Indonesian oil palm - Data constraints limited the existing Trase model of Indonesian oil palm to a single year (2015). In collaboration with Trase researchers, emLab will lead the development of new models necessary to expand coverage of the oil palm product to additional years (2018-2020). This work will entail new data collection, model development, validation, and collaboration with Trase partners (e.g. Auriga, Proforest), with the intent to improve the accuracy, scope and replicability of this model. We anticipate launching the updated oil palm product in the first half of 2022. emLab scientists will support the model’s regular updates following the model launch through the project end date.

Indonesian pulp - Based on prior collaborations between Trase, emLab, and a variety of additional partners (e.g. Woods and Wayside International, Auriga), Trase released its first sub-national model of Indonesian Pulp in early 2021. Since that release, Trase has identified multiple opportunities for extensions including, for example, better representation of community forest product suppliers, and downstream paper processing in Indonesia. emLab will work with Trase researchers to pursue these extensions and update the platform with new years to ensure its continued relevance. emLab researchers will also collaborate with Trase partners to develop impactful communications of the model’s findings to scientific, and local and international policymaking communities.

Sustainable supply chain research products - After multiple years of collaboration developing Trase models of the Indonesian pulp and palm oil sectors, there is an important opportunity to communicate the key findings to the broader scientific community. During this period of performance, emLab will collaborate with researchers at Trase to draft scientific publications. Initial collaborations that are currently being developed include papers detailing (a) the state of knowledge of commodity driven deforestation; (b) the role of indirect suppliers in deforestation-risk supply chains; (c) the selection of effective metrics for describing commodity production’s associations with deforestation; and (d) the Indonesian pulp sector’s impacts on deforestation.