Matthew LEWIS

Matthew has served as a Program Officer with the Arcus Foundation’s Great Apes & Gibbons Program since 2023, bringing extensive experience in wildlife research and conservation, particularly in Central and East Africa, where he has focused on gorillas, elephants, and chimpanzees. Through the Great Apes & Gibbons Program, Arcus Foundation strives to promote the conservation and respect of both great and small apes – bonobos, chimpanzees, gibbons, gorillas, and orangutans. The program’s overarching aim is to protect resilient ape populations from extinction, ensuring they thrive in habitats governed in a sustainable, just, and holistic manner; and that apes in captivity are cared for in accredited sanctuaries and are not exploited for entertainment or invasive research. Arcus prioritises its efforts across 24 landscapes in Africa and Asia. In each of these landscapes, the Foundation’s work centers on three core goals: reconciling conservation and human well-being, building an effective movement, and increasing respect for the intrinsic value of apes. This holistic, collaborative, and long-term approach is strengthened by the foundation’s role in initiatives like the Global Gibbon Network, which unites diverse partners in efforts to safeguard the future of these remarkable species.