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Recent forest and land-use policy changes in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo: Are they truly transformational?
Abstract
This paper analyses the policy changes occurring in the forest and palm oil sectors of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, through the lens of the transformational change concept. The aim is to first examine whether Sabah is transforming and, if so, to identify the determinants enabling or hindering the change. To determine if Sabah is transforming, we used two criteria: - (i) an ambitious change in the policy framework, that promotes forest conservation and sustainable use, and is moving away from business-as-usual activities; and (ii) the level of implementation of the policies that we identified as supporting transformational change. We found that Sabah very likely did intend to transform. We made this conclusion based on comparing changes in policies occurring in Sabah, and we decided if it is ambitious by primarily comparing Sabah’s policies with other Malaysian states, the federal government, and internationally. We showed that: (i) Sabah decided to use voluntary international certification standards (private market instruments) like FSC and RSPO, while the other Malaysian states did not; (ii) they decided to protect more forest compared to national and international targets; and (iii) Sabah is an early mover as the state is one of the first in the world to adopt the RSPO Jurisdictional Approach. But intention needs to be followed by implementation, and this is where the state falls short. The policies in Sabah were not fully implemented because of the patronage system where the more powerful actors used their power to continue with business-as-usual activities, there is frequent political turnover in Sabah, and the state faced difficulty in meeting international standards. Our research shows that local leadership and a local transformational change coalition (civil society actively working in Sabah) mainly prompted the transformational change, although the promises of economic gains and better reputation also played a role. We conclude by emphasising the change must be made more compelling for political leaders, as part of a broader institutional structure, not only through the narrow focus on reducing deforestation but through the development of a more sustainable and equitable national economy, and that consumer countries should play a role in reducing pressures on forest by providing incentives to a state that manages its natural resources sustainably.
... Este análisis permite conocer los temas que se están investigando en relación con el CCUT, a través de la frecuencia de las palabras como "deforestación y bosque", agricultura, urbanización, son temas que sobresalen y que debería prestarse mayor atención (Su et al., 2022;Teshome et al., 2022). ...
... Las fuerzas subyacentes o indirectas son los impulsores no medibles por la metodología cuantitativa (Gebeyehu et al., 2023), algunos de estos factores incluyen aspectos sociales, económicos, políticos y culturales a nivel local y regional, tal como se señala en diversos estudios (Kleemann et al., 2017;Su et al., 2022). Se han señalado que estos impulsores tienen una relación directa con las decisiones que se llevan a cabo a nivel individual o grupos de personas en las comunidades hasta las políticas sobre la gestión del uso de la tierra local (Kouassi et al., 2021;Osumanu y Ayamdoo, 2022). ...
... Se encontraron 16 fuerzas subyacentes en este periodo de análisis, donde se destaca la percepción de una política débil o la falta de intervención de las instituciones locales (Ariti et al., 2015;Ellis et al., 2017; Zhen y Yihe Lü, 2017) (Figura 9). Se ha señalado que las leyes (Kyle y Duncan, 2012;Wu et al., 2014), normas o instrumentos relacionados con el CCUT (Frewer y Chan, 2014;Trincsi et al., 2014), han sido poco efectivos debido a la falta de cumplimiento, así como un limitado marco legal normativo en su aplicabilidad (Damtew et al., 2022;Hailu et al., 2020;Su et al., 2022), la tenencia de la tierra (Farley et al., 2012), especialmente en lo que respecta a la venta o renta a particulares (Ewunetu et al., 2021), la expansión agrícola comercial (Esgalhado et al., 2021), impulsado por el mercado global ,y el desarrollo de infraestructura, los incendios inducidos (Dimobe et al., 2022) y el abandono del campo rural (Ruskule et al., 2013;Schirpke et al., 2021). ...
Este artículo ofrece un análisis de la literatura internacional producido entre el año 2012 y 2022 sobre el abordaje del Cambio de Cobertura y Uso del Terreno (CCUT), a través de una metodología mixta. El fenómeno involucra múltiples interacciones con los factores físicos, sociales, económicos, políticos y culturales. Por esta razón, se requiere comprender de manera integral las causas, efectos y procesos que inducen estos cambios a nivel local y regional. La metodología mixta ofrece una perspectiva de análisis integral que combina datos cuantitativos (teledetección) y cualitativos (percepción social). El objetivo de esta investigación fue la revisión de estudios científicos que utilizan la metodología mixta aplicada al CCUT, para conocer el estado actual del conocimiento sobre los enfoques teóricos, metodológicos, y tendencias en este campo de investigación. Se encontró una literatura limitada en revistas de acceso abierto que aborden la problemática con este enfoque, una diversidad del término “metodología mixta”, no existe información explícita del método en los artículos revisados. Se identificaron herramientas y técnicas más empleadas de la investigación cuantitativa y cualitativa, las estrategias, los alcances y limitaciones que se han reportado en los diversos estudios. Se destaca la capacidad del enfoque metodológico para obtener una comprensión integral de la problemática, debido a que proporciona una información más completa de las causas y los efectos que conducen al CCUT. También se identificó una limitación importante como establecer vínculos previos de confianza con los actores locales para que puedan colaborar en el diseño y ser parte fundamental de la investigación.
... Those studies that do explicitly analyse socio-economic and political contexts often focus on enabling conditions for establishing new initiatives. A number of enabling factors have been identified, including strong support and leadership from local policymakers with significant political skills and legitimacy to perform a convening role, supportive governance arrangements (for example via strengthened policies relating to spatial planning and tenure security) and deep private sector engagement with sustainability initiatives in targeted landscapes (Ng et al., 2022;Bahruddin et al., 2024). Other relevant features of regulatory and institutional arrangements include patterns of political and administrative (de)centralisation Seymour et al., 2020), policy coordination across levels of government (Nepstad, 2017;Brandão et al., 2020;Boshoven et al., 2021;Ng et al., 2023), and sufficient political stability and state capacity to enforce laws and regulations (Pirard et al., 2015;Paoli et al., 2016;Hovani et al., 2018b;LTKL, 2019LTKL, , 2020Colchester et al., 2020a;Garcia et al., 2021). ...
... Power imbalances within implementing contexts are implicitly rather than explicitly acknowledged in some scholarship as potential barriers to both the effective operation of multi-stakeholder dialogue and to the political sustainability and legitimacy of JAs (Palmer and Paoli, 2017). 4 For example, existing work has acknowledged the importance for JA sustainability of potential challenges linked to changes in local political leadership and administrations, competition between political parties, weak institutional capacity, constrained long-term resourcing or financing, and strong patronage connections between influential policymakers and business actors resistant to sustainability governance initiatives (Ng et al., 2022;Van der Haar et al., 2023;Stickler et al., 2020;UNDP n.d.). Such literature thus acknowledges, albeit sometimes implicitly, that while the state is central to the potential of JAs, its involvement can introduce its own risks and challenges. ...
The article examines the rise of jurisdictional approaches (JAs) as a new governance model to foster sustainable forest and land management in agro-commodity production areas, particularly in biodiversity-rich tropical forest countries. Over the past decade, these approaches have gained momentum due to the significant land use changes caused by agro-commodity production, which have substantial environmental impacts and affect the livelihoods of around 1.6 billion rural people, including indigenous communities. The literature predominantly offers descriptive and analytical insights into the conceptualization and functions of JAs, with a notable gap in evaluative studies. Much of the academic discourse is shaped by practice-oriented publications, often presenting an optimistic view of JAs' potential. However, the articles also acknowledge that JAs are not value-neutral, underscoring the necessity for more in-depth analyses of their practical implementation and effectiveness. The authors propose several future research directions for jurisdictional approaches (JAs) to sustainable commodity governance, emphasizing the need for systematic critical evaluations focusing on their limitations and obstacles and the more profound limits of their potential achievements. They stress the importance of addressing political and socio-economic power dynamics in establishing and implementing JAs and call for more research on the participation and inclusion of marginalized social stakeholders. Additionally, they highlight the need to assess the effectiveness and impact of JAs. The authors also advocate for empirical-analytical work to understand the practical functioning of external linkages between national and subnational jurisdictions and suggest exploring the interactions between JAs and global environmental governance processes.
... For instance, in the case of TR Ramba Bungkong v Asco Green Sdn Bhd the legal declaration states that the 3,500 hectares are not Sarawak's rights because they do not have "legal force" which means there is a unilateral administrative action. Sabah is also facing the reality that the main causes of forest loss is because of unsustainable exploitation (Ng et al., 2022). The lack of clear legal frameworks that align with indigenous people Native Customary Law contributes to the disputes and undermines the autonomy between indigenous people and government. ...
... To conclude, this response to a report from IWGIA that there is much inequality and injustice happening towards Indigenous people in Papua and Malaysia because of different interests. For instance the "industrial racism" that is caused by Freeport towards Papua because racism is embedded in society and abused land rights become company rights caused unilateral administrative action in Sarawak or Sabah policies are interlinked with Malaysia Plan (Eichorn, 2023;Ng et al., 2022). The most important thing the government should understand is not just the economy but their culture, beliefs and their traditions also need to be prioritize. ...
... The persistent forest degradation trends [12][13][14] underscore the fragile nature of Malaysia's commitment at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to maintain at least 50% forest cover, highlighting the urgency for immediate action. In recognition of these challenges, the Malaysian government has placed an emphasis on balancing socio-economic development with environmental sustainability in its Twelfth Malaysia Plan (2021-2025) [15,16]. The plan highlights the importance of rational land use management, efficient resource utilization, and the development of resilient, green cities [17]. ...
