From Protected to Actually Wild
Siberut is already one of the most biodiverse islands on earth. The programme targets expanding protected coverage from 48% to 85% (342,805 ha) alongside a +535,271 ha Marine Protected Area expansion (from 12% to 65% of Mentawai waters) - not by restricting access, but by funding the enforcement, restoration, and community stewardship that make protection real. 152,305 new terrestrial hectares. The largest private-led rewilding commitment in Indonesian development history.
Before the Oil Palms Arrive. Conservation That Pays for Itself.
Once logging concessions expire on Siberut, the land does not recover - it converts to sago monoculture and oil palm plantations. Under the US$250M 5-year MCF intervention budget, US$95M is deployed for direct logging concession buyouts halting 254,384 ha of commercial extraction, paired with US$30M in transition contracts retaining 100% of former logging crews and US$45M to actively rewild 30,000 ha of degraded land and establish a 15 km wildlife corridor. Verified under Verra VM0048/VM0047 (MCF-REDD-01) and VM0033 (MCF-BLUE-02), these interventions generate 1.18M tCO2e/yr (14.23M tCO2e cumulative) and US$566.7M (Base) to US$1,031.7M (Upside) in 20-year carbon cashflows (US$179.8M-US$338.0M NPV) - a 2.3x to 4.1x self-funding capital payback before counting ongoing 1.75% Torqua and 1%-5% B-Corp flows.
39,000 People. 650+ Uma Rangers. 96.5% of the Island.
The Mentawai people are the reason the island is worth protecting. Backed by an US$85M livelihood transition and dMRV allocation, the programme trains and employs over 650 Indigenous uma rangers and biodiversity monitors - anchoring conservation in genuine respect, free prior and informed consent (FPIC), and permanent economic dignity on their terms, in their language, at their pace.
Rewild the Island. Heal Its People.
Siberut's forests are still being logged - legally and illegally. The programme works to end all logging on the island within 10 years, buying out existing concessions and returning cleared land to wilderness. Alongside it: the eradication of malaria and malnutrition - two preventable crises that have shaped life here for generations.
Research That Protects What It Studies
The Siberut Primate Research Centre and Mentawai Institute of Natural Sciences (UKP, SPV-064) will establish the island as a global research hub for endemic species and digital Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (dMRV). Using satellite LiDAR, drone canopy mapping, and AI bioacoustic arrays tracking Siberut's endemic primates, the scientific stack verifies every tonne of carbon and biodiversity uplift.
"Conservation without funding is a wish. This programme makes it structural - and self-liquidating."
Conservation Built Into the Foundation
The Conservation Covenant and ring-fenced carbon endowment ensure that the programme cannot succeed financially without succeeding environmentally.
