Halfway There: Indonesia’s Adat Law towards Right of Nature Frameworks - NUS Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law Working Paper 25/04

Sep 17, 2026

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Indonesia does not have legislation that explicitly recognizes the Rights of Nature (RoN). Yet its 1945 Constitution acknowledges Adat (indigenous or customary) law, which treats nature as sacred and inherently endowed with rights. Foundational statutes, including the 1960 Basic Agrarian Law and the 2009 Environmental Protection Law, embed environmental stewardship and indigenous rights. Using selected case studies, the paper examines how Adat-based approaches can inform Indonesia’s evolution toward stronger environmental protection, compared with developments in the Philippines and Malaysia.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

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Pages16

Reading Time40 min

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Abstract

Introduction

NUS Law Working Paper 2025/021 NUS Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law Working Paper 25/04 Halfway There: Indonesia’s Adat Law towards Right of Nature Frameworks, Case-Based Reflections from Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia Linda Yanti Sulistiawati Senior Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law (APCEL) National University of Singapore [Uploaded December 2025] Suggested citation: Linda Yanti Sulistiawati,“Chapter (X): Halfway There: Indonesia’s Adat Law towards Right of Nature Frameworks, Case-Based Reflections from Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia” in Batar Amit Kumar (ed), Indigenous Knowledge for Sustainability: Perspectives, Challenges, and Opportunities (Cambridge University Press, 2026, forthcoming), NUS Asia Pacific Centre for Environmental Law Working Paper Series: [https://law.nus.edu.sg/apcel/publications/](https://law.nus.edu.sg/apcel/publications/) . © Copyright is held by the author(s) of each Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law (APCEL) Working Paper. APCEL Working Papers may not be republished, reprinted, or reproduced in any format (in part or in whole) without the permission of the author(s). The views expressed in this working paper are those of the author(s) . They do not necessarily represent or reflect the views ofAPCEL or ofNUS. Note: The views expressed in each paper are those of the author or authors of the paper. They do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of the National University of Singapore. "Halfway There: Indonesia’s Adat Law towards Right of Nature Frameworks, Case-Based Reflections from Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia" by Linda Yanti Sulistiawati 1 Abstract Indonesia currently does not have legislation that explicitly recognizes the Rights of Nature (RoN). However, its 1945 Constitution acknowledges Adat (indigenous or customary) law, which regards nature as sacred and inherently endowed with rights. Foundational national laws—such as the 1960 Basic Agrarian Law and the 2009 Environmental Protection Law—also embed principles of environmental stewardship and indigenous rights. In practice, both Adat and national legal frameworks are employed to address regulatory gaps in environmental governance. This paper explores Indonesia’s Adat-based approach to RoN through selected case studies, and compares it with legal innovations in the Philippines (e.g., the recognition of resident marine mammals in the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape) and Malaysia (e.g., the Sabah Nature Conservation Agreement). The study highlights the potential of Indonesia’s existing Adat framework to evolve into a more robust system of environmental protection. It recommends legal reforms to formally recognize ecosystems as legal persons, enhance the integration of Adat law into national legislation, and promote judicial capacity-building on RoN principles. Keywords: Rights of Nature, Adat (Indigenous/Customary) Law, Indonesia Environmental Law 1 Senior Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Law (APCEL) National University of Singapore. 1. Introduction To protect the ecosystem and biodiversity from the environmental damage caused by human and to combat climate change, the environmental activists advocating the “Rights of Nature” movement (Toledo, 2020; Challe, 2021) . This concept of Rights of Nature (RoN) recognizes that ecosystems and natural communities are not merely property that can be owned, rather they are entities that have an independent and inalienable right to exist and flourish (Australian Earth Laws Centre, 2020) . The root of this movement go back a long way, to the so-called animist cultures of Africa, South America, and Asia, where indigenous peoples considered that natural elements, such as forests and rivers, had a soul (Sama, 2022) . The concept of RoN has been adopted into law by many countries, like Ecuador through its 2008 Constitution and Bolivia in The Framework Law on Mother Earth

FAQs

What is the core legal gap in Indonesia regarding the Rights of Nature?

Indonesia lacks legislation that explicitly recognizes the Rights of Nature (RoN) within its national legal framework. The paper contrasts this gap with constitutional and statutory foundations that can support an Adat-based pathway.

How does Adat law support a potential Rights of Nature approach in Indonesia?

Adat law regards nature as sacred and inherently endowed with rights. The paper argues that this existing framework can evolve into a more robust system of environmental protection.

Which countries are used for comparison, and what kinds of innovations are highlighted?

The paper compares Indonesia’s Adat-based approach with legal innovations in the Philippines and Malaysia. Examples include recognition developments related to environmental entities and agreements supporting conservation and rights-oriented frameworks.

Sep 17, 2026

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