Engaging Indonesia – serie

This book addresses the various challenges that arose during the two periods of Indonesian President Jokowi's administration. These included the global economic crisis, increasingly complex geopolitical dynamics, such as competition between major powers, the Covid-19 pandemic and its ramifications for Indonesia, as well as issues of border disputes, human trafficking, and the situation in Palestine. Addressing these challenges necessitates a forward-thinking Indonesian foreign policy strategy. As the 2024 General Election has taken place and President Jokowi's term came to an end, this book presents a timely and comprehensive discussion on Indonesian foreign policy and diplomacy and its associated challenges—those of the past, and those now facing the current administration. Relevant to Indonesian and international political scientists and social scientists, this interdisciplinary book—which includes perspectives from both scholars and practitioners—confronts Jokowi's policies relating to the economy, territorial, migration, religion, and all aspects of Indonesian society, in the context of the former government.

This book offers new ways of understanding the past glory of the Majapahit empire from the present-day perspective through re-interpretations of the existing data, research of new data and findings, and syntheses of various results of previous studies. The book informs critical research on Indonesia’s ancient past within the oeuvre of Indonesian Studies, differentiating itself from other studies about Majapahit, which focus much on its glory and create a rather mythical portrayal. The ‘dark’ side of the kingdom that is believed to have laid the foundation for Indonesia’s unity seldom receives a serious attention or adequate exposure - and this book confronts this overlooked aspect. It covers analyses of the Majapahit Kingdom from different viewpoints that include archaeology, art history, philology, politics, postcolonial studies, diplomacy, and literary studies, which as a whole provides new insights about the ancient kingdom. It is a critical text for researchers and students studying the past and how it shapes and leaves its legacies in the present. The book is a timely contribution to the study of Indonesian history, and its role and postcolonial positionality within wider Southeast Asian history.

This book expands on how Indonesia supports the achievement of global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by providing an in-depth examination of how the SDGs can be localized, not only at the national level, but also down to the grassroots level, for villages in Indonesia. A practical development concept, ‘SDGs Desa’ is conceived by individuals who are born, raised, and reside in villages, who have a profound understanding of the issues and needs of rural communities, and it is intended to be highly practical to implement. This second volume of the ‘SDGs Desa Trilogy’, translated from Bahasa Indonesia into English, streamlines the process for villages to gather data, utilize the results to comprehend village profiles, plan development, set priorities, monitor the success of activities, and measure the attainment of village development goals. This resource significantly supports the efforts of village heads, village officials, village facilitators, village activists, all village residents, donors, and private sector entities engaged in village development. The ambiguity in applying SDGs Desa is addressed, allowing village development to concentrate on the actual problems faced by the community, thereby expediting the realization of villages in accordance with the aspirations of their residents. Both a practical guide for policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders who are interested in accelerating the achievement of sustainable development goals in rural areas, and for scholars studying sustainable development in rural areas within developing countries similar to Indonesia, where the majority of the population is dispersed across tens of thousands of villages, this book enables both researchers and practitioners to work to localize the SDGs and empower communities at the grassroots level.

This open access book investigates the challenges and innovations of urbanised kampungs (villages) in Indonesia and how they create a liveable environment during rapid urban expansion. Focusing on urban informal settlements on the fringes of Jakarta, and desa-kota villages in Ende, the collection discusses various aspects of liveability, which includes water, waste and sanitation management, food and nutrition. The volume also examines the way kampungs operate within the fast-paced urbanization occurring around the informal settlements in Indonesia.  Adopting an interdisciplinary approach towards different issues relating to liveability, the work engenders a multidimensional perspective integrating social practice with aspects of infrastructure, institution, and regulation.  Presenting an original contribution to the study of middle-lower income urban neighborhoods in Indonesian cities especially, and cities in the Global South generally, this book captures key materials for discussing the main challenges and potential in the urban life and development of marginalised neighborhoods. Cutting across the fields of science and technology, engineering, medicine, public health, nutritional studies, humanities, social sciences and cultural studies, this interdisciplinary compilation offers important and unique views on urban life and urban policy. It is of interest to readers in urban studies and policy, development studies, health and well-being, particularly in developing geographies.

This book examines the digitalization of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia and its challenges in the context of an emerging economy and the Covid-19 crisis. During the Covid-19 pandemic, business digitalization became a must for a business to avoid collapse and people saw that digital transformation is a panacea for SMEs to help them survive and revive from the crises. Governments and other stakeholders in many countries including Indonesia have launched policies and programs to support SMEs. Transforming SMEs' conventional businesses into digitalized versions, however, is a complex issue influenced by various factors. These factors encompass both internal changes within the organization and external dynamics in the ecosystem in which they operate. This book, therefore, is a new approach towards understanding the digitalization of SMEs in Indonesia and includes contributions from scholars with different, multi-disciplinary perspectives and demonstrates that digital transformation of SMEs is not all about technology adoption but also involves other aspects such as social, economic, and public governance factors. It discusses opportunities and challenges of digital transformation of SMEs in Indonesia, such as digital talent, financial inclusion, platform capitalism, automation, government’s role, governance, open competition, and inclusive digital economy. The book is of interest to researchers and students of social economics, SMEs and entrepreneurship, human capital research, and economy and governance.​

