A Drawdown Roadmap for Food, Agriculture, and Land Use in Southeast Asia

The report identifies opportunities to reduce direct emissions from the food, agriculture, and land use (FALU) sector in Southeast Asia by 1.9 billion tons of CO2-eq per year. It highlights that FALU is responsible for 54% of the region's total greenhouse gas emissions, with deforestation and peatland degradation acting as the primary drivers. The analysis emphasizes 'hotspots' where targeted interventions—such as protecting 20% of carbon-dense forests or improving rice cultivation on 20% of farms—can yield disproportionately high emissions savings. Key solutions include legal forest protection, non-continuous flooding in rice paddies, and improved nitrogen fertilizer management. The report also discusses indirect solutions like shifting diets toward the EAT-Lancet planetary health diet and reducing food loss and waste, while detailing co-benefits such as improved air quality, water security, and enhanced farmer incomes.

• The food, agriculture, and land use (FALU) sector is a dominant source of emissions in Southeast Asia, accounting for 54% of the region's total greenhouse gas emissions, which is significantly higher than the global average of 22%.
• There is a total potential to reduce direct FALU emissions in Southeast Asia by 1.9 billion tons of CO2-eq per year.
• Deforestation is the largest regional emissions source, resulting in 1.2 billion tons of CO2-eq annually between 2001 and 2023, with an average annual forest loss of 1.8 million hectares.
• Peatland protection offers the highest emissions savings per hectare in the region, saving 2,010 tons of CO2-eq per hectare, which is three times the savings of forests on mineral soils.
• Improved rice production, specifically through non-continuous flooding and nutrient management, could reduce regional emissions by 64 million tons of CO2-eq without reducing yields.
• Targeted interventions in 20% of specific areas can achieve high percentages of total potential savings: 83% for forest protection on mineral soils, 64% for improved rice cultivation, and 80% for improved nutrient management.
• In Indonesia, preventing deforestation is the most significant lever, as protecting forests could reduce national FALU emissions by 62%.
• Vietnam's rice fields are among the highest-emitting in the world, contributing 10% of global rice methane emissions despite producing only 5% of global rice calories.
• Reducing food loss and waste (FLW) in Southeast Asia, where average annual emissions are 563 million tons, can significantly lower emissions and reduce pressure to expand agricultural land.
• Shifting the entire Southeast Asian population to the EAT-Lancet planetary health diet would reduce emissions by 105 million tons of CO2-eq per year.

APA

Cassidy, E., & Gerber, J. (2025). A Drawdown Roadmap for Food, Agriculture, and Land Use in Southeast Asia. Project Drawdown. https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/A%20Drawdown%20Roadmap%20for%20Food%20Agriculture%20and%20Land%20Use%20in%20SE%20Asia_Final%20Report.pdf

Chicago

Cassidy, Emily, and James Gerber. A Drawdown Roadmap for Food, Agriculture, and Land Use in Southeast Asia. Project Drawdown, 2025. https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/A%20Drawdown%20Roadmap%20for%20Food%20Agriculture%20and%20Land%20Use%20in%20SE%20Asia_Final%20Report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Cassidy |first1=Emily |last2=Gerber |first2=James |title=A Drawdown Roadmap for Food, Agriculture, and Land Use in Southeast Asia |publisher=Project Drawdown |date=2025 |url=https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/A%20Drawdown%20Roadmap%20for%20Food%20Agriculture%20and%20Land%20Use%20in%20SE%20Asia_Final%20Report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cassidy2025drawdown, author = {Cassidy, Emily and Gerber, James}, title = {{A Drawdown Roadmap for Food, Agriculture, and Land Use in Southeast Asia}}, institution = {Project Drawdown}, year = {2025}, url = {https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/A%20Drawdown%20Roadmap%20for%20Food%20Agriculture%20and%20Land%20Use%20in%20SE%20Asia_Final%20Report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }