Natural resource degradation in Indonesia has come with high costs - financially, culturally, physically and socially. Much of this can be attributed to inappropriate policies, market forces, power and political interests, inadequate and inappropriate development programs and policies, and also the lack of community involvement in natural resource governance. This book outlines the various political, economic and social forces at work through various historical periods that have led to such disasters and degradation. It also presents an analysis of some of the dominant trends such as increasing privatization, commoditization of resources, and monoculture practices and promotion and their consequences for Indonesia.
The effects of these trends on local communities and indigenous peoples have been quite devastating. The book also outlines broad global trends and their consequences for development and the environment in Indonesia. It refrains from providing prescriptive recommendations, but presents an in-depth analysis of the interplay of forces that have led to such disasters and provides, as points of reference, some local initiatives (some that have been time-tested) from which the reader can draw inspiration and hope for reversing the escalating ecological crisis in Indonesia, especially as rights, resource access and livelihoods of local communities are being threatened.