InfoSAWIT, MENDALO — The Institute for Research and Community Service (LPPM) of Universitas Jambi (UNJA) held a dissemination event for the 2024 research funded by the Palm Oil Fund Management Agency (BPDP), under the theme “Accelerating Sustainable Palm Oil Ecosystem Management Through Participatory Community Transformation.” The event took place at the UNIFAC Building Auditorium, UNJA Mendalo, on Wednesday.
The dissemination served as a platform to share the results of collaborative research that places communities as key actors in promoting sustainable palm oil management. The research was led by Prof. Rosyani, supported by a cross-institutional team involving academics, researchers, government representatives, and policy practitioners.
The research team highlighted that palm oil plays a strategic role in the national economy while simultaneously facing significant environmental and social sustainability challenges. Through this study, LPPM UNJA and BPDP developed a community-based approach to transform palm oil ecosystem governance into a more sustainable and inclusive model.
Case studies were conducted in Pematang Kabau Village, Sarolangun Regency, an area heavily dependent on monoculture palm oil plantations and vulnerable to ecological risks due to land-use change. The research encouraged farmers to move beyond being raw material producers and become drivers of a green economy through circular economy principles and value-added palm oil products. To broaden outreach and understanding, the research findings were also packaged into a documentary film.
Prof. Rosyani explained that the study adopted a participatory action approach rather than a top-down model, with field data collection and pilot testing carried out directly with the community. The research facilitation led to the formation of six Joint Business Groups (KUB), which received funding support from BPDP.
“We propose Pematang Kabau Village as an integrated living laboratory, or DLT Village, so that research and community service activities can be conducted in a sustainable and measurable manner,” Prof. Rosyani said, as quoted by InfoSAWIT from UNJA on Friday (December 19, 2025). (T2)
