Title: The Measurement of Environmental Efficiency: Smallholder Rubber and Palm Oil Production

Presenter: Bernhard Brümmer

Abstract:

There is lot of concern about the conversion from forests to intensively managed plantations in Indonesia. On Sumatra, these processes are probably most advanced among the Indonesian islands. The consequences for the local ecosystems are mostly negative while on the other hand substantial livelihood improvements were achieved, also in connection with the specific Indonesian transmigration policies. However, the trade-off between environmental and economic functions of rubber and oil palms has rarely been studied at the level of the individual farm. We hypothesize that the individual heterogeneity in the relation between economic and environmental function is substantial, and are also interested in the drivers of these differences.

About the author:

Bernhard Brümmer is a professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development at Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, where he chairs the group for Agricultural Market Analysis. He also serves as director of the section "Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture" in the Centre for Biodiversity and Land Use. Bernhard´s research interests cover a wide range of questions, the functioning of agricultural markets being the common denominator to his research. More specifically, he studies international trade in agricultural and food products, quantitative value chain analyses in both new and traditional agricultural products, and productivity and efficiency in agriculture and agribusiness. Beyond academia, he has served as policy consultant for various organisations, including the European Parliament, the World Bank, and FAO. Beyond his interest in European agriculture, he is involved in various research cooperations in Asia, e.g., China, Indonesia, and India, and in South America (Chile, Argentina).