DeforestAction: Project Borneo

A'ight, check this out for size guys :)! Can edit over the next 23 hours. So any suggestions are welcome, as this is our petition for Luna's safe return! http://petitions.tigweb.org/findlunasafe

Hey Tom,
I also saw that TED talk.. amazing, right!!! Exactly some of the probelms we have been discussing so recently with community engagement programs. Gareth- the petition seems fine mate. Good work. Surely with so many people showing such concern for Luna and her welfare she will be found. Its just a matter of time. The power of collaboration. Anything any of us can do (besides signing and passing ont eh petition) please let us know. We all want to help for sure!!

It was very unpleasant indeed reading the terrible news of Luna which hit my inbox early in the morning. I hope this poor little girl is found unharmed as soon as possible...

I have some ideas with regard to how the wording of the petition can be improved. Also, whilst we as individuals can gather some support, I think that the support of DeforestAction itself and people like Richard Zimmerman, Willie Smits and so forth is key - if they believe that an online petition is worthwhile, then they have significant ability to distribute the petition to a massive initial audience via their supporters and followers on social media. I also think that limiting this to TIG may not yield as many signatures as possible. Perhaps it should be mirrored on (say) a major online petition site, like PetitionOnline.com.

A petition (1) addresses a specific audience, (2) explains the situation and (3) asks the reader to take action, where applicable. I have uploaded a DRAFT of how I might word it (with extra emphasis on DRAFT). I feel that we need to be a bit more direct and to the point. Most people signing an online petition want quick facts only (those with a genuine interest will already feel very emotional...). My draft is here for consideration:

http://bit.ly/eEx6sA

@Gareth - I would second Dan's suggestion of using a major online petition site to reach a wider audience. Also, sites such as PetitionSite.com (very well known) allow for the inclusion of images - albeit not high-resolution ones. You could use this to include a lower-resolution image of Luna from the OO website. As for the wording, I think it's good. My main suggestion would be to more closely echo Rich's wording from his news release on the OO website. This is a very sensitive situation on a number of levels (i.e., with donors, media, etc) and while we work furiously for Luna's return, I believe we must be mindful of these concerns and make the petition a bit more reflective of the uncertainty of the situation. As Rich said, "we can't rule anything out at this point." I think we all fear that it was smugglers, but it is possible that something else happened. Beyond that, my only suggestions would be the inclusion of more important details regarding her physical appearance and behavioral mannerisms, and the potential removal of extraneous details such as the Action Agent's names. The whole community is concerned - I'm not sure I see a benefit to Luna to singling out individual Action Agents' names. Just some thoughts - thanks a lot for doing this Gareth! @Tira - I will send along the high-res images shortly. @Dan - Rich and I have a very close line of communication and we are in touch regarding the Jakarta Globe article and other attempts to put Luna out in Indonesian media. Last time I heard from the team, Willie is abroad promoting sugar palms and meeting with various oil types to try to build up investments. I'm sure both Rich and Willie would be fully supportive of a petition, assuming the wording was sensitive to the other institutional issues mentioned above.

Great DRAFT, Dan. Targeted, concise, and contains the most relevant details. One additional target - and a major one - would be citizens of the countries themselves. COP and JAAN are going door to door asking villagers if they have seen anything. Word of mouth among villagers is how we often find captive orangutans. Perhaps some of our Action Agents from Indonesia could help us with a final translation to mirror onto an Indonesian site. Anybody? If not I can do that - but I'm sure native speaker's Bahasa would be better than mine!

I will help.. i will post about Luna in Kaskus, the largest Online Communities in Indonesia (2,845,805 members)... I hope Luna will be find..

Dan that petition looks great. It is clear and concise. When do you think you can have this up and running by?

Hey everyone - great idea to raise awareness! You can post the Petition under Action Tools on TIG - we have a Petition tool with integrated Twitter and Facebook sharing:

http://petitions.tigweb.org

Mike - does the petition tool here at TIG allow for the inclusion of one or more images? I think we'd all like to see Luna's beautiful face put on whatever petition we finally agree upon as a group.

Dino - posting in Kaskus would be amazing! Do you think you could help with translating the petition we create here into Bahasa Indonesia?

@Steve : I have posted it in Kaskus. Here is the link : {{PGEgaHJlZj0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy5rYXNrdXMudXMvc2hvd3RocmVhZC5waHA/cD00MDg2MTU2NTgjcG9zdDQwODYxNTY1OFxuXG5TdXJlLi4iPmh0dHA6Ly93d3cua2Fza3VzLnVzL3Nob3d0aHJlYWQucGhwP3A9NDA4NjE1NjU4I3Bvc3Q0MDg2MTU2NThcblxuU3VyZS4uPC9hPg==}} I can translate the petition into Bahasa Indonesia. Let's pray for Luna n stop animal trafficking..

