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Willie Smits
Conservationist
By piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans -- and creating a thrilling blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems.
About Willie Smits
Willie Smits has devoted his life to saving the forest habitat of orangutans, the "thinkers of the jungle." As towns, farms and wars encroach on native forests, Smits works to save what is left. Full bio and more links
Willie Smits restores a rainforest on TED.com
Willie Smits
Conservationist
Homepage: Masarang Foundation Nonprofit: Orangutan Outreach Twitter: @redapes
TED Speaker
Personal profile
Willie Smits has devoted his life to saving the forest habitat of orangutans, the "thinkers of the jungle." As towns, farms and wars encroach on native forests, Smits works to save what is left.
Why you should listen
Willie Smits works at the complicated intersection of humankind, the animal world and our green planet. In his early work as a forester in Indonesia, he came to a deep understanding of that triple relationship, as he watched the growing population of Sulawesi move into (or burn for fuel) forests that are home to the orangutan. These intelligent animals were being killed for food, traded as pets or simply failing to thrive as their forest home degraded.
Smits believes that to rebuild orangutan populations, we must first rebuild their forest habitat -- which means helping local people find options other than the short-term fix of harvesting forests to survive. His Masarang Foundation raises money and awareness to restore habitat forests around the world -- and to empower local people. In 2007, Masarang opened a palm-sugar factory that uses thermal energy to turn sugar palms (fast-growing trees that thrive in degraded soils) into sugar and even ethanol, returning cash and power to the community and, with luck, starting the cycle toward a better future for people, trees and orangs.
What others say
“This man has dedicated his life to saving the world, and for this he earns our deepest respect.” — Jean Kern, Ode
Willie Smits’ TED talks
Why you should listen
Willie Smits works at the complicated intersection of humankind, the animal world and our green planet. In his early work as a forester in Indonesia, he came to a deep understanding of that triple relationship, as he watched the growing population of Sulawesi move into (or burn for fuel) forests that are home to the orangutan. These intelligent animals were being killed for food, traded as pets or simply failing to thrive as their forest home degraded.
Smits believes that to rebuild orangutan populations, we must first rebuild their forest habitat -- which means helping local people find options other than the short-term fix of harvesting forests to survive. His Masarang Foundation raises money and awareness to restore habitat forests around the world -- and to empower local people. In 2007, Masarang opened a palm-sugar factory that uses thermal energy to turn sugar palms (fast-growing trees that thrive in degraded soils) into sugar and even ethanol, returning cash and power to the community and, with luck, starting the cycle toward a better future for people, trees and orangs.
What others say
“This man has dedicated his life to saving the world, and for this he earns our deepest respect.” — Jean Kern, Ode
Willie Smits’ TED talks
20:42
How to restore a rainforest
559K views Mar 2009
Willie Smits on the TED Blog
See all
Orangutans and palm oil: What's the connection?
March 5, 2009
In Willie Smits’ powerful TEDTalk, he describes his work to re-grow the rainforest in Indonesia — a triple-bottom-line effort that can benefit the local economy, the local orangutans and the green heart of the forest. The TED Blog asked Smits’ associate Richard Zimmerman, the director of Orangutan Outreach, to expand on the orangutan story:
How to restore a rainforest
559K views Mar 2009
Willie Smits on the TED Blog
See all
Orangutans and palm oil: What's the connection?
March 5, 2009
In Willie Smits’ powerful TEDTalk, he describes his work to re-grow the rainforest in Indonesia — a triple-bottom-line effort that can benefit the local economy, the local orangutans and the green heart of the forest. The TED Blog asked Smits’ associate Richard Zimmerman, the director of Orangutan Outreach, to expand on the orangutan story:
In his TEDTalk, Willie briefly discussed the crisis facing orangutans in the wild as the Indonesian rainforest is cut down and converted into palm oil plantations. I would like to further elaborate on this, so that people might get a better grasp of what we’re dealing with in our quest to save the orangutans.
Orangutans are sentient beings who share approximately 97.8% of our DNA and express a range of emotions that is just as wide as our own. The forests of Borneo and Sumatra are the only two places on Earth where these gentle, intelligent creatures live. The cultivation of palm oil over the last decade has directly led to the slaughter of thousands of individuals as the industry has expanded into previously undisturbed areas of old-growth rainforest. TheUNEP estimates that an area of Indonesian rainforest the size of six football fields is cut down every minute of every day. Read that sentence again.
The palm oil and timber industries are guilty of truly horrific ecological atrocities, one of which is the systematic genocide of orangutans. When the forest is cleared, adult orangutans are generally shot on sight. In the absence of bullets they are beaten, burned, tortured, mutilated and often eaten as bushmeat. Babies are literally torn off their dying mothers so that they can be sold on the black market as illegal pets to wealthy families, who see them as status symbols of their own power and prestige. This is not hyperbole, mind you. It has been documented time and time again.
Some of the luckier baby orangutans are confiscated and brought to sanctuaries such asSamboja Lestari, as Willie mentioned, or the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Rescue Center, which is now home to nearly 700 orphaned and displaced orangutans in Central Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). Many of these orangutans are only weeks old when they arrive, and all of them are psychologically traumatized and desperate for their mothers — who are no longer alive. And remember, these are the fortunate ones. For every one we rescue, at least six others are estimated to have been killed, along with their mothers.
