Through the lenses of community development and social licence to operate, we consider the complex relationships between local communities and forest plantation and oil palm companies. We examine the practical challenges in implementing socially-sustainable community development (SSCD) by analyzing two corporate social investment community development projects located in West Kalimantan, Indonesia: Desa Makmur Peduli Api (integrated fire management) and Pertanian Ekologi Terpadu (ecological farming). Our study scrutinized: (i) What were the practice challenges faced by the companies in establishing SSCD?; Along with (ii) what should be done to improve how SSCD is undertaken, especially in Indonesia? We identified five challenges: (1) unresolved land conflict; (2) determining the right program; (3) building community capacity rather than providing irrelevant training; (4) a shortage of company field staff and government facilitators; and (5) managing community expectations. Better governance of SSCD will reduce conflict between affected communities and companies.
The concept of Social License to Operate (SLO) has predominantly been applied in the extractives industry, and its understanding and application within forestry has been limited to date. Nevertheless, achieving a SLO is crucial for forest companies, especially given that forestry has long time horizons, high exposure to the global market, and many and varied stakeholders. We examine how forestry companies operating in Indonesia attempt to gain a SLO from their host communities. We analyse the roles of the three main stakeholder groups in forestry operations in Indonesia: companies, communities and governments. We specifically examine:(1) whether the concepts that underpin SLO (legitimacy, credibility, and trust) can be applied to the practices of the forest industry in Indonesia; (2) the general applicability of the SLO concept in the Indonesian context and ( 3) what can be done to improve SLO practices in the Indonesian forest industry. We argue that obtaining and maintaining a SLO is an outcome of complex interactions between many factors and actors, rather than being the direct result of company actions. In the Indonesian context, SLO is a relatively new and not fully understood or utilized concept. Its value has not been fully appreciated by all actors. By examining two forestry companies operating in Central Kalimantan, we scrutinize the roles of companies, communities, and the local and central government in the governance of SLO to create a better understanding of this emerging concept in the Indonesian context.
Although companies have many direct and indirect impacts on the lives of children, discussion of the responsibility of business to respect the rights of children has primarily focused on child labor. Using UNICEF’s Children’s Rights and Business Principles as a framework for our analysis, we considered the activities of oil palm plantation companies operating in Indonesia. Our data come from key informant interviews and reflection on two programs established to promote respect for children’s rights in the Indonesian palm oil industry: one by Pusat Kajian Perlindungan Anak (PKPA) (Center for Child Study and Protection); and one by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in conjunction with UNICEF. We considered: how plantation company activities impacted children’s lives; how companies demonstrated respect for children’s rights; and how observance of children’s rights can be improved. We discuss four problematic issues: getting company commitments to children’s rights into policy and practice; having a strong business case for respecting human rights and children’s rights; contradictory objectives within companies; and complexities around children in the workplace. We argue that a children’s rights based approach should be applied to the activities of all organizations. This children’s rights lens is needed to overcome the invisibility of children in society and industry, and to address the root causes of human rights harms. We note that respecting children’s rights will likely contribute to getting a social license to operate and grow.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.