Strategic Plan Update
Rainforest Trust saves endangered wildlife and protects our planet by creating rainforest reserves through partnerships , community engagement and donor support .
In June 2023 , we marked the midpoint of our five year Strategic Plan and reported our progress . The plan , launched in January 2021 , set formidable goals and objectives spanning the three pillars of our work : Saving Endangered Species , Protecting Our Planet , and Engaging People in Our Conservation Mission .
Excellent progress has been made , with 19 of 26 objectives on track for achievement or ahead of schedule . Challenges lie ahead in several high-priority areas , including protection of mammals , safeguarding species not currently found in any protected areas , and preserving highintegrity forests .
Thanks to our generous donors , we are ahead of our fundraising goal to raise and allocate $ 200 million over the five years . We have also outpaced the objective to secure sustainable financing for our new protected reserves .
Species , Planet , Communities
In the three sections below , we illustrate each of the pillars of our Strategic Plan with an example of our 219 currently active conservation projects around the world that are contributing to achieving the goals of the plan .
Species
On Peninsular Malaysia , four natural forest complexes combine to create the Central Forest Spine , the oldest forest on Earth . Dense cover , an abundance of prey , and plentiful water sources create a rich environment where the range of seven different cat species overlap , including the Malayan Tiger , a distinct population of Tiger whose numbers are down to approximately 150 individuals , and the Critically Endangered Indochinese Leopard . Both species face extinction due to poaching with heavy use of snares as well as logging and other forest exploitation . We are acting quickly to safeguard their remaining habitat in Malaysia .
In 2023 , support from our donors enabled Rainforest Trust and our partner , Panthera , to take an important step to expand protections in Malaysia ’ s most important tiger stronghold in the greater Taman Negara National Park landscape by 332,541 acres . The project is also funding rigorous antipoaching patrols in the tiger park . A previous
The Central Forest Spine
Rainforest Trust project protected 74,130 acres directly to the north of Taman Negara National Park in 2018 . This initiative is part of a 20-year strategy to protect the Central Forest Spine , allowing tigers and other large species to move freely between fragmented ranges and maintain their genetic diversity .
Planet
Taman Negara National Park
Kenyir State Park 74,130 acres
Rainforest Trust ’ s work to prevent deforestation keeps carbon stored in intact ecosystems . We have an unparalleled opportunity to lock up 470 million metric tons of CO 2 equivalents stored in the world ’ s largest tropical peatland in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa . Here , the flooded forests act as “ supersequesters ,” because water blocks the oxygen required for carbon-releasing decomposition . Protecting the swamp forest will ensure the CO 2 equivalents — comparable to burning 46 billion gallons of diesel fuel — remain safely locked up .
The health of this ecosystem depends on the movement and foraging behavior
Taman Negara National Park Expansion 332,541 acres
Taman Negara National Park
Community Kassangor in Boma and Badingilo National Parks , South Sudan | © marcus westberg