Set up under Willie’s auspices in 1999, Nyaru Menteng is managed by the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation and run by a remarkable woman named Lone Droscher Nielsen. It is featured on Animal Planet’s award-winning series Orangutan Island as well as on the BBC’s Orangutan Diary. Willie and Lone are true champions in the struggle to save orangutans from a senseless and shamefully premature extinction in the wild.
Find ways to get involved (yes, you can adopt an orangutan) >>
Willie Smits works at the complicated intersection of humankind, the animal world and our green planet. In his early work as a forester in Indonesia, he came to a deep understanding of that triple relationship, as he watched the growing population of Sulawesi move into (or burn for fuel) forests that are home to the orangutan. These intelligent animals were being killed for food, traded as pets or simply failing to thrive as their forest home degraded.
Smits believes that to rebuild orangutan populations, we must first rebuild their forest habitat — which means helping local people find options other than the short-term fix of harvesting forests to survive.
After you watch Willie Smits’ talk, visit the sites below and explore coverage of his 20-year tale of hope.
Scientific American: Regrowing Borneo’s Rainforest — Tree by Tree
It is a gutsy experiment that has drawn criticism from both scientists and conservationists. For Smits, a veteran of political controversy who has often been at odds with other orangutan rescue projects, the controversy is familiar. He ignores it.
It is a gutsy experiment that has drawn criticism from both scientists and conservationists. For Smits, a veteran of political controversy who has often been at odds with other orangutan rescue projects, the controversy is familiar. He ignores it.
National Geographic: Orangutans Edging Closer to Brink of Extinction
Then when the fires came, they had no water, no food left; it was completely dark for months in a row. The orangutans came out of the forests toward the rivers and became victims of the people there who didn’t like to see their very few last crops being raided by those wild animals.
Then when the fires came, they had no water, no food left; it was completely dark for months in a row. The orangutans came out of the forests toward the rivers and became victims of the people there who didn’t like to see their very few last crops being raided by those wild animals.
Ode Magazine: Willie Smits: Hanging around with orangutan
He lost his heart to the orangutans after finding one in a garbage dump. He took care of the primate and later rescued others from bars, nightclubs and tourist attractions, where they were used for entertainment. When Smits felt they were ready to return to their natural habitat, he ran into another problem: There wasn’t enough forest for the apes …
He lost his heart to the orangutans after finding one in a garbage dump. He took care of the primate and later rescued others from bars, nightclubs and tourist attractions, where they were used for entertainment. When Smits felt they were ready to return to their natural habitat, he ran into another problem: There wasn’t enough forest for the apes …
TIME for Kids: The Orangutan Man of Indonesia
“We have taken over the role of the mother orangutan, who usually teaches the baby what it can eat.”
“We have taken over the role of the mother orangutan, who usually teaches the baby what it can eat.”
Orangutan.net: Rainforest Seeds Revive Lost Paradise
From this ruined landscape a fresh forest has been grown, teeming with insects, birds and animals, and cooled by the return of moist clouds and rain. It is a feat that has been hailed by scientists and offers hope for disappearing and ruined rainforests around the world.
From this ruined landscape a fresh forest has been grown, teeming with insects, birds and animals, and cooled by the return of moist clouds and rain. It is a feat that has been hailed by scientists and offers hope for disappearing and ruined rainforests around the world.
Ethan Zuckerman’s TED2009 liveblogging: Willie Smits is saving Borneo, one orangutan at a time
When Smits tells us that his project protects a thousand orangutans, the audience erupts into applause … which makes him extremely angry. “No, no! Don’t you understand? I care for more orangutans than all the zoos in the world because we’re so bad at protecting them in the wild.”
When Smits tells us that his project protects a thousand orangutans, the audience erupts into applause … which makes him extremely angry. “No, no! Don’t you understand? I care for more orangutans than all the zoos in the world because we’re so bad at protecting them in the wild.”
And learn more about how you can get involved through these websites:
Masarang Foundation — Willie Smits’ Indonesian-based foundation
Orangutan Outreach — US-based orangutan conservation organization. Through this site, you can support Willie’s work to save the forest, and even adopt an orangutan.
A 20-year tale of hope: How we re-grew a rainforest: Willie Smits on TED.com
March 3, 2009
By piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans — and creating a thrilling blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems. This bold plan drew a standing ovation at TED2009. (Recorded in February 2009 in Long Beach, California. Duration: 20:42.)
Get involved with Willie Smits’ Masarang Foundation >>
Quotes from Willie Smits
A natural forest is multilayered. Both in the ground and above the ground it can make better use of the available light, it can store more carbon in the system, it can provide more functions.
20:42
Willie Smits
How to restore a rainforest
TED2009 • 559K views • Mar 2009
Inspiring, Jaw-dropping
Willie Smits
How to restore a rainforest
TED2009 • 559K views • Mar 2009
Inspiring, Jaw-dropping
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