultural plantations. Baby orangutans are caught and sold as illegal pets. They often suffer from physical and psychological trauma, and due to the harsh conditions of captivity, the majority does not survive to adulthood.  

Orangutans could be the first of great apes to become extinct. The extinction of orangutans will also mean the disappearance of their rainforest home along with many other species of animals, insects and plants that can only be found on these islands. We are facing a critical time. If we do not change our ways, we can potentially lose as many as half of all the variety of life on Earth in the next 30 years. Indeed, we already drive 50 to 55,000 species into extinction each year. What we do not know is at what point of the destruction of biodiversity will the ecosystem starts to disintegrate.