Plantation life : corporate occupation in Indonesia's oil palm zone /

Drawing on their own ethnographic field research and that of their students, Li (Univ. of Toronto, Canada) and Semedi (Gadjah Mada Univ., Indonesia) examine two palm oil plantations in Kalimantan (the Indonesian portion of Borneo), including how they are organized and how the people living in the areas interact with the plantations. The authors argue that the plantations represent a colonial system, involving the extraction of resources to the benefit of the Indonesian state. Though the findings regarding the exploitative nature of the plantations and the tense relationships between local indigenous people and transmigrants are expected, sections focusing on individuals and how they have lived within the plantation system deepen the arguments. Li and Semedi also explore some of the less immediately obvious detrimental effects of the oil palm plantations, such as how village heads and others become implicated in the plantations' schemes. Ultimately, however, the most interesting part of this book is the appendix, focusing on how the authors formed an equitable, collaborative relationship while working on this project together from different parts of the world. A useful primer on oil palm plantations in Indonesia but even more useful for illustrating how ethnographic research can be carried out across borders and languages. Summing Up: Recommended. Undergraduates and two-year program students. --Zoë McLaughlin, Michigan State University