Dear John,

I’m writing to you today with a heavy heart. You'll have found it hard to miss coverage of the devastating flash floods and landslides caused by the climate-fuelled tropical cyclone that hit South and Southeast Asia. We’ve heard from our sister organisation WALHI, in Indonesia and the news is extremely concerning.  

Communities across North Sumatra have been hit extremely hard. 51 villages are now facing the unimaginable: homes swept away; crops destroyed; places of worship and schools left in ruins and families stranded without the most basic necessities. Devastatingly, over 1,000 people have already died on the island of Sumatra alone.

Right now, the humanitarian response is falling desperately short. Damaged roads, collapsed bridges, and disrupted communication networks mean that many isolated communities still haven’t received any assistance at all. Entire villages have been cut off, with evacuation teams struggling to reach people who have been waiting for days – sometimes without food, clean water, or medical care.

The people of North Sumatra urgently need food, tents for shelter, and sanitary items. Can you spare a gift today to help fund the relief effort?

WALHI is on the ground, delivering emergency relief directly with the help of local members and volunteers. They’ve identified urgent priority areas where communities remain isolated and are still in grave danger.  

Your donation today will help WALHI provide:

• Emergency food supplies
• Tents
• Health and hygiene kits
• Clean water and essential household needs
• Transport costs for isolated families who must now rent boats to reach distribution points because their road access has been completely cut off

Thousands of people are still waiting for help to arrive. Will you help WALHI reach them?

This disaster is not only a humanitarian crisis – it’s an ecological and political one.  

On top of the human tragedy, one of the worst hit areas is the precious Batang Toru tropical forest – home to the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan. WALHI has made clear that government mismanagement of natural resources and unchecked corporate deforestation have played a significant role in worsening the impact of these floods.  

We join WALHI in calling on the Indonesian government to immediately halt the operations of the companies driving this destruction and to prevent further disasters fuelled by environmental exploitation.

Friends of the Earth stands with the people of North Sumatra and with communities across Southern and Southeastern Asia who are enduring the worsening impacts of ecological breakdown. Together, we can demand accountability – and provide the urgent relief that people need right now.

Please give what you can today. Your support will help save lives and bring hope to families who have lost everything in North Sumatra.

Thank you for anything you can spare today.  

In solidarity,  

Clare Oxborrow

Campaigner

PS Please don’t worry if you can’t donate today. You can still have an impact by signing our petition calling for a new law to hold greedy UK companies to account for damage to people and planet.