Identifying the drivers of land use and cover change (LUCC) is crucial for sustainable land management. However, understanding spatial differentiation and conducting inter-regional comparisons of these drivers remains limited, particularly in regions like Malaysia, where complex interactions between human activities and natural conditions pose significant challenges. This study presents a novel analytical framework to examine the spatial variations and complexities of LUCC, specifically addressing the spatiotemporal patterns, driving factors, and pathways of LUCC in Malaysia from 2010 to 2020. Integrating the land use transfer matrix, GeoDetector model, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), we reveal a significant expansion of farmland and urban areas alongside a decline in forest cover, with notable regional variations in Malaysia. Human-driven factors, such as population growth and economic development, are identified as the primary forces behind these changes, outweighing the influence of natural conditions. Critically, the interactions among these drivers exert a stronger influence on LUCC dynamics in Malaysia than any single factor alone, suggesting increasingly complex LUCC predictions in the future. This complexity emphasizes the urgency of proactive, multifaceted, and region-specific land management policies to prevent irreversible environmental degradation. By proposing tailored land management strategies for Malaysia’s five subnational regions, this study addresses spatial variations in drivers and climate resilience, offering a strategic blueprint for timely action that can benefit Malaysia and other regions facing similar challenges in sustainable land management.
... Timber harvesting became the primary source of state revenue in Sabah and was essential to the state's early development. Sabah is endowed with some of the richest rain forests on the planet (Chervier et al., 2022). As the backbone of the state's economy, forestry produced between 60 and 70 percent of the state's overall revenue in the 1970s and 1980s. ...
This research is based on the condition of the ever-rampant events of illegal logging perpetrated by companies in various areas in Indonesia and Malaysia. The issue of corporate illegal logging happened due to a concerning level of conflict of interest between companies, the government, and local societies due to economic motives. this paper aims to analyze the law enforcement on corporate illegal logging in Indonesia and Malaysia as well as the law enforcement on corporate illegal logging that is based on sustainable forestry. this research used the normative legal approach that was supported by secondary data in the forms of documents and cases of illegal logging that happened in Indonesia and Malaysia. this paper employed the qualitative analysis. Results showed that Indonesia had greater commitment and legal action than Malaysia because Indonesia processed more illegal logging cases compared to Malaysia. But mere commitment is not enough as the illegal logging ratio in Indonesia compared to timber production is 60%. meanwhile, in Malaysia, it is 35%. This shows that the ratio of law enforcement in Malaysia is more effective when comparing the rate of illegal logging and timber production. The phenomenon of forest destruction in Indonesia happened due to a disharmonic situation or an improper social relationship between society, the regional government, the forestry sector, business owners, and the law-enforcing apparatus. The sustainable forest-based law enforcement concept against corporate illegal logging is carried out through the integration approach that involves various parties in both countries.
... Similar studies have found that discourses related to forest governance and development (in media and elsewhere) are dominated by a political network of actors that hold major influence and power. Ng et al. (2022) found that despite the adoption of ambitious policies to tackle deforestation in Sabah, many of these fell short in implementation, in large part because of resistance from politicians acting as patrons for logging companies and other private interests. One prominent example is the state-owned Sabah Foundation that was established in 1967, which gave way for politicians to access almost one million ha of forest concessions, resulting in the expansion of logging and oil palm plantations. ...
Contestations around forests and lands have a long history in Sabah, Malaysia and the divergent interests of the ruling State, private business and indigenous and local peoples have played out in narratives shaping policies and debated in media since colonial times. Coalition building among actors is one avenue of influencing policy and securing benefits from policy outcomes. Here, we examine print media related to the Nature Conservation Agreement (NCA), a controversial carbon trading proposal, to identify policy coalitions based on actors' narratives about development and forests. Relevant articles from October 2021 to January 2023 were coded to identify the media frames, actors, and their arguments. Using discourse network analyser (DNA), three coalitions were identified: 1) Local rights defenders; 2) NCA promoters; 3) Process sceptics. Actors for or against the NCA both emphasise the importance of managing forests and local development within Sabah, but closer examination of arguments reveal that coalitions have different visions of who is to be included in decision-making and who will benefit from it. NCA promoters use the same narratives that have been historically used to legitimise state control over forests and land, and frame the NCA as an effective “win–win” solution for climate change and local economic development. The coalitions of dissenters highlight lack of transparency and free, prior, informed consent, and inequities for local and indigenous people. Discourses on development and resource management in Sabah are not without contestation, even though alternative options for more just development are still absent.
... This is especially important for many HFLDs located in the Global South, which are often vulnerable to political instability and may thus lack long-term political will and financial resources for forest protection initiatives. For example, the East Malaysian state of Sabah attempted to use its semiautonomous status to enact more environmentally stringent forestry policies compared to the federal government, but ultimately failed due to deep-rooted patronage networks and local political instability ( 27 ). Technological advancements such as electric vehicles spurring demand for minerals also pose threats to forests from mining ( 28 , 29 ). ...
High forest low deforestation jurisdictions (HFLDs) contain many of the world’s last intact forests with historically low deforestation. Since carbon financing typically uses historical deforestation rates as baselines, HFLDs facing the prospect of future threats may receive insufficient incentives to be protected. We found that from 2002 to 2020, HFLDs ( n = 310) experienced 44% higher deforestation rates than their historical baselines, and 60 HFLDs underwent periods of high deforestation (deforestation rate > 0.501%) at 0.983 ± 0.649% (mean ± SD)—a rate 7.5 times higher than the 10-y historical baseline of all HFLDs. For HFLDs to receive sufficient carbon finance requires baselines that can better reflect future deforestation trajectories of HFLDs. Using an empirical multifactorial model, we show that most contemporary HFLDs are expected to undergo higher deforestation from 2020 to 2038 than their historical baselines, with 72 HFLDs likely (>66% probability) to undergo high deforestation. Over the next 18 y, HFLDs are expected to lose 2.16 Mha y ⁻¹ of forests corresponding to 585 ± 74 MtCO 2 e y ⁻¹ (mean ± SE) of emissions. Efforts to protect HFLD forests from future threats will be crucial. In particular, improving baselining methods is key to ensuring that sufficient financing can flow to HFLDs to prevent deforestation.
... RSPO is seen as a more credible international certification standard for sustainability by some importing countries like those in the European Union. Sabah chose RSPO to remain more relevant in the global palm oil market, by competing using the basis of good governance as competitive advantage (Ng, Chervier, Ancrenaz, Naito, & Karsenty, 2022). Sabah made this decision because its economy largely depended on exporting palm oil, and it is the state with the largest planted oil palm area in Malaysia (1.54 million ha or 22% of the state)-until Sarawak overtook it in 2017 (Malaysia Palm Oil Board [MPOB], 2019). ...
Purpose: Community cooperation and support are essential for effective policy implementation intended to conserve critically endangered animals. However, little is known about what factors might consistently persuade people to engage positively in rural conservation initiatives.
Design/methodology/approach:
For this study, we conducted a cross-sectional survey to investigate how rural communities' conservation activities are influenced by various socioeconomic and environmental factors. We solicited informant perspectives at Borneo, Sabah, Malaysia, using household questionnaires about projects aiming to preserve multiple endangered wildlife species, such as Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), Borneo pygmy elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis) and proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus). Many of these animals are found in the international recognised sanctuary, the Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary (LKWS). We concentrated our inquiries on residents of Kinabatangan Sabah.
Findings:
Social, economic and environmental factors all have significant influences on Indigenous support for conservation, albeit their effects vary: perceived social impacts from protected area (PA), ß = 0.145, p < 0.05; perceived economic impacts of tourism, ß = 0.226, p < 0.01 and environmental with governance, ß = 0.448, p < 0.01; were all significant and have positive influence on the dependent construct, local support for conservation (i.e. SupCon). Personal reasons do not seem to affect this relationship, ß = 0.059, p > 0.05.
Practical implications:
The findings show that social perceptions, economic benefits and environmental values remain the principal elements that drive Indigenous people of the Kinabatangan region to support conservation initiatives at the gazetted sanctuary.
Originality/value: Emerging studies worldwide show the importance of connecting ecological conservation studies with a good understanding of human values to improve conservation outcomes. This study examines the motivational factors driving local involvement to provide valuable insights into fostering local socioeconomic improvement and aligning it with the success of conservation efforts. This study is the first to assess how personal values impact Indigenous support for conservation in Kinabatangan.
