Episode 42: The Cave Punan
Origin Stories
Meredith Johnson
4.8 • 554 Ratings
🗓️ 8 April 2020
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Deep in the forests of Borneo, lives a society of hunter-gatherers who speak a language never before shared with outsiders. Until now.
The Cave Punan are the last surviving hunter-gatherers in Indonesia and they have reached out for help to save their forest home and their culture.
In 2018, Leakey Foundation grantee Steve Lansing was invited by the elected leader of the Punan in Borneo to meet the Cave Punan. He soon learned of the Cave Punan's unique song language and their urgent need to protect their forest from illegal palm oil plantations. They asked for his help to share their story and save their forest.
Steve Lansing and his Indonesian colleagues are now working with local organizations on a plan to support the Cave Punan.
Origin Stories is the first media outlet to share their story and their songs. We hope you will share this podcast with your friends to help raise awareness of the Cave Punan and their plight.
Additional Information
Visit our blog to see photos and videos of the Cave Punan.
Read more about Steve Lansing's research on his website.
Steve Lansing would like to thank his colleagues at the Eijkman Institute of Molecular Biology in Indonesia.
Call us!
We've set up a voicemail line and we'd love to hear from you! Call us at (707)788-8582 to let us know how you're doing and if there is anything you'd like to hear on this podcast.
The Leakey Foundation
Origin Stories is a project of The Leakey Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to funding human origins research and outreach. Support this show and the science we talk about with a tax-deductible donation. Help us raise money to pay teachers to create lesson plans and activities based on this podcast.
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Credits
Host and Producer: Meredith Johnson
Editor: Audrey Quinn
Theme Music: Henry Nagle
Additional Music:
Lee Rosevere "Tech Toys", and music from Blue Dot Sessions.
Sponsors
This season of Origin Stories is made possible by support from Diana McSherry, Jeanne Newman, Camilla Smith, and donors like you!
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is Origin Stories, the Leaky Foundation podcast. I'm Meredith Johnson. |
| 0:13.4 | Before we get into today's episode, I just want to say that I hope you're safe and well. |
| 0:19.6 | I know that podcasts can be a source of comfort and escape during this difficult time. |
| 0:24.4 | They certainly are for me. |
| 0:26.5 | And so I'm working to bring you extra episodes over the coming weeks and months. |
| 0:31.7 | I'd love to hear from you to learn if there's anything in particular you'd like us to cover on this podcast. |
| 0:37.7 | We've set up a voicemail line, and I'll share the number at the end of the story. |
| 0:42.5 | It'll be so nice to hear from you. |
| 0:45.3 | We have a very special episode for you today. |
| 0:48.6 | It's a story that hasn't been told anywhere else. |
| 0:51.9 | And it takes place in the country of Indonesia. Indonesia is made up of thousands |
| 0:57.1 | of islands, and it's located in Southeast Asia, between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, just north of Australia. |
| 1:04.9 | It's one of the most biodiverse places on earth. It has the most mammal species of any country, |
| 1:12.9 | more than 1,600 species of birds, and 10% of all the world's known species of plants. Indonesia is the only place where you can |
| 1:20.5 | find orangutans, elephants, rhinos, and tigers in the same forest. It also holds a deep human history. Recent research suggests that modern |
| 1:29.9 | humans arrived in Indonesia around 73,000 years ago. Fossils of extinct human species have been |
| 1:36.8 | found there as well, including the small fossil hominine nicknamed the Hobbit, which was found on the |
| 1:42.0 | island of Flores. And another species, discovered recently with support from the Leakey Foundation, |
| 1:48.2 | homo-Lusinensis on the island of Luzon. |
| 1:52.6 | Okay. |
| 1:53.4 | Isn't your arm going to get tired, though? |
| 1:55.8 | Yeah, but that's okay. |
... |
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