Dear John,

I’m a primate expert, and in 2017 I was part of the team that identified the first new great ape species in over a century – the Tapanuli orangutan.

Now, only 8 years later, I’m watching them disappear.

With fewer than 800 individuals left in the world, these remarkable apes are vulnerable to every new threat they face. And now a UK-owned conglomerate plans to expand its gold mine further into their remaining Indonesian forest home.

Join me and tens of thousands of Friends of the Earth supporters to demand Jardine Matheson stops its gold mine expansion. Before it’s too late for Tapanuli orangutans.

As a scientist who’s studied orangutans for 3 decades, I can tell you what this gold mine expansion means – more loss for a species that’s already hanging by a thread. These orangutans reproduce really slowly. Even small losses to their population can have devastating repercussions for their survival.

The Tapanuli orangutans are now confined to a single forest ecosystem – the Batang Toru forest in North Sumatra is their final refuge. And this crucial habitat is being carved up even more for Jardine Matheson’s destructive Martabe gold mine.

I don’t want to see the Tapanuli orangutan, the newest and rarest great ape, be the first to go extinct. So, together with your help, we must demand urgent action.

It’s your last chance to sign the petition before it gets handed in to Jardine Matheson. Expanding its gold mine can’t be more precious than the world's rarest orangutan. Or one of Indonesia's last remaining primary rainforests.

So, please add your voice to strengthen our demand now.

Next Thursday, Friends of the Earth will join WALHI (Friends of the Earth Indonesia) to hand in the petition to Jardine Matheson in London and Indonesia. Look out for an email on the day to find out how it went.

Every single signature will strengthen our demand to stop this destructive gold mine expansion.

Thank you so much for speaking up for these remarkable apes,

Professor Serge Wich

Conservation biologist and primate expert

PS When we discovered this species, I hoped they would be better protected. Instead, their future has become even more precarious. Please sign the petition now to demand urgent action and prevent further decline.