Green technologies are very relevant when it comes to implementing good practices in sustainable forest management as well as in the conservation of the forests in the world today. Technologies like satellite, AI, IoT, and blockchain, mean that there are tools to support real-time forest trackers, preventing illicit acts of logging, and better utilising the forest resources at hand. These made the technologies possible for decision making based on values and new environment that allows for fast response to forest fires and pests. In addition, green technologies can also improve the prospects of reforestation with accuracy planting and data mining. Other financial strategies include green finance, carbon finance, and sustainable supply chain for supporting the forest protection, and promoting private capital for conservation. The efficient deployment of green technologies needs sound policy environment, financial backing, and multiple stakeholder engagements. In order to achieve this there is a need for governments, businesses, and local communities to cooperate in developing proper legal frameworks that will force people to adopt the green technologies, while at the same time making sure that the benefits have to reach out to the areas most affected by deforestation. As such, future of forest conservation remains based on further evolution of these technologies and their implementation into overall environmental and economic policies. With the proper connection of technological change to the future governance of our planet, the forestry, climate change, and biodiversity assets may be protected and preserved for the use of future generations. Resumen: Las tecnologías verdes son muy importantes a la hora de aplicar buenas prácticas en la gestión forestal sostenible y la conservación de los bosques en el mundo actual. Tecnologías como el satélite, la IA, IoT, y blockchain, significan que hay herramientas para apoyar a los rastreadores forestales en tiempo real, la prevención de actos ilícitos de la tala, y una mejor utilización de los recursos forestales a la mano.Estas tecnologías hacen posible una toma de decisiones basada en valores y un nuevo entorno que permite responder con rapidez a los incendios forestales y las plagas. Además, las tecnologías verdes también pueden mejorar las perspectivas de reforestación con la plantación de precisión y la extracción de datos.Otras estrategias financieras incluyen la financiación verde, la financiación del carbono y la cadena de suministro sostenible para apoyar la protección de los bosques y promover el capital privado para la conservación. El despliegue eficaz de las tecnologías verdes requiere un entorno político sólido, respaldo financiero y la participación de múltiples partes interesadas. Para lograrlo, es necesario que los gobiernos, las empresas y las comunidades locales cooperen en el desarrollo de marcos jurídicos adecuados que obliguen a la gente a adoptar las tecnologías verdes, asegurándose al mismo tiempo de que los beneficios tienen que llegar a las zonas más afectadas por la deforestación.Así pues, el futuro de la conservación de los bosques sigue dependiendo de la evolución de estas tecnologías y de su aplicación en las políticas medioambientales y económicas generales.Con una conexión adecuada del cambio tecnológico con la futura gobernanza de nuestro planeta, los activos forestales, el cambio climático y la biodiversidad podrán protegerse y conservarse para uso de las generaciones venideras. Keywords: Green technologies. Forests. Financial banking. Climate change. Forest conservation. Legal frameworks. Palabras clave: Tecnologías verdes. Bosques. Banca financiera. Cambio climático. Conservación de los bosques. Marcos jurídicos. Index: 1. Introduction 2. Current regulatory frameworks for Forest conservation 2.1. ASEAN’S political environment and legal regulations 2.2. International treaties and frameworks 2.3. United Nations REDD+ Program and Its Implication to the Forests 2.4. Challenges in current regulatory and policy frameworks 3. Use of technology 3.1. Potential of Green Technology in Forest Management and Conservation 3.2. Policy Implications for Robust Green Technology Application 3.3. Green Governance: Integrating Green Technology into Policy Making 4. Case studies 5. Future Directions 6. Conclusion 7. References Índice: 1. Introducción 2. Marcos normativos actuales para la conservación de los bosques 2.1. Entorno político y normativa legal de la ASEAN 2.2. Tratados y marcos internacionales 2.3. Programa REDD+ de las Naciones Unidas y su implicación para los bosques 2.4. Desafíos en los marcos normativos y políticos actuales 3. Uso de la tecnología 3.1. Potencial de la tecnología verde en la gestión y conservación de los bosques 3.2. Implicaciones políticas para una aplicación sólida de la tecnología verde 3.3. Gobernanza verde: Integración de la tecnología verde en la elaboración de políticas 4. Casos prácticos 5. Orientaciones futuras 6. Conclusión 7. Referencias
Customary land is a valuable resource that holds significant importance for indigenous communities and society. Development of this land can play a significant role in promoting economic growth. Unfortunately, many of the development project planned on this region have fail to achieve sustainable development objective which led to rejection from the indigenous peoples. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the factors that contribute to the failure of development projects on customary land. This paper serves as a preliminary study on the village along the Ulu Papar River. A qualitative method of in-depth interview was carried out involving 50 respondents comprising the villagers. The results indicate that inadequate community consultation and limited local participation to be the main factor behind the issues. The results of this study showed that there are three possible reason i) the absence of cultural priority guidelines; ii) the absence of clear development procedures; iii) lack of opportunities and involvement of indigenous peoples in government development programs. By understanding these factors, valuable lessons can be learned to guide future endeavours and promote sustainable solutions. Ultimately, this research highlights the importance of understanding the unique cultural and social context of customary land to design effective sustainable development project.
Various institutional instruments, including World Heritage Convention (WHC) and other strategic policies, have been deployed to protect forest landscapes as natural heritage across the globe. Despite the implementation of these instruments to protect forest landscapes in World Heritage sites (WHS), the degradation problems persist, especially in the developing world, including Africa. Using the Kilimanjaro WHS in Tanzania as a case study, we investigated the state of implementing WHC and policies as strategic institutional instruments for forest landscape protection to support the sustainability of forests as a natural heritage. We collected empirical data using surveys of experts and integrated qualitative and quantitative (descriptive) analyses to investigate the implementation level of WHC and policies on forest protection, related the implementation level to primary forest degradation, and identified key challenges confronting the implementation. Key findings showed a low-level implementation of WHC and policies for forest protection. Also, our study showed that low-level implementation is associated with 19.83% of forest degradation from 1976 to 2020. Additionally, our study identified key challenges confronting all institutional instruments deployed for forest protection, including a lack of forest protection/conservation education in local communities, a low level of law enforcement on forest degradation, inadequate resources, wildfire, a lack of political will, political interference/interests, inadequate personnel, a lack of interdepartmental coordination, and conflicts with local communities. Our findings are of great importance for decision-makers to improve the implementation level of the WHC and policies as strategic institutional instruments and to improve the sustainability of forests as a natural heritage in Africa and other parts of the world.
The jurisdictional approach concept emerged in response to the widespread failure of sectoral forest conservation projects. Despite its increasing popularity, understanding jurisdictional approach outcomes is challenging, given that many remain in either the formation or implementation stage. Furthermore, diverse stakeholders hold different perspectives on what exactly a jurisdictional approach is intended to pursue. These different perspectives are important to unravel, as having a shared understanding of the outcomes is important to build the critical support needed for it. This study aims to add to the limited evidence with a case study in Sabah, Malaysia, which is committed to addressing a leading deforestation driver (palm oil) through sustainability certification in a jurisdiction. We used Q-methodology to explore stakeholder perceptions, revealing three distinct perspectives regarding what outcomes jurisdictional approaches should pursue. We asked about outcomes achievable within ten years (2022–2032) and considering real-world constraints. We found different perspectives regarding economic, environmental, governance, and smallholders’ welfare outcomes. However, we found consensus among stakeholders about some outcomes: (i) that achieving zero-deforestation is untenable, (ii) that issuing compensation or incentives to private land owners to not convert forests into plantations is unrealistic, (iii) that the human well-being of plantation workers could improve through better welfare, and (iv) the free, prior and informed consent given by local communities being required legally. The findings offer insights into key stakeholders’ perceptions of the deliverables of jurisdictional approaches and the difficulty of achieving its objectives under real-world constraints.
There is an increasing awareness that indigenous communities hold a key role in sustainable forest management in Indonesia. However, this awareness did not necessarily come with sufficient legal acknowledgement of the rights of indigenous people to have autonomy over customary forest. This research aims to fill this gap through an understanding of the socio-political development that led to the policy institutionalization of the customary forest. The findings show that discourses on indigeneity, human rights, agrarian reform, social justice, and sustainability advocated by a coalition of Civil Society Organization (CSOs), dominated the political arrangements of both policies. The exchange of resources such as expertise, network, and participatory mapping among the CSOs helped to overshadow the counternarrative of competing policy actors. This thesis contends that a mature discourse coalition was a major factor that empowered the CSOs to advocate their discourses and to convince other actors to support legal recognition of customary forests. Furthermore, several political conjunctures also paved ways for an enabling environment for policy institutionalizations of customary forests. These political conjunctures include such as land reform activism, agrarian constitutionalism, REDD+, AMAN’s endorsement on Jokowi, and the merge of the Ministry of Forestry and Ministry of Environment.
We are living in a time of crisis on planet Earth. Urgent calls for transformational change are getting louder. Technical solutions have an important role to play in addressing pressing global challenges, but alone they are not enough. After all, who decides what kind of transformation is needed, of what, and for whom? What principles guide those decisions, and how are decision-makers held accountable? This commentary article argues that these governance questions are central in any solution, in order to simultaneously address the planetary crises of forest and biodiversity loss and degradation and growing inequality. To this end, we examine governance in forests and around trees, in landscapes and on farms, through the lens of power and social justice. For applied research aimed at actionable solutions to these global problems, we propose a governance research agenda for the next decade that is both transformative and just.
Translation on the French original article "Géopolitique des forêts d'Afrique cenrale"
Our paper firstly investigates political stability as an underlying mechanism for the phenomenon of environmental spillovers across countries. If political stability exerts a significant impact on environmental quality and it is contagious across country borders, political stability of neighboring countries would be an impetus for environmental spillovers. Taking into account structural breaks in empirical analysis, we test these hypotheses based on annual country-level panel data during 2002 to 2018 for 124 countries. Based on the dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) method and panel-based Vector Error Correction (VEC) model, we demonstrate that improvement in political stability in one country not only enhances the environmental quality of its own, but also meliorates that of its neighbors through the spillover of political stability. Our results also withstand sensitivity checks for cross-sectional dependence in the panel. Several policy implications are provided in accordance with our findings.
