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Join the field school on palm oil and sustainability in Indonesia

4 March 2020
Two-week field school takes 20 students to Indonesia
Discover more about the complexities of working in development agriculture, with this field school in Indonesia held between semester 1 and 2 this year.
Palm oil

Palm oil is made from the red mesocarp of the fruit of oil palms - photo from the field school in Indonesia.

If you鈥檙e an undergraduate science student, then you鈥檙e invited to apply for the 鈥楩ield school on palm oil and sustainability in Indonesia鈥�.

The field school is particularly relevant for students in agriculture, environment, food and agribusiness, biology, and resource management. It is also suitable for students in other fields who are interested in development issues, including how business decisions and environmental management are influenced by social, cultural, economic and political factors.

This field school will interest you if you鈥檙e passionate about the global environment, are concerned about greenhouse gas emissions, or troubled by palm oil.

We鈥檒l be taking the group of 20 students to Indonesia to examine palm oil production, as a case study to explore complex issues related to agricultural land use, environmental sustainability, and community livelihoods.

About the field school

Oil palm is a controversial crop, in large part because of its association with fire and peatland devastation. In 2015, a devastating fire swept through peatland in Indonesia, burning more than 2 million hectares, and emitting an acrid haze that affected millions of people across Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia.

With the Paris Agreement, which started in 2016 as an international framework for 55 countries to undertake efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it is timely to examine the role of peatland as a massive carbon sink and potential time bomb. On the other hand, world demand for oil for use in food, fuel and other industrial applications is immense and escalating. Oil palm is highly productive, renewable, and provides livelihoods to local farmers 鈥� but can it be produced ethically and sustainably?

During the field school, you will practise participatory research skills through engagement with a range of stakeholders, and work in interdisciplinary groups to develop a critical yet nuanced understanding of resource management in a developing country context.

The Indonesian partners who are hosting the field school include the University of Gajah Mada and Indonesian Centre for Agricultural Land Resources Research and Development in Bogor.

Students on the Field School in Indonesia

Students on the Field School on Palm Oil and Sustainability in Indonesia.

When & Where:

The field school will be from 21聽June to 5聽July 2020.

The field school will take you to Jakarta, Bogor, Yogyakarta and Central Java. You will visit government agencies, NGOs, research institutes, oil palm, cocoa, coffee, and tea plantations, and local communities. Places of Interest include: Mount Merapi and Borobudur Temple in Yogyakarta.

奥丑辞:听

The field school is open to undergraduate Faculty of Science students. It is particularly relevant for students in agriculture, environment, food and agribusiness, and resource management. It would also be suitable for students in other fields who are interested in development issues, including how business decisions and environmental management are influenced by social, cultural, economic and political factors.

The staff coordinating this trip are and .听

厂肠丑辞濒补谤蝉丑颈辫蝉:听

The field school is supported by the New Colombo Plan. If you are a domestic student and the field trip is credited to your degree, then you will be eligible for a $3000 scholarship.听

Enrolment options:聽

  • BScAgr students have the option of counting the trip towards their AFNR4001 Professional Development requirements.
  • BFoodAgrib and other Science students can be credited through SCIP3002 Science International Placement Project.

How to apply:

贰尘补颈濒听budiman.minasny@sydney.edu.au聽for further information. Application closes 31 March 2020.