Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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Orangutans are the world’s most endangered apes and they’re now even closer to extinction. They live on two islands in South East Asia: Sumatra and Borneo. In November, an extreme weather event in the area killed more than 1,000 people there, plus about 7% of the world’s rarest type of orangutan according to a new study.

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BBC Climate and Science reporter Georgina Rannard takes us through how orangutans are being pushed towards extinction and what some countries and charities are doing to protect them.

We also hear from a conservationist making an effort to save the species.

00:00 Coming up
00:13 Amazing orangutan facts
00:42 Where they live
01:46 Palm oil deforestation
03:33 Other human threats
04:54 How many are left?
05:46 Extreme weather risk
06:48 Conservation and policy hope
08:19 Voices from the frontline
10:07 Closing thoughts and outro

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Presenter: Emma-Louise Amanshia
Producers: Emily Horler and Benita Barden
Video Producer: Baldeep Chahal
Editors: Verity Wilde

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