This book examines the digitalization of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia and its challenges in the context of an emerging economy and the Covid-19 crisis. During the Covid-19 pandemic, business digitalization became a must for a business to avoid collapse and people saw that digital transformation is a panacea for SMEs to help them survive and revive from the crises. Governments and other stakeholders in many countries including Indonesia have launched policies and programs to support SMEs. Transforming SMEs' conventional businesses into digitalized versions, however, is a complex issue influenced by various factors. These factors encompass both internal changes within the organization and external dynamics in the ecosystem in which they operate. This book, therefore, is a new approach towards understanding the digitalization of SMEs in Indonesia and includes contributions from scholars with different, multi-disciplinary perspectives and demonstrates that digital transformation of SMEs is not all about technology adoption but also involves other aspects such as social, economic, and public governance factors. It discusses opportunities and challenges of digital transformation of SMEs in Indonesia, such as digital talent, financial inclusion, platform capitalism, automation, government’s role, governance, open competition, and inclusive digital economy. The book is of interest to researchers and students of social economics, SMEs and entrepreneurship, human capital research, and economy and governance.​

This open access edited volume presents a series of studies utilizing a variety of linguistic research techniques to investigate areas of language education, acquisition and assessment, contemporary political debate, modern and historical print media, and clinical language disorders, in the Indonesian context. In doing so, the authors provide a rich and diverse overview of current research in the fields of linguistics and applied linguistics. The initial section focuses on research conducted in educational settings, focusing on English-medium instruction (EMI), reading assessment, discovery-based learning, cultural elements in textbooks, and pre-service teacher preparation in Indonesia, offering recommendations for improving language education. The second section demonstrates the applications of corpus linguistics, focusing on collocation patterns in different languages, lexical use and context of rhetorical markers, and authorship determination. A third section presents investigations related to aspects of historical and contemporary language use in a variety of contexts, including advertisements, political debate, Indonesian print media, and translanguaging and multilingual writings, discussing the social and cultural dimensions of language use in Indonesia. The final section focuses on clinical linguistics, investigating the relationship between language disorders and language use, including spoken narratives provided by patients with Alzheimer's and the structure and time reference use of agrammatic speakers, with valuable insights into the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of language disorders. Brought together in a single volume, the chapters illustrate how linguistic analysis can be applied across a variety of disciplines and research sites. The volume is relevant to linguists, educators, sociologists, historians, and members of the medical community with particular interest in the Indonesian context.

This book expands on how Indonesia supports the achievement of global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by providing an in-depth examination of how the SDGs can be localized, not only at the national level, but also down to the grassroots level, for villages in Indonesia. It nominates strategies, policies, and initiatives aimed at accelerating the achievement of the SDGs within the context of Indonesia's national development agenda. In doing so, the book tailors the implementation of the SDGs to the conditions, indigenous culture, and local wisdom of villages in the country, and explores various thematic areas covered by the SDGs, including poverty alleviation, education, health, gender equality, environmental sustainability, and economic growth, within the specific context of rural communities. It also discusses lessons learned from previous village development initiatives before the development of the SDGs, communicating the importance of community participation and local governance in driving sustainable development efforts at the village level. Both a practical guide for policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders who are interested in accelerating the achievement of sustainable development goals in rural areas, and for scholars studying sustainable development in rural areas within developing countries similar to Indonesia, where the majority of the population is dispersed across tens of thousands of villages, this book enables both researchers and practitioners to work to localize the SDGs and empower communities at the grassroots level.

This book explores the historical and contemporary experiences of the Chinese in Sukabumi, Indonesia, including their migration to the region, their economic activities, and their relationships with the local population. The book also examines the cultural practices of the Chinese in Sukabumi, including their religion, language, and traditions, and how they have adapted to the local culture. Through extensive research and analysis, the author provides a detailed account of the ways in which the Chinese of Sukabumi have navigated their place in Indonesian society, and the challenges they have faced in doing so. Presented as a co-published edition with Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia, and released in memoriam to the late Mely G. Tan, this edition of The Chinese of Sukabumi honours this original comprehensive study of the social and cultural adaptation of the Chinese community in Sukabumi with the aim of bringing it to a wider international audience. It is an essential resource for scholars and students of Southeast Asian studies, as well as anyone interested in the cultural and social dynamics of the Chinese diaspora.

This book explores the historical and contemporary experiences of the Chinese in Sukabumi, Indonesia, including their migration to the region, their economic activities, and their relationships with the local population. The book also examines the cultural practices of the Chinese in Sukabumi, including their religion, language, and traditions, and how they have adapted to the local culture. Through extensive research and analysis, the author provides a detailed account of the ways in which the Chinese of Sukabumi have navigated their place in Indonesian society, and the challenges they have faced in doing so. Presented as a co-published edition with Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia, and released in memoriam to the late Mely G. Tan, this edition of The Chinese of Sukabumi honours this original comprehensive study of the social and cultural adaptation of the Chinese community in Sukabumi with the aim of bringing it to a wider international audience. It is an essential resource for scholars and students of Southeast Asian studies, as well as anyone interested in the cultural and social dynamics of the Chinese diaspora.

This Open Access book explores the complex interplay between gender, Islam and sexuality in Indonesia, the country with the world's largest Muslim population. The authors offer a fresh look at the tensions between the local and the global through a wide range of cultural expressions and productions, including fashion, Islamic dating, popular literature, and videos on YouTube. The book is grouped around three core themes: sexuality and violence, halal lifestyle, and shame and self-determination. The first section unpacks how activists and progressive religious scholars have argued for the need for the Sexual Violence Bill and it examines the ambivalence between criminalisation and care towards LGBTQ+ people. In the second, the authors bring new insights into how local expressions of Islam, gender and sexuality are negotiated in an increasingly globalised world. The contributions on the third theme tackle gender roles and mobility in culturally diverse regions such as Hong Kong,Taiwan, Singapore, the US, and Indonesia.