Do you ever think about where your food comes from, or where your clothes are made? Are you one of those people that makes a conscious effort to buy things locally, or are you happy with the first thing you see at the store?
As technology progresses and instant gratification becomes the norm, it often feels like there's no time to slow down and think about trivial things like where our favorite lipstick comes from or who made our favorite pair of pants.
The grim truth is — We should care.
I hadn't heard much about the ingredient palm oil until it became a huge issue overseas. That's often the case. We don't hear about the damage we're doing to our environment until it's become a serious problem.
Palm oil is a common ingredient in food and cosmetics us humans use every day. The problem? The booming palm oil industry is the leading cause of deforestation in Indonesia.
Humans may not be feeling the direct effects of this deforestation yet, but scroll down to see how a couple of adorable orangutans are.
Don't forget to let us know what you think about these incredible primates and this important issue in the comments!
[H/T: The Dodo]
Butan, Marsela, and Sabtu haven't seen their home in quite some time.
The endangered orangutans put a face on an incredibly serious issue that's on the rise.
High demand for palm oil, accompanied by the logging industry, has caused jungles in Indonesia to diminish at an incredibly rapid pace.
Because of this, animals like the orangutan are sadly becoming reclassified as critically endangered.
Butan and Marsela, both females, were only a few years old when they were rescued.
The baby orangutans should have been with their mothers, but instead were found all alone in a razed field where their homes used to be.
The International Animal Rescue (IAR) in Indonesia has been working with Butan and Marsela in their rehabilitation center for the past few years.
With the help of the IAR, the female orangutans have learned the skills required to make it on their own in the wild.
Sabtu, a 25-year-old male orangutan was also found under unfortunate circumstances.
His home was ravaged by a forest fire that destroyed much of the Bornean forest just last year.
Determined to reunite the orangutans with a home they could call their own, the IAR traveled deep into the forest for four days with the endangered animals in tow.
They traveled by foot and by boat to a place where the three of them could be safe, at least for now.
"There is nothing more beautiful than seeing an orangutan back in the wild, where they belong," the IAR explained in a Facebook post.
"Our team works unbelievably hard to give these amazing animals a second chance at freedom."
After their release, all three of the orangutans eagerly climbed the trees.
Sabtu went off on his own, but Butan and Marsela stuck together.
After all, they've been waiting for this moment together their whole lives!
"Our monitoring team, supported by local people from villages near the national park, will follow the orangutans using a radio-tracking device for one or even two years," the IAR said.
"They will record the orangutans' activities and behavior to ensure their long term survival in the forest."
To learn more about the International Animal Rescue and the incredible work they do, check out their website!
What do you think of the happy ending these primates received? Let us know in the comments, and don't forget to SHARE with anyone who loves animals!
