Connecting and enhancing habitats: conservation of Borneo’s rainforest

Borneo is one of the world’s three most significant biodiversity hotspots, where species diversity is severely under threat (Myers et al. 2000). Among those affected are the critically endangered Bornean orangutan, proboscis monkey, and Bornean pygmy elephant as well as the Sunda clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi), the very animal that lend our organisation its name. The existing protected areas in Sabah, Borneo, are heavily fragmented and isolated, putting the survival of many species at risk. Establishing wildlife corridors to reconnect these areas is essential. Our cooperation partner, the Rhino and Forest Fund e.V. (RFF), is committed to local wildlife conservation by working to protect, connect, enhance, and preserve intact ecosystems within protected areas for the long term. This is exactly the work we want to support – a holistic approch on wildlife conservation in an important region.

Why are protected areas and their connectivity so important on Borneo?

For animal populations within protected areas to survive in the long term, their habitats must be sufficiently large and support high levels of biodiversity. If an area is too small, the animals living there will eventually struggle to find enough food, and the limited gene pool within small populations increases the risk of inbreeding, in turn raising the likelihood of extinction.

Small protected areas are also more vulnerable to external pressures such as microclimatic changes and human activity. By establishing new wildlife corridors through former palm oil plantations, we aim to reconnect existing protected areas and forest patches. This will allow animals to migrate naturally and find adequate food sources. This form of rewilding significantly reduces the risks faced by wildlife and represents an active contribution to long-term wildlife conservation.

Our Partners on the Ground

The Rhino and Forest Fund e.V. (RFF) was founded in 2009 in Kehl, Germany, by Robert Risch and others, with the goal of combining wildlife conservation and habitat protection by restoring original ecosystems in Borneo. To achieve this, the RFF acquires private land between protected areas, rewildes degraded forest and former palm oil plantations, and establishes new wildlife corridors. Isolated forest fragments are thereby transformed into larger, functional habitats, and migration routes are reopened for wildlife. To date, over 23 square kilometres of rainforest have been protected in key areas between two protected zones on Borneo, and approximately 30,000 trees have been planted. The RFF is thus making a vital contribution to wildlife conservation. Like Nepada Wildlife, the RFF places great importance on close collaboration with and the expertise of local communities, as well as on raising awareness, in order to secure the project’s goals for the long term.

The RFF’s areas of operation are located in East Sabah on Borneo, making them an ideal complement to our flagship project, the protection of gibbons on Borneo in cooperation with GCS Malaysia. Intact ecosystems are a crucial foundation for the successful reintroduction of gibbons into their natural habitat. Beyond gibbons, many other endangered species benefit from the RFF’s activities, including the North-east Bornean orangutan, proboscis monkeys, Bornean pygmy elephants, and the Sunda clouded leopard.

Milestones

December 2024

Thanks to your donations, in 2024 we were able to transfer €10,000 to the Rhino and Forest Fund to support the protection and rewilding of areas within Borneo’s rainforest. We extend our heartfelt thanks for this!

Next Steps

The cooperation between Nepada Wildlife and the RFF serves to protect endangered animal and plant species as well as their habitats. To this end, we draw on meaningful synergies – including our respective contacts among local communities, authorities, and policymakers, as well as the exchange of expertise in the fields of wildlife conservation and veterinary medicine. Nepada Wildlife supports the RFF’s on-the-ground work through financial contributions and communications, helping to raise awareness of the vital importance of wildlife corridors for the conservation of species.

Knowledge about local wildlife species and forest conservation cannot be taken for granted, even among communities living in rainforest regions. As a joint education initiative, Nepada Wildlife is currently developing a workshop format for schoolchildren in Sabah, Borneo, drawing on the expertise of the RFF and the input of local communities.