Sumatra Frontlines

SUMATRA: HOLDING THE LINE

Sumatra, Indonesia

September 20th - 26th, 2026

$5,700 USD

Deploying aerial monitoring over one of the last remaining orangutan forests - into an active conflict landscape.

We’re introducing drone monitoring into an active forest edge in North Sumatra.

A place where:

the forest is being pushed back
wildlife is crossing into human space
and human–wildlife conflict is part of the landscape

This mission is about that line — and what it takes to hold it.

We're working alongside the Sumatran Ranger Project, supporting the system that monitors and protects this landscape in real time.

This year, that includes introducing drone-supported monitoring into a live conflict zone — putting eyes in the sky over a shrinking forest.

But it doesn’t stop there.

You’ll step into the full system:

joining ranger patrols and removing active snares
placing and analysing camera traps
tracking wildlife movement across the forest edge
working inside orangutan rehabilitation at Orangutan Haven
and accessing parts of the system most people never see

This is about being inside the system that’s holding that line — and helping strengthen it.

$5,700 uSD

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80% Outstanding Balance
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HIGHLIGHTS

Deploy Aerial Monitoring Over a Live Forest Edge

Work alongside rangers to introduce drone-supported monitoring into an active human–wildlife conflict zone — expanding real-time visibility over areas of forest that can’t be reached on foot.

Step Into the Full Conservation System

Go beyond the field and into the full loop — patrol → evidence → deployment → data → decisions — contributing to how conservation is actually carried out on the ground.

Join Active Ranger Patrols on the Forest Edge

Walk patrol routes with the Sumatran Ranger Project — identifying wildlife signs, removing snares, and working at the line where forest, wildlife, and human pressure collide.

Deploy and Analyse Camera Traps

Place monitoring equipment in strategic locations, then analyse the data to understand wildlife movement, presence, and risk across a changing landscape.

Work Inside Orangutan Rehabilitation

Support the team at Orangutan Haven — designing and building enrichment, contributing to habitat, and observing how orangutans interact with what you create.

Access a Closed Quarantine Facility

Step into the perimeter of the SOCP quarantine centre — a restricted part of the conservation system — delivering supplies and gaining insight into intake, rehabilitation, and release.

Deliver High-Impact Conservation Equipment

Be part of bringing in critical tools — including drones, camera traps, and rehabilitation supplies — that directly expand what teams on the ground can do.

Work at the Line Where the Forest Is Being Lost

Operate in a landscape under pressure — where small, practical interventions are actively shaping whether this ecosystem holds or disappears.

INCLUSIONS & EXCLUSIONS

Includes:

All accommodation throughout the mission (Medan, Orangutan Haven, Bukit Lawang, Batu Rongring)
All meals during the program, plus drinking water
Airport transfers and all ground transport throughout the mission
All conservation activities, including drone-supported monitoring, ranger patrols, camera trapping and data analysis and orangutan rehabilitation support
Access to partner organisations, including the Sumatran Ranger Project and Orangutan Haven
Contribution to conservation equipment and on-the-ground impact (drone, camera traps, rehabilitation supplies)
Support of local rangers, guides, and conservation teams
Daily briefings, field guidance, and safety support
TGP expedition leader throughout

Excludes:

International flights to/from Medan
Visa and entry requirements
Travel insurance (required)

WHAT YOU'LL BE PART OF

This mission is built around how conservation actually works on the ground. Not just entering the field — but understanding what happens after.

You’ll step into the full cycle: patrol → evidence → deployment → data → decisions

That includes:

supporting drone deployment in the field
placing and analysing camera traps
walking active patrol routes with rangers
identifying wildlife signs — tracks, scat, claw marks
removing snares where they exist
visiting predator-proof corrals built to reduce conflict with local communities

And it doesn’t stop at the forest edge.

You’ll also spend time inside Orangutan Haven, working alongside the team — including behaviour and welfare specialists — on the rehabilitation side of this system.

You’ll:

design and build enrichment with a clear behavioural purpose
contribute to habitat and site work that supports long-term care
observe how orangutans actually respond — what engages, what doesn’t, and why

It’s not just what you do. It’s seeing how it connects — from field monitoring and intervention through to long-term care.

You’re stepping into the system that monitors and protects this forest —

and helping expand what that system can do.

ACCESS YOU DON'T NORMALLY GET

We step into the perimeter of the SOCP quarantine centre. This isn’t a place people visit. It’s closed, for a reason.

We will be heading in to:

• deliver supplies directly into the system

• hear from the team managing intake, rehabilitation, and release

• understand what’s happening at the front line of orangutan conservation

It’s controlled access. And it gives you a view into a part of this work most people never see.

YOUR IMPACT & WHY THIS MATTERS

There are very few places left where:

orangutans still move through primary forest
rangers are actively working the forest edge
and small, practical interventions still shift outcomes

Sumatra is one of the last.

Over the past few decades, more than half of this forest has been lost or fragmented. What remains is under constant pressure — from expansion, from conflict, from the simple reality of people and wildlife sharing the same space.

This is where that plays out.

Where:

elephants move into farmland at night
snares are set along the forest edge
and decisions made in real time determine what stays — and what doesn’t

The work here is immediate...

A camera trap placed in the right location matters.

A snare removed matters.

Seeing what’s happening early — from the ground, or from the air — matters.

Because in landscapes like this, small interventions don’t feel small.

They’re what hold the system together.

WHO THIS IS FOR

You don’t need to be an expert. But you do need to want to be part of something real. This is for people who are curious, capable, and want to get closer to the work. People at different stages — students, professionals, career-switchers — who are looking for something more hands-on, more real.

Not just watching. Not learning from a distance. Being part of it.

TRAVEL & LOGISTICS

You’ll arrive into Medan, North Sumatra, where we’ll meet you and begin the journey into the field. From there, everything is taken care of.

We move as a small group between:

Medan
Orangutan Haven
Bukit Lawang (Gunung Leuser National Park)
Batu Rongring (ranger base)

Accommodation is simple, comfortable, and appropriate to the environment — sometimes shared, always clean and well-supported.

All meals are included during the mission, with vegetarian, vegan, and all other dietary requirements catered for.

The Group

We keep this small — 12 people. That’s what the work allows.

Before You Arrive

Once you’re confirmed, you’ll receive a full welcome pack with everything you need to prepare.

This includes:

detailed itinerary and logistics
packing list
travel and visa guidance
health and vaccination considerations
what to expect on the ground

We’ll guide you through the rest.

One note on the realities — it’s real fieldwork. Hot, humid, and not always comfortable. Plans shift, and that’s part of being out there, properly in it.

Radical Transparency, Real Impact

This mission is delivered in collaboration with Raw Conservation Adventures, the Sumatran Ranger Project, and Orangutan Haven.

You’ll directly contribute to:

introducing drone monitoring into this landscape for the first time
deploying camera traps and critical field equipment
supporting active ranger patrols and removing snares
contributing to orangutan rehabilitation and habitat work

We don’t generalise impact. After every mission, you receive a clear and personalised impact report — showing exactly what was deployed, installed, recorded, and actioned on the ground.

This is direct, measurable work — because you were there.