Recently, Conservation International’s Indonesian affiliate Konservasi Indonesia launched an ambitious and urgent new phase to promote sustainable landscape management in the only remaining intact forest in North Sumatra, the 240,000-hectare Batang Toru Ecosystem. It is the last known habitat of the critically endangered Orang Utan Tapanuli (Pongo tapanuliensis). 

A young orang utan spotted in Batang Toru in 2024. © Konservasi Indonesia

This new phase of work will strengthen the management plan and biodiversity monitoring, delivering Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART) patrols, and joint conservation efforts with local communities and stakeholders.   

Konservasi Indonesia is delivering this new phase in partnership with local government and communities five years, with support from Proctor & Gamble (P&G). Together partners seek to define and implement enduring conservation strategies that secure long-term environmental and social benefits for Batang Toru.   

The ecosystem supports 38,000 local people who identify as Batak Toba, Batak Angkola, Mandailing, and Nias, who depend on non-timber forest products and agroforestry for their livelihoods. This project is the first integrated management plan which involves a mix of key stakeholders, in particular the  government, and the community. The goal is to align all parties working in this area toward a shared conservation mission.