Various strands of our work have been examining the rollout
of agribusiness and biofuels policies and investments and
the environmental and social implications of associated land
conversions in Southeast Asia. This brief synthesizes research
done between 2011 and 2014 on the implications of agribusiness
developments – especially of oil palm – in Thailand,
Cambodia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, driven by local
and global demand for food and fuel. While we use biofuels
as a specific focus, we recognise that many of the issues are
common to agribusiness more generally, irrespective of the
end uses. The brief presents overarching insights from that
work, along with recommendations on how the industry
could be governed more sustainably and aligned more closely
with the interests of local people.