Press Releases

MEDIA ADVISORY: For Press Conference on February 5, 2013 Media Contacts: Anuradha Mittal +1-510-469-5228, [email protected] Ashwin Parulkar 91-9650930467, [email protected] Indian Agriculture Investments in Ethiopia: A Boon or a Bane? The reality on the ground and its human rights implications The acquisition of land in foreign countries for commercial farm ventures is not new, but it is growing fast. Some 203 million hectares of land were acquired by foreign investors between 2000 and 2010, with over 70% of large-scale land acquisitions made in Sub Saharan Africa.

The OI mourns the tragic loss of Rebecca (Becky) Tarbotton, one of the first fellows of the Oakland Institute and executive director of Rainforest Action Network. "We need to remember that the work of our time is bigger than climate change. We need to be setting our sights higher and deeper. What we're really talking about, if we're honest with ourselves, is transforming everything about the way we live on this planet. We don't always know exactly what it is that creates social change.

Oakland, CA: After months of repression, the small land owners and farming families living in Pujehun, Sierra Leone are calling on the national Human Rights Commission, Civil Society Organizations, and the United Nations to support their struggle against a subsidiary of Socfin, a corporation controlled by the French Tycoon Vincent Bolloré and his associates. The call was released as a resolution [1] by 101 members of landholding families from 36 villages from Malen chiefdom in Sierra Leone after they met on Saturday December 1, 2012 in Pujehun.

December 4, 2012, 8:00 am ESTContact: Anuradha Mittal, [email protected]; (510) 469-5228 It's 2 am in Africa--Do You Know What Your Pension Fund is Doing There?New Report Looks at Private Equity Funds Betting Heavily on AgricultureOakland, CA: Following the 2007-2008 financial crisis and the collapse of the housing market, private equity funds have found a new lucrative soft commodity market to invest in--farmland. In a short period of time, obscured from public view, the flow of private capital into farmland and agriculture has grown dramatically worldwide.

A new brief examines the situation on the ground a year after Sun Biofuels bankruptcyOakland, CA--A new brief from the Oakland Institute examining the case of now defunct UK-based Sun Biofuels project in Tanzania shows how the "development" dream can quickly turn into a nightmare when a country hands over its future welfare and development to foreign investors, unaccountable to anyone.Sun Biofuels secured a concession for 8,211 hectares and started operations in 2009 in the Kisarawe District.The land acquired by the company was collectively held forest and bush land that belonged to 11 village

Bruce Wrobel is a man with his heart in the right place. You see, Bruce is in the agricultural business and he plans to solve the world’s complex food security issues by creating sustainable, community oriented projects. He is the CEO of Herakles Farms – a corporation with some very wealthy friends. Bruce wants to grow a big palm oil plantation. And we mean BIG. This plantation would be one of the largest in Africa and out of all the land out there, he chose about 73,000 hectares between five protected areas, at the fringe of world’s second largest biodiversity hotspot. The Herakles Farms project would displace local communities and wreak environmental havoc. This could be the reality in the South West region in Cameroon if Bruce and his buddies are not stopped.

STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL SEPTEMBER 5 4PM CET / 10AM EST New report debunks investors’ effort to greenwash destruction of rainforest and livelihoodsOakland, USA, 5 September, 2012 – An American owned company with a track record of illegality and links to private equity giant Blackstone Group threatens to destroy rainforests and dislocate local communities in Cameroon.A new report (1) from The Oakland Institute, in collaboration with Greenpeace International, exposes how a New York-based agri-corporation, Herakles Farms, and its local subsidiary SG Sustainable Oils Cameroon (SGSOC), are involved in

"Agrisol Energy initially explored developing about 800,000 acres of land in Tanzania, but company officials now say it has no plans of expanding beyond the 35,000 acres it has leased..." - Des Moines Register August 23, 2012: Today the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board voted to dismiss Iowa CCI's conflict of interest complaint against Iowa Regent Bruce Rastetter saying it wasn't "legally sufficient" for them to do an investigation.The ethics complaint was filed by the Des Moines-based citizen group, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, for misusing his membership on the Iowa Board

Press Statement from Anuradha Mittal, Executive Director of the Oakland Institute, on the Institute’s latest report, Lives on Hold, which documents the impact of AgriSol’s land deal in Tanzania. Released at press call, July 9, 2012 The Oakland Institute (OI) first exposed AgriSol Energy’s land deal in Tanzania in June 2011. Since then, our research and advocacy has generated international attention and mobilized a growing number of people concerned about the downside of large-scale land deals that do not benefit smallholder farmers, respect the environment, or are genuinely pro-development.

Report embargoed until 12:00 am EDT, JULY 9, 2012Contact: Anuradha Mittal (510) 469-5228; [email protected] Lives on Hold AgriSol's Land Deal in Tanzania Creates an Uncertain Future for More than 160,000 People A new report provides details from the ground as the investor faces the Iowa Ethics Commission http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/land-deal-brief-lives-hold Oakland, CA - A new report by the Oakland Institute, Lives on Hold, exposes the consequences of Iowa-based AgriSol Energy LLC's plans to lease more than 800,000 acres in Tanzania.