Today, March 21st, 2021, is the International Day of Forests, an annual day of global observance created by the United Nations where we commemorate and raise awareness of the significance of the forests of the world. The International Day of Forests was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 2012 and continues to remind the world of the value of forests and the vast biodiversity in each of them.
The theme for this year’s International Day of Forests is “Forest restoration: a path to recovery and well-being.” This year’s theme seeks to stress the importance of forest restoration and sustainable management of the world’s forests. It aims to emphasize the importance of climate change and the multiple challenges forest biodiversity faces.
As you may know, each of the organisms in the forests depends on the whole ecosystem for functioning. If whole forest areas are clear-cut, the entire system will fail, and thousands of species may disappear and be lost forever. One of the largest threats to orangutan survival is the loss of habitat through deforestation, with well over 80% of their habitat being lost in the last 20 years and approximately one-third of the wild orangutan populations dying to fires in ’97-’98.
The Orangutan Conservancy aims to join other organizations in mitigating the severe damage to orangutans and their rainforest homes and speak out on what has and is currently happening to their habitat.
For more information, check out our pages on Threats to Orangutans and Rainforest Biodiversity.