Expansion of agricultural commodity production is driving rapid deforestation in tropical countries. Several strategies including jurisdictional planning and producer or sectoral‐level sourcing/certification have been used to counter this threat, each with its own limitations. There is growing interest in using jurisdictional sourcing (JS) as a hybrid that combines the best elements of each of these strategies. Specifically, JS involves bringing together key stakeholders in a given national or sub‐national political jurisdiction to agree on a land‐use plan that maintains forest ecosystems while promoting enhanced commodity production on degraded lands. Under JS, a key incentive for this agreement is the prospect of preferential sourcing from supply chain actors who want conversion‐free commodities. As with any conservation strategy, the key questions are what defines JS and under what conditions is it likely to work? To help address these questions, we convened a group of practitioners/experts to develop a theory of change that explicitly defines what JS entails from both the perspective of a given jurisdiction as well as a global markets point of view. We also developed generic objectives and indicators that can be used to measure performance. We then vetted our initial drafts with a wider circle of JS practitioners/experts as well as through a review of relevant literature and against seven case studies. It is our hope that this framework can be used to inform the collection of more standardized data across JS strategies being implemented in different locations and conditions. This data could, in turn, inform more systematic assessments of JS strategies and ultimately, revisions to this theory of change as our collective knowledge improves.
Jurisdictional approaches have become popular in international forums as promising strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by deforestation and to guarantee sustainable commodity supply. Yet, despite their growing popularity, up to now, there is little consensus on how such approaches should move forward in specific jurisdictions. In this paper we examine two contrasting municipal-level case studies in the eastern Amazonian state of Pará where jurisdiction-wide efforts are underway to reduce deforestation. By developing detailed forest governance intervention timelines since 2005, conducting semi-structured interviews with key informants, analyzing municipal deforestation trends, plus extensive examination of project reports, governmental documents and other secondary sources, this paper performs two main analyses. First, it characterizes the processes in each municipality by linking context and forest governance intervention timelines to deforestation trends. Second it provides a systematic comparison of processes based on (1) the role of the government, (2) multi-stakeholder participation and inclusiveness, (3) adaptive management, (4) horizontal and vertical coordination, and (5) alignment of public and private (supply-chain) initiatives. In so doing, this article answers some of the imperative questions on how to implement and improve jurisdictional approaches aimed at halting deforestation in the tropics.
To mitigate climate change through forestry and land use, countries are expected to shift away from policies and practices that drive deforestation to ones that reduce forest loss. This paper draws on political economy concepts to assess the evolution in the enabling measures for transformational change in forestry and land use policy processes in Cameroon. The findings indicate that actors have diverse stances on the capacity of existing policy measures to guarantee transformational change. The policy environment has evolved with proposals on institutional arrangements and policy reforms that are far from concrete reforms as expected. There is significant room for fine-tuning proposed policy and institutional reforms to enable Cameroon respond to its international emission reduction commitments. For example, putting forward clear-cut incentive and regulatory mechanisms; enhance and create new anti-deforestation coalitions; generate concrete specific/tailored sector ideas and information; and enhance negotiations between sectoral interests. However, these can only be achieved in the long-term with continuous support.
OPEN ACCESS HERE: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.12622
The links between plantation expansion and deforestation in Borneo are debated. We used satellite imagery to map annual loss of old-growth forests, expansion of industrial plantations (oil palm and pulpwood), and their overlap in Borneo from 2001 to 2017. In 17 years, forest area declined by 14% (6.04 Mha), including 3.06 Mha of forest ultimately converted into industrial plantations. Plantations expanded by 170% (6.20 Mha: 88% oil palm; 12% pulpwood). Most forests converted to plantations were cleared and planted in the same year (92%; 2.83 Mha). Annual forest loss generally increased before peaking in 2016 (0.61 Mha) and declining sharply in 2017 (0.25Mha). After peaks in 2009 and 2012, plantation expansion and associated forest conversion have been declining in Indonesia and Malaysia. Annual plantation expansion is positively correlated with annual forest loss in both countries. The correlation vanishes when we consider plantation expansion versus forests that are cleared but not converted to plantations. The price of crude palm oil is positively correlated with plantation expansion in the following year in Indonesian (not Malaysian) Borneo. Low palm oil prices, wet conditions, and improved fire prevention all likely contributed to reduced 2017 deforestation. Oversight of company conduct requires transparent concession ownership.
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) has emerged as a promising climate change mitigation mechanism in developing countries. In order to identify the enabling conditions for achieving progress in the implementation of an effective, efficient and equitable REDD+, this paper examines national policy settings in a comparative analysis across 13 countries with a focus on both institutional context and the actual setting of the policy arena. The evaluation of REDD+ revealed that countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America are showing some progress, but some face backlashes in realizing the necessary transformational change to tackle deforestation and forest degradation. A Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) undertaken as part of the research project showed two enabling institutional configurations facilitating progress: (1) the presence of already initiated policy change; and (2) scarcity of forest resources combined with an absence of any effective forestry framework and policies. When these were analysed alongside policy arena conditions, the paper finds that the presence of powerful transformational coalitions combined with strong ownership and leadership, and performance-based funding, can both work as a strong incentive for achieving REDD+ goals.
Key policy insights
• The positive push of already existing policy change, or the negative stress of resource scarcity together with lack of effective policies, represents institutional conditions that can support REDD+ progress.
• Progress also requires the presence of powerful transformational coalitions and strong ownership and leadership. In the absence of these internal drivers, performance-based funding can work as a strong incentive.
• When comparing three assessments (2012, 2014, 2016) of REDD+ enabling conditions, some progress in establishing processes of change can be observed over time; however, the overall fluctuation in progress of most countries reveals the difficulty in changing the deforestation trajectory away from business as usual.
Green Growth (GG) has emerged as a global narrative, replacing to some extent and integrating earlier sustainable development narratives, while Reducing Emissions through avoiding Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) has developed as major item in climate change negotiations. GG and REDD+ are both considered important strategies and are often seen as synergistic in achieving major changes in economic , regulatory and governance frameworks. Of concern, however, is that GG is sometimes seen as greenwashing of economic activities (which could include forest conversion to other land uses) by an oversimplified presentation of win-win solutions without challenging the actual root causes of unsustainable growth. How GG and REDD+ can contribute to transformational change in policy and practice depends on the relationship between these narratives, especially whether their adoption in national level policies manifests synergies or discord. In this paper, we will answer this question through analysing: (1) how the two narratives have unfolded in Vietnam and Indonesia and to what extent REDD+ and GG rhetoric include concrete policy objectives; (2) what issues policy actors perceive as challenges for their implementation. A comparative, mixed methods approach was employed to analyze how REDD+ and GG are framed in national policy documents. This analysis was supported by data from interviews with policy actors in both countries in two points of time, 2011/12 and 2015/16. The findings highlight the challenges for implementation of both REDD+ and GG as individual policy programmes, and the dilution of the REDD+ agenda and decision makers' confusion about a GG strategy when these narratives are joined and translated by decision makers. Actors still perceive development and environmental objectives as a zero-sum struggle, favouring a development narrative that might lead to neither REDD+ nor green policy action. We conclude that REDD+ and GG can go hand in hand, if there is action to tackle deforestation and degradation. La Croissance Verte ou 'Green Growth' (GG) émerge dorénavant comme un narratif global, remplaçant, et d'une certaine mesure intégrant des narratifs plus anciens de développement durable, alors que la Réduction de émissions en évitant la déforestation et la dégradation forestière (REDD+) est devenue un article majeur dans les négotiations de changement climatique. La GG et la REDD+ sont considérées toutes deux comme des stratégies importantes et sont souvent perçues comme étant synérgiques dans leur succès à opérer des changements majeurs dans les cadres économique, régulatoire et de gestion. Cependant, la GG est parfois percue comme un vague voile vert tiré sur les activités économiques (lesquelles pourraient inclure la conversion de la forêt à d'autres utilisations de la terre), du fait d'une présentation trop simplifiée de solutions tous avantages, sans faire face aux réelles cause profondes d'une croissance non durable. Le potentiel que la GG et la REDD+ récellent pour contribuer à une profonde transformation de la politique et de la pratique dépend de la relation entre ces narratifs, particulièrement si leur adoption dans les politiques au niveau national manifeste soit synérgie; soit discorde. Nous allons répondre à cette question dans ce papier, en analysant: (1) comment les deux narratifs se sont épanouis au Vietnam et en Indonésie, et à quel degré les rhétoriques GG et REDD+ incluent des objectifs politiques concrets; (2) quelles sont les questions que les acteurs de politique considèrent comme rendant leur mise en pratique ardue. Une approche comparative à méthode mixte a été employée pour analyser combien la REDD+ et la GG sont prises en compte dans les documents de politique nationale. Cette analyse est soutenue par des données résultant d'interviews avec des acteurs politiques dans les deux pays pendant deux périodes: 2011/12 et 2015/16. Les résultats mettent en lumière les défis rencontrés par la GG et la REDD+ dans leur application en programme de politique individuelle, ainsi que la dilution de l'agenda de la REDD+ et la confusion des preneurs de décision quant à une stratégie de la GG, quand ces narratifs sont joints et interprétés par les preneurs de décision. Les acteurs perçoivent encore le développement et les objectifs environnementaux comme une bataille sans résultat, favorisant par conséquent un narratif de développement qui pourrait conduire à une absence d'action de la REDD+ ou d'une politique verte. Nous concluons que la REDD+ et la GG peuvent progresser de concert si action est prise de faire face à la dégradation et à la déforestation. 