Environmental Systems and Societies · Case studies
ECS.6 — Palm oil and the orangutan (Borneo and Sumatra)
Environmental Systems and Societies · SL / HL · syllabus-mapped notes
Overview
The world's cheapest, highest-yielding vegetable oil, and the tropical forests and great apes cleared to grow it.
Systems and sustainability angle
Habitat destruction in a biodiversity hotspot, and why the highest-yield oil is a genuine sustainability dilemma.
Management and response
Certification (RSPO), moratoria and protected areas, and how far a market label can travel.
HL lens angle
Market failure and greenwashing, and the ethics of intrinsic value and moral standing for great apes.