Diverging interests and discourses in frontier change: Case studies from Malaysia and DR Congo

Associate Professor Grace Wong highlights the assemblage of actors, interests, discourses, and finance in the case studies of Mai Ndombe in DR Congo and Pitas in Sabah, Malaysia. Recognizing that local land uses and practices are often problematized as drivers of frontier change, this work leverages on diverse open-source data to examine global flows of public and private finance and trace corporate ownership of investments in the regions. Our (ongoing) analyses highlight the complexity of transnational influences on frontier change for development and conservation interests, the reach of persistent infrastructures beyond boundaries and their consequences on local contestations over land and forest commons.