2 T.T. Pham et al. as part of a GG policies and to contribute to a 'virtuous cycle' of investments in natural and human capitals that are catalysts for green development (UN-REDD 2014, UNEP 2014). These stances have been taken by both Vietnam and Indonesia. However, what are the implications for REDD+ when merging REDD+ and GG narratives ? Could linking REDD+ and GG as strategies towards a green economy lead to a more effective implementation of both, as argued for e xample by organisations such as UNEP (2014)? Or, when taking into account the political economy of deforestation and forest degradation and its underlying causes and agents, would linking GG and REDD+ simply lead to an inflated green rhetoric without implementation, because powerful economic interests benefit from the status quo and have little interest in major changes? One the one hand, REDD+ is built on a results-based payment idea (i.e. effective payments for performance require measurable carbon and non-carbon outcomes), but in most countries measurable results are not yet a reality (Korhonen-Kurki et al. 2014, Brockhaus et al. 2015). On the other hand, GG remains a rather vague concept and it has been heavily criticized for often unclear or even distorted meanings, and a rhetoric that presents current market structures, growth models and consumption patterns as a solution rather than questions their role as a possible root cause of current environmental problems (Bluehdorn 2011). To investigate the possible implications for an effective policy implementation of both GG and REDD+ we investigate (1) how the GG and REDD+ narratives have unfolded in Vietnam and Indonesia and (2) what concrete policy objectives are included in these narratives, (2) what issues policy actors perceive as challenges for the implementation of GG and REDD+. We then finally question if these concurrent REDD+ y el Crecimiento Verde: sinergias o discordia en Vietnam e Indonesia T.T. PHAM, M. MOELIONO, M. BROCKHAUS, N.D. LE y P. KATILA El Crecimiento Verde o 'Green Growth' (GG) ha surgido como una narrativa global que reemplaza en cierta medida, e integra, las narrativas anteriores sobre desarrollo sostenible, en paralelo al desarrollo de la Reducción de las Emisiones de la Deforestación y la Degradación de Bosques (REDD+) como uno de los temas principales en las negociaciones sobre cambio climático. GG y REDD+ son consideradas como estrategias importantes que a menudo son vistas como sinérgicas para el logro de cambios importantes en los marcos económicos, regulatorios y de gobernanza. Sin embargo, es preocupante que a veces se considere el GG como un lavado verde de las actividades económicas (que podrían incluir la conversión de bosques para otros usos del suelo) mediante una presentación simplista de soluciones ganadoras sin cuestionar las verdaderas causas del crecimiento no sostenible. La manera en que el GG y REDD+ pueden contribuir a un cambio transformacional en la política y la práctica depende de la relación entre estas narrativas, especialmente si su adopción en políticas a nivel nacional genera sinergias o discordia. En este artículo se responde a esta cuestión mediante el análisis de: (1) cómo se desarrollaron las dos narrativas en Vietnam e Indonesia, y en qué medida la retórica sobre REDD+ y GG incluye objetivos políticos concretos; (2) las cuestiones que los actores políticos perciben como desafíos para su implementación. Para analizar cómo se enmarcan REDD+ y el GG en los documentos de políticas nacionales se utilizó un enfoque comparativo de métodos mixtos. El análisis se apoyó en datos de entrevistas a actores políticos en ambos países en dos momentos: 2011/12 y 2015/16. Los resultados ponen de relieve tanto los desafíos para la implementación de REDD+ y del GG como programas políticos individuales, como el debilitamiento de la agenda de REDD+ y la confusión de quienes toman las decisiones sobre una estrategia de GG cuando estas narrativas van unidas y son traducidas por quienes toman las decisiones. Los actores todavía perciben los objetivos de desarrollo y medioambientales como un conflicto de 'suma cero', que favorece una narrativa de desarrollo que puede que no conduzca ni a REDD+ ni a acciones de políticas verdes. Se concluye que REDD+ y el GG pueden avanzar a la par, a condición de que haya acciones para combatir la deforestación y la degradación.
This chapter compares civil society’s ability to drive reformist and transformational change in governance in two distinct spaces - ASEAN and transnational private governance - the former with a strong state presence and the latter without. For the analysis on ASEAN, rather than attempt an exhaustive survey, the study focuses on human rights and environmental/forest governance, two issue areas that have seen considerable civil society activism. Private governance of palm oil sustainability is examined as it is the most advanced example of transnational private governance in Southeast Asia addressing also environmental/forest governance and human rights. The study shows that the shadow of the state, which overwhelmed ASEAN civil society space, prevented civil society actors from meaningful participation opportunities in ASEAN and a chance at contesting official policy. In contrast, strategic alliances forged between global NGOs, downstream corporations and global palm oil plantation corporations created important leverage nodes that led to significant on-the-ground changes through private governance while the absence of a formal role for state actors in private governance allowed NGOs and their allies the leeway to strengthen and expand regulatory standards for palm oil within a decade. Civil society may be able to drive change, but not just from working within civil society space but through strategic engagements with actors outside civil society in the market and out of the shadow of the state.
New plantations can either cause deforestation by replacing natural forests or avoid this by using previously cleared areas. The extent of these two situations is contested in tropical biodiversity hotspots where objective data are limited. Here, we explore delays between deforestation and the establishment of industrial tree plantations on Borneo using satellite imagery. Between 1973 and 2015 an estimated 18.7 Mha of Borneo’s old-growth forest were cleared (14.4 Mha and 4.2 Mha in Indonesian and Malaysian Borneo). Industrial plantations expanded by 9.1 Mha (7.8 Mha oil-palm; 1.3 Mha pulpwood). Approximately 7.0 Mha of the total plantation area in 2015 (9.2 Mha) were old-growth forest in 1973, of which 4.5–4.8 Mha (24–26% of Borneo-wide deforestation) were planted within five years of forest clearance (3.7–3.9 Mha oil-palm; 0.8–0.9 Mha pulpwood). This rapid within-five-year conversion has been greater in Malaysia than in Indonesia (57–60% versus 15–16%). In Indonesia, a higher proportion of oil-palm plantations was developed on already cleared degraded lands (a legacy of recurrent forest fires). However, rapid conversion of Indonesian forests to industrial plantations has increased steeply since 2005. We conclude that plantation industries have been the principle driver of deforestation in Malaysian Borneo over the last four decades. In contrast, their role in deforestation in Indonesian Borneo was less marked, but has been growing recently. We note caveats in interpreting these results and highlight the need for greater accountability in plantation development.
Although transformational change is a rather new topic in climate change adaptation literature, it has been studied in organisational theory for over 30 years. This paper argues that governance scholars can learn much from organisation theory, more specifically regarding the conceptualisation of change and intervention strategies. We reconceptualise the divide between transformational change and incremental change by questioning the feasibility of changes that are concurrently in-depth, large scale, and quick; and the assumption that incremental change is necessarily slow and can only result in superficial changes. To go beyond this dichotomy, we introduce the conceptualisation of continuous transformational change. Resulting intervention strategies include (1) providing basic conditions for enabling small in-depth wins; (2) amplifying small wins through sensemaking, coupling, and integrating; and (3) unblocking stagnations by confronting social and cognitive fixations with counterintuitive interventions. These interventions necessitate a modest leadership. Governing transformational change thus requires transformation of the governance systems themselves.
Over the years large areas of primary and secondary forest have been cut or burned down to make way for oil palm plantations, particularly in Indonesia and Malaysia, the two countries which produce 80.5% of the world’s palm oil. To tackle the many complex sociopolitical issues surrounding the industry, a variety of regulations, treaties and campaigns have been developed by governments and non-governmental organisations (NGO) over the years attempting to create a more sustainable industry, partly in response to pressure from the environmental community. The roundtable on sustainable palm oil is an international non-profit that created the first sustainable palm oil certification scheme. A range of other industry and government initiatives aimed to reduce deforestation due to oil palm expansion were developed and implemented over the years. The emerging themes in the evolution of sustainable palm oil in Southeast Asia include a greater recognition of the complexity of the issue, the importance of maintaining true transparency, and a greater consideration of indigenous land rights. Furthermore, manufacturing companies and consumers are beginning to see the power that they hold when choosing to purchase certified sustainable palm oil, so greater awareness and education is key to further improvement. Governments should take greater control of the issue, catch up to the activity being led by NGOs and industry members, work together with them, and invest more into education and technology.
This article analyzes the processes of emergence and dissemination of PES schemes in Cambodia. Our analytical framework is based on the theory of institutional change of John R. Commons. In a context of conflicting interests in the use of natural resources, we show that the implementation or blocking of some PES projects reflect the strategies of conservation NGO and government bodies to influence the definition of rules governing the management of ecosystems. In practice, the development of PES schemes in Cambodia did not induce profound changes in these rules. Rather, the imbalance of power between the various actors involved in these processes strengthened a statu quo, at the expense of local communities.
In efforts to increase human well-being while maintaining the natural systems and processes upon which we depend, navigating the trade-offs that can arise between different ecosystem services is a profound challenge. We evaluated a recently developed simple analytic framework for assessing ecosystem service trade-offs, which characterizes such trade-offs in terms of their underlying biophysical constraints as well as divergences in stakeholders’ values for the services in question. Through a workshop and subsequent discussions, we identified four different types of challenging situations under which the framework allows important insights to clarify the nature of stakeholder conflicts, obstacles to promoting more sustainable outcomes, and potential enabling factors to promote efficiency and sustainability of ecosystem service yields. We illustrated the framework’s analytical steps by applying them to case studies representing three of the challenging situations. We explored the fourth challenging situation conceptually, using published literature for examples. We examined the potential utility and feasibility of using the framework as a participatory tool in resource management and conflict resolution. We concluded that the framework can be instrumental for promoting pluralism and insightful analysis of tradeoffs. The insights offered here may be viewed as hypotheses to be tested and refined as additional unforeseen challenges and benefits are revealed as the framework is put into practice.
