Rooted in Ancient Forests.
Guided by Indigenous Sovereignty.
Founded in 2019, Aaranya Development Foundation unites indigenous traditional ecological knowledge, cutting-edge landscape biology, and non-extractive circular enterprise models to protect Southeast Asia’s most endangered ecosystems.
A world where primary rainforests thrive under the rightful, dignified stewardship of their ancestral guardians.
To co-create permanent, self-determined systems alongside indigenous forest communities—safeguarding customary land rights, delivering decentralized clean utilities, establishing non-timber circular economies, and defending high-biodiversity ecosystems from degradation.
“True conservation cannot be imported from distant capitals. It must live in the village hearth.”
The Aaranya Methodological Framework
How we bridge grassroots community trust with institutional rigour and ecological permanence.
FPIC & Elders Accords
Zero field activity begins without written and oral accords signed by village elders and tribal assemblies.
Ancestral Telemetry
We combine ancestral tracker instincts with solar bio-acoustic sensors, camera-trap networks, and satellite mapping software.
Circular Value Retention
Non-timber bio-enterprises are structured so 85%+ of sale margins are deposited directly into community bank accounts.
Legal Gazettement
Grassroots achievements are codified through official state gazettement, customary boundary demarcations, and peer-reviewed whitepapers.
Seven Years of Field Progress
From our foundational accord with the Jahai nation to international carbon models.
Foundation Inception & Belum Accord
Formally registered as an NGO following multi-month consultations with Jahai village elders in Upper Perak.
Indigenous Ranger Network & FPIC Protocol
Salaried the first cohort of 45 indigenous trackers equipped with GPS and satellite bio-telemetry arrays.
Non-Timber Honey Cooperative Expansion
Commissioned the centralized stingless bee laboratory and natural fiber artisan guild across 340 households.
State Buffer Gazettement & Carbon Models
Co-secured state protection for 42,000 hectares of critical elephant and Malayan tiger migration corridors.
Indigenous Council of Elders
Traditional chieftains and botanical wisdom custodians guiding every field deployment.
Tok Batin Awang bin Senik
Senior Council Elder & Jahai Clan ChieftainCustomary Law Custodian (Adat Temiar-Jahai), 50+ Years Forest NavigatorElected elder overseeing customary territory demarcation and traditional ecological medicine transmission for the Jahai communities of the Upper Perak river basin.
Datu Jau Nyipa
Penan Council RepresentativeSpiritual Custodian & Headman, Baram River BasinLifelong defender of primary Bornean rainforests and customary nomadic trails, advising Aaranya on ethical river-basin engagement and intergenerational youth academies.
Embun binti Alang
Master Artisan & Botany ElderPreservationist of Sacred Pandanus Weaving & Herbal PharmacopoeiaLeads the Indigenous Women's Botanical Council, cataloging medicinal plant varieties and mentoring young indigenous women in ancestral non-timber fiber arts.
Executive Secretariat & Board of Trustees
Experienced conservation practitioners, ecological scientists, and governance experts.
Dr. Tariq Al-Mansoor
Chief Executive Officer & Co-FounderPh.D. Tropical Forest Ecology (Oxford), M.Sc. Environmental Economics (LSE)With over 18 years spearheading landscape conservation initiatives across Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Tariq bridges community land stewardship with institutional climate finance and international policy.
Clara Dias Fernando
Director of Community ProgrammesM.A. International Human Rights Law (Columbia), B.A. AnthropologyClara leads Aaranya's Free, Prior & Informed Consent (FPIC) protocols, indigenous land mapping teams, and participatory rural appraisal frameworks across 45+ tribal settlements.
Rajan Paramasivam
Director of Operations & Sustainable FinanceFCA, Chartered Financial Analyst, B.Sc. Economics (Warwick)Former impact investment director specializing in blended finance, carbon credits integrity governance, and financial compliance for multilateral development grants.
Nur Aisyah Zulkifli
Head of Biodiversity Science & GIS TelemetryM.Sc. Wildlife Conservation Biology (Univ. of Malaya)Aisyah orchestrates our AI bio-acoustic array, wildlife camera trap telemetry networks, and SMART ranger enforcement analytics across 180,000 hectares of primary forest.
Prof. Emeritus Dato' Dr. K. Chandran
Chairman, Board of TrusteesPioneering tropical botanist with over four decades of research into dipterocarp genetics, rainforest regeneration, and national biodiversity conservation policies.
Grace Tan
Trustee & Legal CounselSpecializes in indigenous customary title jurisprudence, environmental litigation, and non-profit governance oversight.
Dr. Helena Vogel
Lead Climate Science & Peatland Hydrology AdvisorInternational authority on tropical peat dome hydromorphic dynamics and natural climate solutions permanence verification.