Borneo

The lowland Borneo Rainforest is the second oldest rainforest in the world, more than 140 million years old. From the mangroves and peat swamps to Mt. Kinabalu, Borneo’s biocultural diversity is deeply intertwined with the verticality of its geography. Between 1973 and 2015, 50% of Borneo’s forest was lost, much of this to oil palm and other industries. As a result, the dipterocarp forests of ‘giants,’ orangutans and pygmy elephants, endemic to this island, could be lost entirely.

Our Approach:

Our approach is to work with indigenous led NGOs and cooperatives which are strengthening traditional knowledge, weaving alternatives, and crafting small solutions for human and non-human communities, that can have a catalytic impact. We are also seeking to support replication of the Vertical University project of KTK-BELT Nepal in the Borneo context working with indigenous led enterprises, NGOs and cooperatives.

Our Support:

1. Grant to PACOS Trust in support of a feasibility study of fortification of ring of protection villages around Mt. Kinaba
2. Grant to TONIBUNG to design the concept for a Borneo 'Vertical University’
3. Grant to KOPEL, as support for preparing a larger grant for reviving the 7 oxbow lakes in the Kinabatangan river, home to - pygmy elephants, orangutan and crocodiles through Kopel's indigenous community cooperative model