The stakes are high for tropical forestlands in multi-actor power relations because of their interdependence (climate change mitigation), their above- and below-ground resources (wood, mines) and their arable lands. In tropical countries, where the State owns most of the forestlands, many governments feel that any external initiative to change their forestland use policies infringes on their sovereignty. The governments' reactions to pressure for forestland governance reforms advocated by the international community may reflect the level of their national strength, international credibility and the attractiveness of offsets for forestland use conversion. Governments either use a tactic based on strength or on cunning, in the Machiavellian sense of the term, to impose their domestic agenda. Referring to the two last decades of forestland use policy reforms in Cameroon, this article seeks to understand why and how some governments of developing countries like Cameroon use cunning strategies to circumvent the implementation of undesired forest policy reforms while avoiding blame from the international community.
Spanish
Las selvas tropicales están en el centro de las relaciones de poder entre numerosos actores, debido a su interdependencia (mitigación del cambio climático), a los recursos del suelo y del subsuelo (recursos madereros y no madereros, minerales), a su potencial de conversión en tierras agrícolas, etc. En los países tropicales donde el Estado es dueño de la mayoría de las tierras forestales, muchos gobiernos consideran que cualquier iniciativa externa para cambiar sus políticas de uso de tierras forestales es un atentado contra su soberanía. Las reacciones de los gobiernos ante la presión en pro de reformas de la gobernanza forestal, solicitadas por la comunidad internacional, pueden reflejar el nivel de su fortaleza nacional, su credibilidad internacional y el atractivo de las compensaciones para conservar los bosques. Los gobiernos pueden utilizar una táctica basada en su fuerza o en su astucia, en el sentido maquiavélico del término, para imponer su agenda doméstica. En referencia a las dos últimas décadas de reformas de las políticas de uso de tierras forestales en Camerún, este artículo trata de comprender por qué y de qué manera algunos gobiernos como Camerún, utilizan estrategias astutas para eludir la realización de reformas de las políticas forestales no deseadas y evitar que la comunidad internacional les culpe por ello.
French
Les forêts tropicales sont au centre de relations de pouvoirs entre de nombreux acteurs en raison des multiples enjeux qui y sont associés : interdépendance (atténuation des changements climatiques), accès aux ressources du sol et du sous-sol (ressources ligneuses et non ligneuses, minerais), potentiel de conversion en terres agricole, etc. Dans les pays tropicaux où l'État possède la plupart des terres forestières, de nombreux gouvernements considèrent que toute initiative extérieure qui les pressent à modifier leurs politiques d'utilisation des terres forestières empiète sur leur souveraineté. Les réactions de ces gouvernements aux pressions extérieures promouvant des réformes de gouvernance forestière dépendent de la solidité de leur pouvoir interne, de leur crédibilité internationale et de l'attractivité des compensations qui leur sont proposées pour conserver les forêts. Dans le but d'imposer leur propre agenda politique, les gouvernements peuvent ainsi utiliser soit une tactique basée sur la force, soit sur la ruse, dans le sens donné à ce terme par Machiavel. En analysant les deux dernières décennies de réformes de la politique d'utilisation des terres forestières au Cameroun, cet article cherche à comprendre pourquoi et comment des gouvernements comme celui du Cameroun utilisent des stratégies fondées sur la « ruse » pour contourner la mise en œuvre de réformes de politique forestière qu'ils ne souhaitent pas, tout en s'efforçant d'éviter le blâme de la communauté internationale.
Policy making is often neither rational nor solution-oriented, but driven by negotiations of interests of multiple actors that increasingly tend to take place in policy networks. Such policy networks integrate societal actors beyond the state, which all aim, to different degrees, at influencing ongoing policy processes and outcomes. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) can be considered as such an emerging policy domain, in which actors cooperate and conflict in network structures, build coalitions and try to control information and finance flows relevant for REDD+ decision making. This special feature is the result of an extensive comparative research effort to investigate national level REDD+ policy processes and emerging policy networks. This unique collection of seven country cases and a comparative study provides evidence on how power, coalitions, and different interactions among actors in policy networks enable the transformational change required for an effective, efficient, and equitable national REDD+ design. However, as we will see in most of the cases, where the dominant coalitions fail to tackle the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation, they also hinder such major policy reforms required for REDD+. The aim of this editorial serves four purposes: first, we provide an argument about "why" policy network analysis is highly relevant to the study of REDD+ policy processes; second, we explain "how" policy network analysis is used in this special feature to investigate policy processes in this domain; and third, we explore the "so what?" or how a policy network lens helps us understand the political opportunities and challenges for REDD+. Finally, we provide an outlook for the relevance and future research design of policy network analysis when applied to REDD+ and to policy network structures more broadly.
Tropical forests in developing countries are increasingly being valued for their role in carbon sequestration. Such interest is reflected in the emergence of international initiatives for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+). REDD+ requires addressing both tropical forests as complex social-ecological systems and the multiple sectors involved in tropical forest resources, which may necessitate transformational change away from business-as-usual approaches to forest governance. We studied the potential for REDD+ to mobilize an influential coalition of actors promoting transformational change in forest governance in Papua New Guinea (PNG), a leading proponent of REDD+ internationally. Combining policy network approaches with the advocacy coalition framework, we identified four advocacy coalitions in the REDD+ policy domain in PNG and estimated the influence of each coalition. We found the most influential advocacy coalition is promoting the status quo rather than governance reforms capable of reducing deforestations and forest degradation, leading us to suggest that business as usual is the dominant perspective in the REDD+ policy domain in PNG. This may explain why, despite the large amount of REDD+ rhetoric, there has been only modest change in formal policy or practice in PNG to date. However, we did find influential coalitions calling for transformational change. Although these are currently minority coalitions, we identified several pathways through which they could increase their power to realize transformational change
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) is a priority issue for forest and climate policy in Indonesia, and REDD+ policy-making activity has been characterized by considerable public consultation. Despite this engagement, discussions on REDD+ in Indonesia are reported to have remained top-down, a disconcerting pattern when adaptive governance and transformational change require cross-scale and cross-sectoral communication. Explicitly modeling the patterns of information exchange related to REDD+ can clarify these claims and help identify potential barriers to the transformational change needed to implement REDD+. We used data obtained through semistructured and structured interviews held in 2011 with representatives from a broad range of organizations (N = 64), formally or informally involved in the national REDD+ policy processes in Indonesia, to study REDD-related information exchange. Adopting a social network analysis approach, we found that (1) organizations perceived as most influential in REDD+ policy formulation, often, but not exclusively, those with institutional authority over particular aspects of REDD+, tend not to seek information from other actors and (2) organizations exchange information primarily within three clusters of similar organizations, with weak connections between clusters. This evidence suggests weak information exchange between the national government, national civil society, and transnational actors. We contend that the emergence of brokers able to connect these different clusters will be crucial for effective and inclusive REDD+ governance in Indonesia.
National Strategy and Policy Options Maria Brockhaus Arild Angelsen ... depend on existing institutions and legal structures, current political and economic processes, the distribution of power and wealth, and the REDD+ actions appropriate to ...
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) has emerged as an important carbon governance mechanism. However, forest governance is weak in most REDD+ countries, which undermines efforts to establish REDD+. This study analyses the factors that enable national REDD+ processes in the context of weak governance using a two-step qualitative comparative analysis' (QCA) of 12 REDD+ countries. Assuming that actor-related factors can be effective only if certain institutional preconditions are met, six factors were divided into two categories that were analysed separately: institutional setting (pressure from forest-resource shortage; forest legislation, policy, and governance; already initiated policy change) and the policy arena (national ownership; transformational coalitions; inclusiveness of the policy process). The factors were analysed to determine their role in efforts to establish comprehensive REDD+ policies that target transformational change. The results reveal path dependencies and institutional stickiness in all the study countries. Only countries already undertaking institutional change have been able to establish REDD+ policies in a relatively short period - but only in the presence of either high pressure from forest-resource shortages or key features of effective forest legislation, policy, and governance. Furthermore, where an enabling institutional setting is in place, the policy arena conditions of national ownership and transformational coalitions are crucial.Policy relevance Although the aim of REDD+ is to provide performance-based payments for emissions reductions, the outcomes in terms of actual emission reductions or co-benefits are not yet observable. Most REDD+ countries are still at the design and implementation stage for policies and measures. Indicators and criteria to measure progress in this phase are required to identify which factors enable or hinder countries' performance in delivering necessary policy change to provide targeted financial incentives to support countries' efforts. This study analyses the factors that shape national REDD+ processes in the context of weak governance using a two-step QCA of 12 REDD+ countries. The results show a set of enabling conditions and characteristics of the policy process under which REDD+ policies can be established. These findings may help guide other countries seeking to formulate REDD+ policies that are likely to deliver efficient, effective, and equitable outcomes.
This paper investigates how three aspects of governance systems, namely the policy context, the influence of key agents and their discursive practices, are affecting national-level processes of policy design aimed at REDD +, reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries; and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries. We conducted analysis in six REDD + countries (Brazil, Cameroon, Indonesia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea and Vietnam). The paper combines three methods: policy analysis, media-based discourse analysis and policy network analysis. The paper shows that policies both within and outside the forestry sector that support deforestation and forest degradation create path dependencies and entrenched interests that hamper policy change. In addition, most dominant policy coalitions do not challenge business-as-usual trajectories, reinforcing existing policy and political structures. No minority policy coalitions are directly tackling the root causes of deforestation and forest degradation, that is, the politico-economic conditions driving them. Instead they focus on environmental justice issues, such as calls for increased participation of indigenous people in decision-making. Only in two of the six countries are these transformational change coalitions vocal enough to be heard, yet to exercise their agency effectively and to support more substantial reforms, these coalitions would need the participation of more influential policy actors, particularly state agencies that have the authority to make binding decisions about policy. Furthermore, discourses supporting transformational change would need to be reflected in institutional practices and policy decisions.
