Company Profile
Orangutan Foundation International
Company Overview
Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) has several missions:
- To promote awareness of orangutans as an endangered species and as one of humankind’s closest living relatives in the animal kingdom
- To actively protect and help conserve wild orangutan populations and their tropical rainforest habitats
- To rescue and care for wild born ex-captive orangutans, rehabilitating and releasing them to safe and secure sites in the wild
- To help captive orangutans lead healthy and contented lives with as much well-being ias possible given their situation and
- To conduct observational research on orangutans and their ecology in order to increase our understanding of them as populations and individuals
Company History
Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) was established in 1986 as a 501 (c)3 organization by Dr. Biruté Mary Galdikas and a group of concerned scientists and lay people.
OFI has its roots in the Orangutan Research & Conservation Project (ORCP) and its base camp, Camp Leakey in Tanjung Puting National Park in Central Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo.) Camp Leakey was established by Dr. Galdikas and her former husband Rod Brindamour, in 1971. By the mid-1980’s, the behavior and ecological insights gained into the elusive Asian Ape began attracting the attention of media and supporters and an organization was necessary to leverage that attention into real help and action for orangutans and rainforest conservation. Dr. Galdikas, with a network of local staff and volunteers, expanded the projects of the original projects of the ORCP to create programs aimed specifically at conservation, rehabilitation, research, and education. Thus, Orangutan Foundation international (OFI) was formed.
Since its founding, OFI has worked to save orangutans from extinction by tackling conservation issues on all fronts, including protecting the habitat and educating local communities. However, the most critical work has always been the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of orphaned and ex-captive orangutans. OFI conducted rehabilitation work at Camp Leakey research site until the number of orphaned ex-captive orangutans became too great to care for them inside the National Park.