Indonesia is home to a rapidly expanding pulp and paper industry. The industry's pursuit of land is increasingly bringing it into conflict with Indigenous groups who have lived and farmed in the country's tropical rainforests for generations. A combination of government support, unclear land borders and murky regulations have allowed companies like Asia Pulp and Paper and APRIL to move into traditional ancestral lands and convert them into monoculture tree plantations. In the process, indigenous communities are evicted- often by force- from their lands. The recent creation of an arbitration process in the country and untested industry promises to resolve land claims are empowering groups like the Koto Sebelimbing of Sumatra in efforts to reclaim their land. Produced by Emily Bodenberg and Heather Roy This video is part of a year-long investigation into the roots of global illegal logging and the role of consumer demand for cheap wood products. Reporting was conducted by a team of 10 journalism students in the International Reporting Program at UBC's Graduate School of Journalism in Vancouver. For more information on this series visit: http://www.internationalreporting.org/cut/index.php

• published: 04 Mar 2014
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