Application of Satellite Technology in a Deforestation Context: A Global Value Chain Governance and Power Dynamics Perspective on Integrating Satellite Technology into the Palm Oil Industry

Abstract

Forests worldwide are threatened by deforestation resulting from land clearance for agricultural purposes. The increased use of palm oil in a variety of consumer goods is considered one of the main drivers of deforestation. With technological advancement, satellite technology has emerged as a novel and promising tool to provide satellite imagery data of deforestation and land use change on the ground. Against this background, the present thesis addresses the research gap surrounding the factors which impact the application of satellite monitoring in a deforestation context in the palm oil industry. This work draws on the global value chain governance theory as well as the typology of power to identify the relationships among the actors in the global palm oil value chain and its structure in terms of power distribution. The aim of this thesis is to examine whether the prevailing governance mechanisms and power structures affect the application of a novel technology using the example of satellite monitoring. For this purpose, empirical data collected from 25 semi-structured expert interviews is subsequently analyzed with a qualitative content analysis software. The results of this study show that satellite monitoring is subject to various external factors, including technological and data-driven, governmental and political, economic as well as social ones. In addition, the findings of this study suggest that the impact of these factors on the technology is reinforced by governance mechanisms and power dynamics undergirding the palm oil value chain. This research suggests that satellite technology is not a stand-alone solution to prevent deforestation. As the palm oil industry is characterized by a rather captive governance type and is subject to various types of power dynamics, the possibilities of the technology are limited. The findings of this thesis may support various stakeholders applying novel technologies to their global value chain operations across the palm oil industry. Future research should consider the interaction between the actors in the palm oil industry as well as the social dynamics on the ground in relation to the application of satellite technology.