This article formulates an empirical model that measures the short- and long-run effects of political stability, corruption control and economic growth on CO2 emissions from deforestation. Political stability and corruption have significant effects on forest cover in the short run and have lingering long-run effects. We derive a U-shaped forest–income curve where forest cover initially declines as per capita income increases, but starts to rise after an income turning point. Political stability and corruption control do not significantly affect the income turning point but both variables shift the forest–income curve up or down. The resulting CO2 emission–income curve is downward sloping and is based on changes in the levels of variables affecting forest cover. Increased political stability flattens the CO2 emissions–income curve, leading to smaller changes of CO2 emissions per unit change in income.
The Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak are global hotspots of forest loss and degradation due to timber and oil palm industries; however, the rates and patterns of change have remained poorly measured by conventional field or satellite approaches. Using 30 m resolution optical imagery acquired since 1990, forest cover and logging roads were mapped throughout Malaysian Borneo and Brunei using the Carnegie Landsat Analysis System. We uncovered ∼364,000 km of roads constructed through the forests of this region. We estimated that in 2009 there were at most 45,400 km(2) of intact forest ecosystems in Malaysian Borneo and Brunei. Critically, we found that nearly 80% of the land surface of Sabah and Sarawak was impacted by previously undocumented, high-impact logging or clearing operations from 1990 to 2009. This contrasted strongly with neighbouring Brunei, where 54% of the land area remained covered by unlogged forest. Overall, only 8% and 3% of land area in Sabah and Sarawak, respectively, was covered by intact forests under designated protected areas. Our assessment shows that very few forest ecosystems remain intact in Sabah or Sarawak, but that Brunei, by largely excluding industrial logging from its borders, has been comparatively successful in protecting its forests.
There is renewed interest in identifying the causes of deforestation because it contributes about 17% of the annual emissions of greenhouse gases. Despite considerable efforts, universal causes of tropical deforestation remain elusive. The existing models of tropical deforestation are assessed, and the problems involved in approaching the issue through the lens of governance reforms are examined. Although corruption continues to thrive, global and local economic incentives remain powerful motivating forces for deforestation. Because of the variation in regional and country causes, it may not be possible to derive a more unified theory, and general models of deforestation will continue to lack predictive value. Policies that demand reform in developing countries with high rates of deforestation will be ineffective unless they address the power, incentives and culture of local political elites. Introduction Tropical deforestation is a major concern because it contributes 17% of total greenhouse gas emissions – the third largest contribution after energy supply (26%) and industry (19%) (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2007) and is one of the main items discussed in the ongoing negotiations on a new climate change treaty. Although tropical rain forests cover only 6% of the world's land surface, they contain more than half the world's species of plants and animals (Wilson 1988); therefore, deforestation reduces global biodiver-sity. Tropical forest cover decreased by 13 million hectares annually between 2000 and 2005 (FAO 2006). Although agricultural conversion is globally regarded as the principal cause of tropical deforestation – large-scale
The rapid disruption of tropical forests probably imperils global biodiversity more than any other contemporary phenomenon. With deforestation advancing quickly, protected areas are increasingly becoming final refuges for threatened species and natural ecosystem processes. However, many protected areas in the tropics are themselves vulnerable to human encroachment and other environmental stresses. As pressures mount, it is vital to know whether existing reserves can sustain their biodiversity. A critical constraint in addressing this question has been that data describing a broad array of biodiversity groups have been unavailable for a sufficiently large and representative sample of reserves. Here we present a uniquely comprehensive data set on changes over the past 20 to 30 years in 31 functional groups of species and 21 potential drivers of environmental change, for 60 protected areas stratified across the world’s major tropical regions. Our analysis reveals great variation in reserve ‘health’: about half of all reserves have been effective or performed passably, but the rest are experiencing an erosion of biodiversity that is often alarmingly widespread taxonomically and functionally. Habitat disruption, hunting and forest-product exploitation were the strongest predictors of declining reserve health. Crucially, environmental changes immediately outside reserves seemed nearly as important as those inside in determining their ecological fate, with changes inside reserves strongly mirroring those occurring around them. These findings suggest that tropical protected areas are often intimately linked ecologically to their surrounding habitats, and that a failure to stem broad-scale loss and degradation of such habitats could sharply increase the likelihood of serious biodiversity declines.
Win–win solutions that both conserve biodiversity and promote human well-being are difficult to realize. Trade-offs and the hard choices they entail are the norm. Since 2008, the Advancing Conservation in a Social Context (ACSC) research initiative has been investigating the complex trade-offs that exist between human well-being and biodiversity conservation goals, and between conservation and other economic, political and social agendas across multiple scales. Resolving trade-offs is difficult because social problems – of which conservation is one – can be perceived and understood in a variety of disparate ways, influenced (in part at least) by how people are raised and educated, their life experiences, and the options they have faced. Pre-existing assumptions about the “right” approach to conservation often obscure important differences in both power and understanding, and can limit the success of policy and programmatic interventions. The new conservation debate challenges conservationists to be explicit about losses, costs, and hard choices so they can be openly discussed and honestly negotiated. Not to do so can lead to unrealized expectations, and ultimately to unresolved conflict. This paper explores the background and limitations of win–win approaches to conservation and human well-being, discusses the prospect of approaching conservation challenges in terms of trade-offs and hard choices, and presents a set of guiding principles that can serve to orient strategic analysis and communication regarding trade-offs.
The objective of the paper is to shed some light on one aspect of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) that so far has only indirectly been at the centre of the debate, the interplay between public institutions and REDD+ practices. The paper, therefore, analyses the evolvement of REDD+ in Costa Rica, Indonesia and Vietnam asking the following three interrelated questions: 1/What have states done to make REDD+ work and have public institutions setup the necessary infrastructure? 2/Have states changed their practice in the forest sector due to REDD+ leading to a positive out-come? 3/Has the involvement of states with REDD+ led to a strengthening of state institutions (or of civil society) as guardians of the forest? Our argument is that the infrastructure for REDD+ has largely been set up by public administrations and that the reach and ambition but also the capacities of the state have increased in different degrees across our case studies. We also see some first instances that REDD+ has empowered new actor coalitions, has brought in new ideas and has led to a diffusion of new and often better practices in some instances. Finally, we claim that in a few cases also some unintended consequences are visible, as REDD+ has led to reforms within public institutions (e.g. in Indonesia), while in others it has rarely changed the business as usual dynamics in the forestry sector (e.g. mostly in Vietnam and Costa Rica).
Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), was adopted in Indonesia with an ambitious vision to promote a new mode of governance for Indonesia's forest, replacing a mode of ‘projectification’. Projectification, as described by Li (2016), is understood as a process through which plans for systematic long-term change collapse into incremental, simplified technical solutions. These proposals often fail to address complex socio-economic problems and political-economic contexts, allowing large-scale deforestation drivers to persist.
We analyze whether Indonesia is on track toward transformational change or is conversely locked into projectification. We construct our analysis using results from a long-term study comprising surveys in 2012, 2015, and 2019 analyzing the evolving role of REDD+ in Indonesian forest governance. Combining qualitative and quantitative analysis, we examine changes in (i) discursive practices and policy beliefs; (ii) institutions and power relations; and (iii) informal networking relationships.
Our findings show that despite high hopes and some promising developments, REDD+ has not yet fully succeeded in creating transformational change. Ideas of REDD+ remain focused on efficiency and technical aspects of implementation and do not question business as usual and the current political economic conditions favoring deforestation. The changing structure of the REDD+ policy network and exchanges between actors and groups over time suggest government actors and large funding organizations are becoming increasingly dominant, potentially indicating a return to established patterns of project-based governance.
What is transformational change? Can we define it? Can we measure it? Will we know a transformational change when it occurs? In the book Soonish (Weinersmith and Weinersmith 2017), the authors discuss transformational technologies: Ideas such as asteroid mining and cable cars that run up into space require technologies whose times have not yet come, but represent important ways in which the world’s existing woes—including the problem of resource constraints—may be solved. Most multilateral development agencies aim for change that is ‘transformational’ or that ‘shifts the paradigm’. Arguably, transformational change has become the holy grail in development assistance. Most development and environmental aid agencies aspire to support transformational change, referring in turn, at least in spirit if not in letter, to something that will change the way our work is done or the way we think about the impact of our work (Levine and Savedoff 2015). Despite this, definitions of what constitutes transformational change remain elusive, resulting in the near absence of evidence related to transformational change. In this chapter we discuss some experiences of organisations that have aimed to define and measure transformational change. We then discuss whether or not these definitions are necessary and sufficient, and explore potential ways in which measurement may occur.
The interventions required to reduce deforestation differ widely across the tropics
Forest management certification seems to be stagnating or even receding in the Congo basin. This is attributable to the financial difficulties of some European companies, but might also be a consequence of unexpected interactions with the FLEGT process, which is lagging behind in the Congo Basin. Although this process and private certifications are expected to be complementary, the reluctance of EU authorities to give certified timber a "green lane" for entering the European market may discourage concessionaires from seeking a stringent certificate , while the demand for timber is increasingly shifting towards markets in China and other emerging countries that are not ready to pay a "price premium". An underlying issue is the difficulty in qualifying the added value of certified timber over legal timber, although some research has shown how certification has closed loopholes in public regulations. Recognition of the public interest of certification could be achieved through fully trusting private certificates for due diligence procedures and, eventually, for obtaining FLEGT licences. Public verification and traceability efforts would be re-centred on non-certified timber and the informal sector, which intersects with forest tenure issues. While some countries wish to make certification compulsory, this article prefers to propose the use of financial incentives through differentiated forest taxes, in order to preserve the credibility of standards, and it details potential mechanisms that could reinforce the independence of auditors.
