Singleton – who cofounded the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP) in 2000 – said he was honored to receive the prestigious award, noting that his accomplishments were the result of collaborations with various stakeholders, including his team of fellow conservationists and the Indonesian Environment and Forestry Ministry.

“I am so proud to have received the award from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. This is certainly something my family and I will never forget,” Singleton told The Jakarta Post after learning that he had been named a recipient of the OBE on Monday.

Some other figures, including those who have made a significant contribution to the ongoing coronavirus mitigation efforts in the United Kingdom, also received the honor as part of this year's Queen's Birthday Honors List.

Born in England, Singleton started his career as a conservationist in 1989, when he worked at the Jersey Zoo on the Channel Islands. Seven years later, he left England to study wild orangutans in Sumatra, while also pursuing his PhD from the University of Kent in the UK.

In 2000, he cofounded the SOCP in collaboration with Yayasan Ekosistem Lestari, the Natural Resource and Ecosystem Conservation (KSDAE) Directorate General and the Environment and Forestry Ministry.

Singleton considered his 2017 discovery of a new orangutan species – the Pongo tapanuliensis, also known as the Tapanuli orangutan – alongside other scientists in North Sumatra to be one of his most memorable accomplishments.

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