Thomas Oni Veriasa is a researcher specializing in regional socio-economics and sustainable development at the Center for Regional Systems Analysis, Planning, and Development (CRESTPENT), IPB University, where he has been based since 2015. With more than 20 years of experience as a researcher, activist, and facilitator, he has served as an expert for numerous ministries, non-governmental organizations, and national and international donor agencies, including GIZ, the ASEAN Center for Biodiversity, the World Bank, IGES Japan, USAID, UN-REDD (FAO/UNEP), WWF Indonesia, and Konservasi Indonesia.
Since 2023, he has served as Executive Director of the Indonesian Tropical Nature Institute (LATIN), leading studies on Social Forestry (Perhutanan Sosial) and the development of climate financing platforms within this framework. He is also an active writer and has published in both national and international journals. His recent publications include “Revisiting the Implications of RSPO Smallholder Certification Relative to Farm Productivity in Riau, Indonesia” in Forest & Society and “Towards Inclusive Indonesian Forestry: An Overview from a Spatial Planning and Agrarian Perspective” in the Journal Management Hutan Tropika (JMHT).