Carbon Projects and Markets, and Links with Agriculture, Mining, Dams and Energy

This session explores carbon projects: what they are, why they are expanding across the Mekong region and globally, and how they are linked with agriculture, mining, dams, and energy projects. Drawing on community experiences from the Mekong and other regions, the discussion will examine the political economy behind the expansion of carbon markets, their impacts on land, forests, and community rights, and the concerns and responses emerging from affected communities. The session will connect global trends with developments in the Mekong region while keeping community experiences at the center of the discussion. Presentations will be followed by an open exchange with participants. Speakers Winnie Overbeek, World Rainforest Movement (WRM) The Political Economy and Global Expansion of Carbon Markets and the Links with Dams, Mining, Agriculture and Energy Projects. An overview of the political economy behind carbon markets, their global expansion, and their connections with dams, mining, agriculture, energy, and other forms of resource extraction and development. Asst. Prof. Dr. Malee Sitthikriengkrai, Department of Social Science and Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, and Center for Ethnic Studies and Development, Chiang Mai University, will reflect on the case of Ban Kor, Lamphun Province, one of the MAEW 2026 field visit sites, as a starting point for raising questions about the expansion of forest-based carbon credit projects in Thailand, particularly their connections with forest restoration, land use, community rights and roles, and who ultimately benefits from carbon credits. Phru Odochao, Karen community leader and Indigenous land and forest rights advocate, Northern Thailand Living with the Forest: Karen Knowledge, Community Rights, and the Carbon Question. Drawing on Karen experiences of living with and caring for forests, Phru will share community perspectives on land and forest rights and raise questions about what happens when forests and community territories become part of carbon projects. Prof. Dr. Pham Thu Thuy, Professor in Public Policy, Flinders University, Australia Drawing on her extensive research on forest carbon markets and climate policy in Vietnam, Prof. Pham Thu Thuy will examine the country’s rapidly evolving forest carbon market, with particular attention to carbon rights, benefit sharing, safeguards, and implications for forest communities. She will also reflect on lessons from Vietnam that may be relevant to the wider Mekong region. Shamila Ariffin, Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM / Friends of the Earth Malaysia) Carbon Markets and Indigenous Customary Territories in Malaysia: Land Rights, Forests and New Pressures on Communities Drawing on experiences from Malaysia, particularly Indigenous customary territories, Shamila will examine how the expansion of carbon markets intersects with long-standing struggles over land and forest rights, and what new pressures and questions carbon projects create for Indigenous communities. Carolina Motoki, World Rainforest Movement (WRM) Community Experiences from Different Regions: Impacts of Carbon Projects on Land, Forests and Community Rights Experiences from different regions illustrating how carbon projects affect communities, territories, forests, and rights, and how communities are responding.