The tropics contain the overwhelming majority of Earth's biodiversity: their terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems hold more than three-quarters of all species, including almost all shallow-water corals and over 90% of terrestrial birds. However, tropical ecosystems are also subject to pervasive and interacting stressors, such as deforestation, overfishing and climate change, and they are set within a socio-economic context that includes growing pressure from an increasingly globalized world, larger and more affluent tropical populations, and weak governance and response capacities. Concerted local, national and international actions are urgently required to prevent a collapse of tropical biodiversity.
A key lever to mitigate global climate change is the reversal of forest carbon emissions trends throughout the Global South. Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) initiatives seek to conserve forest carbon stocks primarily through national and sub-national policies and interventions. Dominant drivers of forest change are, however, increasingly international in scope, tied to global commodity markets and investment flows, and are not easily captured or effectively addressed through nation-based carbon accounting. The fragmentary adoption of REDD+ across forest nations leaves room for the displacement of deforestation from early-adopters and countries with more rigorous carbon-related regulatory regimes to late-adopters of REDD+. While this displacement is expected to be substantial, our empirical understanding of the causal pathways of transboundary displacement remains weak. Our research addresses this lacuna, focusing on Vietnam, an early adopter of REDD+ that has experienced significant reforestation despite exponential growth in exports of key forest-risk commodities, sourced in large part from Lao PDR and Cambodia. We show that over the last decade, the trade of forest-risk commodities was large and accelerating in the Mekong region, concurrent with the rapid expansion of large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs), constituting important, inter-related causal pathways for the displacement of deforestation and forest degradation. LSLAs are, however, core of national economic development strategies in the Mekong region, indicating a problematic relationship between REDD+, trade flows and land and forest governance. We explore the problematic intersection between these dynamic processes, their impacts on forests in Lao PDR and Cambodia, and implications for global efforts to manage forest resources and reduce emissions. The inability of REDD+ to address transboundary impacts suggests the need for complementary interventions that address supply- and demand-side dynamics.
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Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) is envisioned as a performance-based incentive to influence forest use behavior and governance towards the preservation and management of forests. In relatively forest-rich Lao PDR, the policy space that REDD+ planners are attempting to navigate is populated by enduring political and economic interests that affect the country’s forest estate. A further layer to the problem of REDD+ planning is the tension between often expert-driven, externally proposed solutions; national ownership over interventions; and the extent of political will to take action to reform currently unsustainable patterns of forest and forest land exploitation. This paper draws from a series of semi-structured interviews conducted in 2013–2014, to develop a political and institutional analysis of the limitations to the effectiveness of REDD+ in steering towards a lower forest-derived emissions trajectory in Lao PDR. While internationally-driven projects follow long-standing national objectives to varying degrees, it remains unclear how REDD+ can target main drivers of deforestation in the absence of a more politically engaged and nationally-owned planning process, that also challenges the prevailing logic of avoiding these drivers. Despite the importance of improving domestic ownership over REDD+, this would arguably be of limited impact unless oriented towards transformational change that would seek to overcome political and economic barriers to avoided deforestation. Stronger ownership could be developed via more mutually driven REDD+ planning, while tackling main drivers of deforestation necessitates as a starting point the engagement of powerful actors that have so far been absent from REDD+ debate.
Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) has emerged as a promising climate change mitigation mechanism in developing countries. This article examines the national political context in 13 REDD+ countries in order to identify the enabling conditions for achieving progress with the implementation of countries’ REDD+ policies and measures. The analysis builds on a qualitative comparative analysis of various countries’ progress with REDD+ conducted in 12 REDD+ countries in 2012, which highlighted the importance of factors such as already initiated policy change, and the presence of coalitions calling for broader policy change. A follow-up survey in 2014 was considered timely because the REDD+ policy arena, at the international and country levels, is highly dynamic and undergoes constant evolution, which affects progress with REDD+ policy-making and implementation. Furthermore, we will now examine whether the ‘promise’ of performance-based funds has played a role in enabling the establishment of REDD+. The results show a set of enabling conditions and characteristics of the policy process under which REDD+ policies can be established. The study finds that the existence of broader policy change, and availability of performance-based funding in combination with strong national ownership of the REDD+ policy process, may help guide other countries seeking to formulate REDD+ policies that are likely to deliver efficient, effective and equitable outcomes.
Policy relevance
Tropical forest countries struggle with the design and implementation of coherent policies and measures to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. Evidence on which factors and configurations are crucial to make progress towards these challenging policy objectives will be helpful for decision makers and practitioners at all levels involved in REDD+. Key findings highlight the importance of already initiated policy change, and the availability of performance-based funding in combination with strong national ownership of the REDD+ process. These findings provide guidance to REDD+ countries as to which enabling conditions need to be strengthened to facilitate effective, efficient and equitable REDD+ policy formulation and implementation.
This article investigates the public discourses on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+) across seven countries, to assess whether they support policy reforms. We argue that transformational discourses have at least one of these characteristics: they advocate specific policy reforms that address the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation; take into account the potential risks of a REDD+ mechanism; go beyond technocratic solutions to reduce emissions; and explicitly challenge existing power relations that support drivers of deforestation. The evidence indicates the predominance of win-win storylines, a lack of engagement by state actors with debates on the potential negative socioeconomic outcomes of REDD+, and little attention to the drivers of deforestation. The article concludes that to achieve a shift toward transformational public discourse, reformist policy actors and the media need to engage dominant policy actors in debates about how to reduce pressure on the forest.
Peter Dauvergne developed the concept of a "shadow ecology" to assess the total environmental impact of one country on resource management in another country or area. Aspects of a shadow ecology include government aid and loans; corporate practices, investment, and technology transfers; and trade factors such as consumption, export and consumer prices, and import tariffs.In Shadows in the Forest, Dauvergne examines Japan's effect on commercial timber management in Indonesia, East Malaysia, and the Philippines. Japan's shadow ecology has stimulated unsustainable logging, which in turn has triggered widespread deforestation. Although Japanese practices have improved somewhat since the early 1990s, corporate trade structures and purchasing patterns, timber prices, wasteful consumption, import tariffs, and the cumulative environmental effects of past practices continue to undermine sustainable forest management in Southeast Asia.This book is the first to analyze the environmental impact of Japanese trade, corporations, and aid on timber management in the context of Southeast Asian political economies. It is also one of the first comprehensive studies of why Southeast Asian states are unable to enforce forest policies and regulations. In particular, it highlights links between state officials and business leaders that reduce state funds, distort policies, and protect illegal and unsustainable loggers. More broadly, the book is one of the first to examine the environmental impact of Northeast Asian development on Southeast Asian resource management and to analyze the indirect environmental impact of bilateral state relations on the management of one Southern resource.
Oil palm in Sabah is grown in large plantations or smallholdings, the latter mostly managed by indigenous peoples on untitled customary land. Government development agencies have long focussed on improving the productivity of smallholders for poverty alleviation. For most smallholders, the main issue is tenure insecurity: as long as lands remain untitled they are subject to changes in land allocation and land use at the discretion of the State Government. Indigenous claimants seek recognition of the right to use and occupy ancestral lands via individual Native Titles (NT), as provided for in the Sabah Land Ordinance (SLO). Recent official push for converting such ‘idle’ customary lands by promoting large scale joint ventures between customary landowners and oil palm companies is creating anxiety among many indigenous groups. The joint‐venture approach has been enabled through a crucial amendment to the SLO that promotes the granting of communal titles (CT) with conditions attached. This tenure instrument empowers state‐appointed trustees to make key decisions concerning land use where commercial crops (especially oil palm) are favoured and on the eligibility of descendants (pewaris) to participate in the joint venture or not. The complexity of local concerns and official responses is captured via a case study at Lalampas in the Tongod District of Sabah.
The need to enhance sustainable development of land use is more urgent than ever; specifically in developing countries where poverty and land degradation are often interlinked. To promote a common understanding of land use problems by experts, stakeholders and decision makers, it is essential to understand the system characteristics, including the complex feedbacks between drivers and impacts. To enhance sustainable development, appropriate policies need to be identified. In this paper, we analysed and compared seven case studies in Kenya, Mali, Tunisia, China, India, Indonesia and Brazil, representing different biophysical and socio-economic conditions and challenges. We analysed Driver Pressure State Impact Response (DPSIR) story lines of the land use problems, policy priorities and value trade-offs as identified by stakeholders and experts in National Policy Forums. Important drivers of land use change impacting main land use problems among the case studies were economic growth, technological development, immigration and agricultural intensification, in addition to existing policies. Of the latter the most important were related to domestic support through various forms of subsidies or access to credit, land tenure polices and liberalization policies. In the policy prioritization, the value trade-offs made by the National Policy Forums emphasize the environment rather than increased economic production. It is recognized that the environment needs to be improved to maintain and improve economic production in the long term, both in agriculture and in other sectors.
This book is designed to introduce doctoral and graduate students to the process of scientific research in the social sciences, business, education, public health, and related disciplines. It is a one-stop, comprehensive, and compact source for foundational concepts in behavioral research, and can serve as a stand-alone text or as a supplement to research readings in any course on research methods.
The contents and examples are designed for anyone interested in behavioral research (not just information systems people), and so, the book should appeal to most business programs, social sciences, education, public health, and related disciplines.