Webinar 2 – Human Rights, Climate Change, Business and Indigenous Peoples: Food Estate in West Papua and the Impact on the Community

This is the second webinar in a series exploring the impacts of the rapid expansion of Indonesia’s Food Estates strategy in Merauke, West Papua, Indonesia. It will focus on the threats to Indigenous Peoples rights, biodiversity and the environment. The Food Estate strategy involves large scale deforestation and loss of biodiversity. Promoted as necessary for national food security, it conflicts with Indonesia’s international commitments on climate change, biodiversity and human rights. The impacts of deforestation extend beyond Indonesia’s borders, with predictions it will accelerate global climate heating. Concerns have been raised by local communities, national and international NGO’s and UN human rights experts.

The second webinar will specifically focus on the Food Estate and its effects on both Indigenous peoples and climate change. The concerns about the impacts of the planned deforestation in Merauke extend beyond Papua and Indonesia to the impacts on the climate – with the forests of Papua being described as “the lungs of Asia” – and Asia’s Amazon. The Food Estate seems incompatible with Indonesia’s commitments on Climate Change and Carbon Emissions Reduction.

NOTE: At least half an hour will be allocated for questions and answers, and comments. Through the webinar, and after, useful links will be shared.

Speakers

Dorthea Wabiser is a staff member at PUSAKA Bentala Rakyat, supporting the rights of Indigenous communities in southern and western Papua. She works on community empowerment, advocacy, and national to international campaigns to raise awareness of land grabbing case

Grant Rosoman is a Senior Forest Solutions Advisor for Greenpeace International. Three decades experience supporting community forest management solutions in Solomon Is, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, with a current focus on Direct Access financing for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities for forest conservation. An expert on certification. On the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) International board (including chair), and Policy and Standards Committee. Co-founder of the multi-stakeholder High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA), that puts ‘No Deforestation’ commitments into practice. Worked on commodity markets transformation and corporate engagement, in particular wood product and palm oil.

This webinar will be in English and it will be moderated by DTP alumnus, Eko Waluyo, National Coordinator of Indonesian Solidarity, a Sydney-based human rights NGO promoting awareness of human rights issues in Indonesia to the Australian public.

The webinar is being hosted by the Diplomacy Training Program (DTP) and its Indonesian Alumni Network.