I'm assuming people have guessed that text in [CAPS] in square brackets is either not to be included or to be expanded in the final petition. ||| @Steve Thanks for all your suggestions. I agree with regard to names. ||| @Tara I will update this draft. I cannot edit the petition Gareth created - we need to agree on the text and Gareth can update it. As for PetitionOnline.com, I would be happy to create the petition, but the text CANNOT be updated once submitted. We need to decide on complete wording first. ||| Steve, do you think you are able to obtain specifics on Luna? (age, weight, any defining characteristics, behaviour, etc...) - I'll see what is available on redapes.org... ||| Yes, translations into Bahasa Indonesia AND Bahasa Melayu in particular are important. ||| @Dino Thankyou.

@dansync.. I have tweeted the message.. If the kaskus link doesn't work.. Try this : http://tinyurl.com/3tzp68p

and..now Information about Luna is spreading in My Twitter friends.. Let us use hashtag #SaveLuna n hope it soon will be Trending Topics in Twitter..

DESCRIPTION OF LUNA:
about 2 feet tall.
about 2 years old
fuzzy bright orange floppy hair.
skinny little legs.
very fine, long, skinny fingers
protruding snout.
not very heavy
doesn't like to be left alone--- when alone she crawls up into a ball, face down on the ground and squeals in a very high pitch.
she doesn't like strangers and will swat at them-- see video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSzEv1dVejI

One last thing everybody, and an important one. If our intention is to scale this up to thousands of signatures/etc (and I believe it is), I'd strongly advise that once we all agree on our final wording (let's do that ASAP) that I be allowed a few hours or more to get Rich's take on the final petition text before we go ahead and disseminate it. This is a sensitive situation on a number of levels and we should definitely give him the opportunity to weigh in. Thank you all for your continued efforts!

Hey all - here's an imgur album I've created of recent Luna pictures. 11 in total, will add more as they come.

http://imgur.com/a/s1fnY#uB1gI

Updated draft: http://bit.ly/eEx6sA || Now awaiting feedback from Rich and several other details || Goodnight world.

Dan I sent you some final details re: contact information, the offer of a reward, etc. Rich and I are all set - I'll wrap this up given that it's very late in your timezone. By your morning I'll have a final petition for TIG's collective review and Dino's translation. Thanks again for your efforts.

[Shameless Plug] Speaking of petitions, I just signed the Stop Timber Corruption petition to freeze Sarawak (Malaysian Borneo) Chief Minister Taib Mahmud's assets (backed by the Bruno Manser Fund): http://www.stop-timber-corruption.org/

I have updated the message on kaskus : http://tinyurl.com/3tzp68p

Latest update on kaskus : http://tinyurl.com/3cn2fsv

Tom - here is an imgur album of the recent pictures of Luna. Please feel free to circulate this widely: http://imgur.com/a/s1fnY#uB1gI. Post it to everyone you know, *particularly* if they work in the region or have any connection to the conservation/animal husbandry communities. Thanks for your suggestions too! Rich and I are in close contact and he gave us the green light on the phrasing already as well as extra details to include. One thing he and I are waiting on is for morning to hit in Indonesia so that we can contact the team to get a cell phone # for an anonymous tip-line. Many of the major petition sites don't allow for the editing of text after a petition is posted, otherwise I would post immediately as all other information is in place and ready to go. As for a Skype call, I'm not sure that is necessary at this point. OO, with the help of COP and JAAN, have truly mounted a full-on search and rescue operation. If people can circulate this petition (once it is finalized with a cell # in Indonesia) via all social media avenues they can, I think we will have done what we can. Happy to Skype with you guys anyway though!

If perchance you are reading this, a BIG high five to OrrieAnotan the "Stuffed Monkey" and Taroona High School (barely two suburbs away from me!) who are leading the DeforestAction individual and school points tallies! It's fantastic (though not surprising - this Aussie state is a logging-environmentalist dichotomy) to know that Tasmanians are so disproportionately represented here =)

Thanks for the update Steve. I will get on the circulating now. It's great that we can do something from the other side of the planet, even if it's frustrating that we can't do more! Poor Luna, and my best best wishes to her and everyone that knows her. This must be so hard for them.

Folks, updated link here for the imgur album of 11 very recent pictures of Luna. the previous link I gave allowed for public editing of the pictures/captions. This one doesn't: http://tinyurl.com/3vdd6mq

Though I'm sad to hear about Luna, I'm so warmed to see so many of you being so proactive and doing something about it - you are truly amazing people.

Another petition site that might be worth launching on is www.care2.com - I get a lot of petitions emailed to me from them.

Also might be worthwile making a separate Facebook Cause for Luna (Deforestaction already have a cause on this

Aussie folks, if you already know your MP's name, go straight here for their contact information. Call or write them and let your voice be heard. From what I've been able to gather, the Senate committee examining the bill is due to report back to parliament in mid-June. There are tons of pre-form letters on the web to express your support. Time is of the essence with this legislation.

Contact list for MP's
http://aph.gov.au/house/members/mi-alpha.asp

Thanks steve for the pic and description.
Dan can you forward me the details on rewards etc you received? Or post them here. I think that would be good information to include elsewhere. well done so far everyone!