Petro-Ambiguity: Oil, Environment and National Identity in the Bruneian Imaginary

Project Information

Petro-Ambiguity

Grant agreement ID: 101061353

DOI

10.3030/101061353

Project closed

EC signature date 28 June 2022

Start date 1 September 2022

End date 31 August 2025

Funded under

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 226 751,04

Coordinated by

UNIVERSITETET I OSLO
Norway

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Petro-Ambiguity (Petro-Ambiguity: Oil, Environment and National Identity in the Bruneian Imaginary)

Reporting period: 2022-09-01 to 2025-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The Petro-Ambiguity project examined how oil shapes cultural identity, environmental imagination, and social attitudes toward climate change in Brunei Darussalam, one of the world’s most oil-dependent nations. Although energy transition policies are now global priorities, public and cultural perceptions of oil vary widely across societies. Understanding these perceptions is crucial to designing fair and effective responses to climate change.

The project addressed this problem by studying Bruneian literature, artworks, film, and public discourse to uncover how oil is represented and remembered, and how it influences the nation’s relationship with its environment. It introduced the concept of “petro-ambiguity” to describe the tension between dependence on oil and the desire for environmental responsibility as well as to capture the diversity of lived experiences of oil that necessitates varied and inclusive decarbonising and energy transition solutions.

The overall objectives were to:

1. Analyse Brunei’s petroculture through literary, visual, and policy materials;
2. Develop petro-ambiguity as a theoretical framework for understanding emotional and cultural attachments to oil;
3. Compare local and global narratives about energy, environment, and responsibility; and
4. Disseminate findings to both academic and public audiences, strengthening dialogue between Europe and Southeast Asia on energy and culture.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

From 2022 to 2025, the project carried out extensive literary, cultural, and historical research using archival, primary, and secondary sources. The findings were shared through seminars and international conferences at the University of Oslo (UiO), Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), National University of Singapore, Harvard University, and Chalmers University of Technology among others.

Key results include:

• One peer-reviewed article, “Shaping an Oil-Dependent Nation” (Asiatic, 2024);
• Two book chapters forthcoming (Translating Oil, Routledge 2026; EcoLit Book Project, UiO);
• One journal article in preparation focusing on the petrocultural obstructions to the energy transition in Brunei;
• A monograph proposal in preparation for Bloomsbury’s Environment and Society series;
• A public Zotero bibliographic database of Bruneian petroculture sources;
• The project website www.petroambiguity.com; and
• Public engagement through a TinyLitFest Brunei talk, newsletters, and social-media outreach.

Training objectives were also met. The researcher completed UiO courses in open science, data management, and research coordination; audited graduate seminars; and participated in research networks such as Critical Petroaesthetics, EcoLit, and the Oil and Society Network. Cross-cultural exchange was facilitated through participation in international workshops such as National University Singapore’s (De)Carbonizing Asia workshop, UBD FASS’s Transnational Identities workshop, and Harvard University’s Science and Technology in Asia’s seminar series.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Petro-Ambiguity extends the field of energy humanities by introducing a Southeast Asian case study to debates previously centred on the Global North. It demonstrates how literary and cultural analysis can reveal the social emotions, cultural narratives, and historical memories that shape attitudes toward oil and the energy transition. The concept of petro-ambiguity offers a new interpretive model applicable to other regions, including Europe, enabling comparative studies of energy dependence and environmental identity.

The project contributes to the objectives of the European Green Deal by advancing knowledge of the human and cultural dimensions of climate action and supporting the EU’s role in global sustainability dialogues.

Socio-economically, the project strengthens public understanding of the cultural roots of environmental attitudes, informing education, policy communication, and climate outreach. Academically, it consolidates the researcher’s position within European and global energy humanities networks and provides open-access resources that will benefit future research.

In the long term, Petro-Ambiguity establishes a durable bridge between European and Southeast Asian scholarship, promoting inclusive perspectives on the shared challenges of energy transition and environmental responsibility.

Logo for PetroAmbiguity with a leaf and drop of oil above the name Petro-Ambiguity