The Leuser Ecosystem in Indonesia is a world-class wonderland covering over 6.5 million acres of intact rainforest. It is a hotspot for biological diversity, a carbon storage powerhouse and the source of drinking water and agricultural livelihood for millions.
Yet this amazing place remains largely unknown to the world, a vulnerability it can no longer afford.
The pristine lowland jungles, lush peat swamps and cloud-shrouded mountain forests of the Leuser Ecosystem are some of the most ancient and life-rich landscapes ever documented. Millions of people depend upon these healthy and vibrant forests for survival. In fact, in a real way we all do, as the Leuser is also a globally important area for storing atmospheric carbon safely in the ground.
But the Leuser Ecosystem is under siege. Its vast forests are being quickly destroyed for quick profit, pushing its iconic wildlife species to the brink of extinction.
With your help, we have a plan to make the Leuser Ecosystem world famous to push companies and governments to follow through on their conservation commitments. But this plan depends entirely on your participation.
The forests of the Leuser Ecosystem are alive with some of the most abundant and diverse plant and animal life known to science, a species diversity that includes at least 105 mammals, 382 birds, 95 reptiles and amphibians and over 8500 plants.
Millions of people in Aceh and North Sumatra depend on the clean flowing rivers of the Leuser Ecosystem. Besides fresh drinking water, these rivers provide the irrigation essential for subsistence rice farming, a critical source of livelihood in the region. But corruption and a drive for short term corporate profits threaten to upset this centuries old balance.
Wherever you live, the Leuser Ecosystem provides a critical service for you too. As the flap of a butterfly’s wing can trigger a tornado a thousand miles away, the health of the Leuser Ecosystem is connected directly to the air we all breathe and the health of our shared climate.
Each of these groups support the protection of the Leuser Ecosystem and the services it provides to local and global communities.
