If you've ever looked for explanations for what underpins so much of Indonesia's rapid loss of critical rainforests, have a look at Mongabay's 9 month collaborative investigation of corrupt officials in the post Suharto era, who've been gaming the political system to convert vast swaths of rainforest and communal lands into personal profit making palm plantations, *Indonesia for Sale,* it just launched today.
Here's the background <https://news.mongabay.com/2017/10/indonesia-for-sale-in-depth-series-on-corruption-palm-oil-and-rainforests-starts-tomorrow/> on the series along with a gorgeous and devastating video explainer, and here is report #1, just a few hours old... *The palm oil fiefdom* *A politician in Borneo turned his district into a sea of oil palm. Did it benefit the people who elected him, or the members of his family?* https://news.mongabay.com/2017/10/the-palm-oil-fiefdom/ Erik -- Editor and Content Strategist Mongabay.com
