Conservation and Research Partnerships
Our conservation initiatives have been strengthened through the various partnerships we have started with industry partners, civil society and research institutes both internationally and at local levels.
Wilmar, and other leading oil palm growers (such as Musim Mas and Sime Darby), NGOs (including Orangutan Land Trust, WWF and FFI) and independent experts (Borneo Futures) have formed the Palm Oil and NGO (PONGO) Alliance. This is a new initiative aimed at supporting the management of orang-utans and other wildlife in palm oil landscapes.
The PONGO Alliance’s approach will be to engage with all stakeholders on the ground, including palm oil companies, local governments and local communities to implement best management practices for the protection of orang-utans and wildlife in the oil palm landscape.
Please refer to this link for updated information on the PONGO Alliance:
Wilmar and the Royal Society’s South-East Asia Rainforest Research Partnership(SEARRP) have been studying the conservation areas in Wilmar’s plantations in Sabah (Telupid and Lahad Datu districts) since 2011.
Wilmar and SEARRP signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 30 March 2016, to formalise and expand our collaboration to advance the knowledge and application of sustainable plantation practices in Malaysia, Indonesia and the wider tropics.Under the MoU, Wilmar and SEARRP will establish a five-year research and training programme.
Both parties commit to support and facilitate research by academics from many leading universities (including the UK universities of York, Oxford, Cambridge, Leeds, Nottingham and Aberdeen and Universiti Malaysia Sabah) with a strong focus on biodiversity conservation and the management of conservation areas within an oil palm plantation landscape.
Wilmar and SEARRP will also work together to develop simplified methods for environmental assessment and monitoring. By deepening the partnership between a leading palm oil processor and one of the foremost research programmes in the tropics, Wilmar and SEARRP aim to make a major contribution to science which is critical to underpinning conservation, sustainability and environmental best practices for the palm oil industry.
Please refer to this link for more information on this collaboration:
Wilmar Partnership with Royal Society’s South East Asia Rainforest Programme
Since 2014, Wilmar has been partnering with the University of Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) to gather baseline data on the diversity and abundance of flora and fauna species found in the HCV areas within Wilmar’s plantations in Sarawak.
Over 20 undergraduate students studying the different taxa, and a total of three MSc students have conducted their research in our area. Two of the MSc students were from UK universities and one was from UNIMAS.
The state of the HCV area is considered good, with several records of rare, threatened and endangered species. The tree species are also found to be comparatively diverse and healthy with good regeneration.
In 2023, we jointly published the book titled “Bukit Durang: The Hidden Jewel of Ulu Suai, Sarawak” with UNIMAS. This book details research conducted on the Bukit Durang Conservation Area (BDCA), a 994-hectare site located inside Wilmar's oil palm operations that is home to a significant number of species including the critically endangered pangolin as well as the Malayan Sun Bear and Marbled Cat.
Wilmar signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) on 13 March 2020 to collaborate on biodiversity conservation research projects.-and-perpetua-from-wilmar-together-with-prof-dr-amirul-dr-zarul-hazrin-hashim-(senior-lecturer)-and-dr-rosazlina-rusly-(senior-lecturer)-from-usm-s-school-of-biological-science.tmb-medium.jpg?Culture=en&sfvrsn=2fd36837_1 "From left - Chin Sing Yun (Wilmar Conservation Lead) and Perpetua from Wilmar together with Prof Dr Amirul, Dr Zarul Hazrin Hashim (Senior Lecturer) and Dr Rosazlina Rusly (Senior Lecturer) from USM’s School of Biological Science")
Conservation areas outside of protected areas have become sanctuaries for many threatened and endangered species. Recognizing that landscapes of mixed land-use types play a crucial role in landscape conservation, the collaboration will focus on biodiversity research within High Conservation Value (HCV) areas in Sabah, especially Sekar Imej. Totalling around 2,400 hectares, Sekar Imej is Wilmar’s largest HCV and conservation area in Malaysia.
Forging close collaboration with partners such as USM is part of Wilmar’s multi-stakeholder efforts to identify and develop pragmatic, actual and lasting solutions and implementation for biodiversity conservation in Wilmar operations. The partnership optimizes on the strengths and expertise in life sciences by USM, which further fortifies Wilmar’s commitment to promote and implement best practices in environmental sustainability and biodiversity conservation.
Further information on the MOU is available here.
