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When we think of biodiversity monitoring, we often imagine researchers in khaki with binoculars and clipboards. But what if the people best placed to observe wildlife in oil palm landscapes aren’t scientists at all, but the workers already working on these lands every day?

That’s exactly the thinking behind PENDAKI, a groundbreaking programme launched by Indonesian palm oil company PT Austindo Nusantara Jaya in 2019 and now in its 6^th year of operation. This groundbreaking program is changing how we think about sustainability, from something that’s checked off by experts to something everyone can be part of.

From paperwork to people power 

Let’s face it: Meeting the certification standards for sustainable palm oil is a big ask, especially for smaller producers. Monitoring wildlife, tracking the health of ecosystems, and proving that your practices are good for nature. All of this is expensive and time-consuming. In our experience, it often falls through the cracks.

This is where systems like PENDAKI come in. These are low-cost, community-led citizen science programmes that can create enough data to see what is changing in an agroecological system.

Instead of outsourcing biodiversity surveys to external consultants, the programme taps into a powerful but underused resource: the thousands of employees who work in the plantation every day. Whether it’s a security guard, cook, field technician, or harvester, every worker becomes a potential citizen scientist, equipped to record wildlife sightings in real time.

190,000 observations and counting 

Since launching, PENDAKI has rallied almost 4,000 employees from across the company, who contributed nearly 190,000 wildlife observations. Experts verified approximately 70% of them as accurate, an impressive figure considering many participants had no scientific background at all.

These sightings included 679 records of orangutans and involved hundreds of other species of birds, mammals, and plants, most of which were spotted within oil palm plantations rather than the protected tropical forests. That is a strong sign that agriculture and biodiversity can go hand-in-hand to some extent, when managed with care.

More than just data 

But PENDAKI is not just about data; it is also very much about people. Without adequate buy-in from the people who put words into motion, projects run the risk of becoming another ESG tick-box with unsustainable, surface-level impacts.

This is where incentivised citizen-science programmes shine through. In the case of PENDAKI, internal recognition and the chance to be awarded the ‘PENDAKI Champion’ title, introduced a pull factor that got the ball rolling. From there, regular engagement gave life to a whole new means of motivation.

One of the key pillars of the PENDAKI programme is that it facilitates skill development and emphasises the important role that everyone plays in conserving biodiversity.

Initially, staff were sceptical, but as the programme grew, people started to see its value and enjoyed contributing to data collection, with 87% of respondents to an internal survey stating that their interest in wildlife increased significantly since joining PENDAKI.

The bigger picture 

A follow-up study found that PENDAKI didn’t just boost biodiversity awareness. It also strengthened employee engagement, gave employees a greater sense of purpose, enhanced pride and sense of value, and increased interdepartmental collaboration and communication.

These outcomes demonstrate that conservation efforts rooted in participation and empowerment can yield both ecological and social dividends, providing a strong foundation for scaling such approaches beyond individual estates or companies.

Why this matters for sustainable palm oil

Palm oil is often painted in black and white: good versus bad, destructive versus sustainable. But PENDAKI shows us the shades of green in between. It proves that sustainability isn’t just about avoiding harm, but just as much about creating value for people and nature alike.

By empowering individuals at every level to engage meaningfully in sustainability efforts, such initiatives transform passive participation into active guardianship. This sense of ownership is crucial for the success of long-term, adaptive management strategies that enable agriculture and wildlife to not only coexist but thrive together.

As certification standards evolve to reflect the complexity of sustainability in practice, integrating community-led monitoring provides a scalable, cost-effective, and socially transformative solution. Ultimately, fostering a connection between people and nature within agricultural systems is not just a nice-to-have; it is a foundational pillar for any strategy that seeks to incite meaningful change for years to come.

Final thoughts 

Sustainability isn’t something you buy, but something you build. And when people on the ground are given the chance to lead, monitor, and celebrate their role in protecting nature, the results speak for themselves.

PENDAKI is more than a biodiversity programme. Think of it as a blueprint for what inclusive, grassroots sustainability can look like in the palm oil sector and beyond.

*Emily Meijaard is Communications Officer and Erik Meijaard is Managing Director of Borneo Futures Sdn Bhd, a Brunei-based consultancy advancing science-driven solutions for tropical forest conservation.

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