In late August, we launched the Rainforest Home Appeal – our most ambitious fundraising appeal to date, with a target of £870,000. Having heard about a golden opportunity to purchase and restore 890 acres of land in Sumatra, we knew we had to do our best to make it happen. The land is currently a wildlife conflict hotspot – it’s an oil palm plantation directly adjacent to rainforest, and orangutans, elephants and tigers have all been negatively affected by this proximity to their habitat.

Photo by Andrew Walmsley

Our first fundraising goal for the campaign was to raise £316,648 by 9th September 2018 so we could secure the land. We were all thrilled at how quickly our supporters rallied around to help us achieve this. With everyone’s donations and social media shares, we reached the goal and successfully paid the first instalment in time.

The second instalment is due at the end of November, and we are ready to make that payment. This will leave us with a further £276,676  to raise by the end of February to complete the land purchase. We are confident and optimistic about achieving this; we know that our supporters and partners are behind us all the way!