Picture This: RSPO Smallholders Photo Competition Asks Farmers to Frame their Sustainability Stories

By Nawaf Rahman

RSPO’s first-ever Smallholders Photo Competition invited Indonesian oil palm farmers to step behind the camera and document their daily lives, giving us a glimpse of their livelihoods. 

Photographs have a unique power to put a human face on complex supply chains. In a niche industry like the palm oil sector, where policy documents and certification audits speak the language of data and compliance, a raw and well-composed image can capture the true emotion of the quiet pride of a farmer in his plantation, the joy of a thriving community, and the lush greenery of a sustainably managed area. 

In Indonesia, where the conversations around sustainable palm oil continue to spark scrutiny, debate and competing narratives, the real stories and lived experiences of smallholders themselves on the ground are often overlooked. Recognising this gap, RSPO Indonesia launched its first-ever RSPO Smallholders Photo Competition to invite smallholders to become storytellers in their own right, not merely practitioners of sustainable palm oil.

The competition emerged at a meaningful moment. Across Indonesia, 83 smallholder groups have now achieved RSPO Certification, the result of years of collective effort, training, community organisation, and the gradual reshaping of deeply rooted agricultural practices. Certification represents more than a technical standard; it reflects commitments to responsible cultivation, workers’ rights, environmental stewardship, and the long-term wellbeing of local communities.

But achievements of this scale are often communicated through reports and metrics, leaving little room for the human experiences and nuances behind them. With the aptly themed, “Cerita Dari Kebun” or Story from the Plantation, this competition sought to change that.

“Smallholders were invited to step behind the camera and document the realities of their everyday lives, capturing moments of the hard labour, resilience, family, land, and community that rarely enter mainstream conversations about the palm oil sector.”

The judging process reflected the spirit of the initiative itself. The panel, which comprised a professional photographer, the RSPO Smallholder Team and members of the Communications team approached the submissions with an emphasis on authenticity and perspective. Uniqueness carried the greatest weight, driven by the belief that the most compelling stories are often the ones least seen. Relevance to the theme ensured that each image remained connected to the broader journey of certification, while composition and concept recognised photography as both art and storytelling.

Third Place: Father and Son, Sowing the Future
Bumdes Berkah Mulya Jaya

In the shade of the plantation, at the edge of a river buffer zone, a child plants the future under the guidance of a father deeply aware of what he hopes to leave behind. For this family, planting is not merely an agricultural act; it is an expression of values — that nature is a trust to be honoured from an early age.

As the young sapling takes root, the child learns that the plantation is not only a source of livelihood, but also a responsibility. Through practices aligned with RSPO Standards, they help protect water sources and the surrounding environment, nurturing the hope that future generations will continue to live from healthy, productive land.

Second Place: Made in the Shade – Regenerative Farming in Action
Koperasi Perkebunan Belayan Sejahtera

Beneath the shade of oil palms, sustainability is shaped through simple, deliberate acts. Empty fruit bunches and household organic waste, once treated as refuse, are returned to the soil as natural fertiliser. Between the rows, agarwood and fruit trees grow alongside the palms, forming a diversified ecosystem in which each element supports the other.

Productivity is no longer driven by chemical inputs alone, but by a balance carefully maintained on a daily basis. This is regenerative farming in practice: restoring soil health, sequestering carbon, and opening new economic opportunities for independent smallholders.

Winner: Palms Together – Intercropping to Strengthen Food Security
Asosiasi Petani Sawit Swadaya Indragiri (APSSI)

Smallholders supported by APSSI practise an intercropping system, planting food crops between rows of young, pre-productive oil palms as a practical strategy to strengthen local food security. Commodities such as groundnuts grow in the spaces between young palms, making efficient use of land that would otherwise remain underutilised.

Beyond providing an additional source of food, intercropping also generates supplementary income for farmers during the years before oil palms reach production. The practice helps retain soil moisture and naturally suppress weeds, offering a quietly effective approach to sustainable land management.

About the author: Nawaf Rahman is the RSPO Senior Executive, Social Media/ Writer. To get in touch, email: [email protected].