Ten years ago, I set off for Borneo to study orangutans. I knew how closely related they were to humans, but when I actually experienced the orangutans first hand, I found the similarities fascinating. That orangutans resemble us should not be a surprise.
Orangutans are great apes, our closest living relatives on earth.
Because of our similarities, great apes offer one of the best avenues in existence for understanding human origins and human nature. If we lose them, we close an important window on ourselves. It was not with conservation in mind that I headed for Borneo, but orangutans' own minds. What intrigued me about great apes, as it has intrigued many others, is the possibility that their minds may be among the most sophisticated on earth. Knowing little about Borneo, rainforests or orangutans, I figured my best chance to meet orangutan minds was on shared ground.