Blaming the palm oil industry for Indonesian fires fueling Southeast Asia’s transboundary haze is an easy narrative, but rigorous evidence and reality tell a far more complex story.

Fighting the fires and finding new, sustainable engines of growth are not separate battles.

From movie screens to Southeast Asia's streets, the three-finger salute has evolved from a silent cinematic gesture into Indonesia's potent rallying cry against oligarchy, poverty and ecological collapse.

As toxic haze from seasonal forest and peatland fires blanketed swaths of Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua, a second crisis unfolded online: Content creators, civil society organizations, environmental activists and regional officials reported a sudden wave of digital suppression.

Rewriting the anticorruption law could modernize enforcement to global standards, but without strict safeguards, it risks giving corrupt elites an easy exit under the guise of business judgment.

The West Java governor's political star is rising parallel to the President's falling approval, showing how voter behavior adapts to favor popular regional leaders in an opposition vacuum.

Attacking Iran against the explicit warnings of Turkey and Saudi Arabia risks a catastrophic regional war where military superiority delivers neither stability nor a viable political endgame.

From migratory seabirds to family dinner tables, stopping the next pandemic demands that we treat animal, human, and ecological health as one shared frontline.

A century after the First Youth Congress imagined Indonesia into existence, a new generation must break constitutional taboos to ensure that our union is sustained by genuine justice rather than centralized decree.

The haze has returned, along with an old political habit: Blaming outsiders rather than confronting failures at home.

The government’s decision to further reduce natural gas exports to Singapore may strengthen domestic energy supplies, but it risks undermining the country's credibility as a reliable trading partner. The move, justified on energy security grounds, could unsettle investors, strain relations with Singapore and weaken ASEAN's efforts to build an integrated regional energy market.

In Brazil, freshly-energized voters turned out in droves in the second round of presidential elections earlier this month to reelect left-wing politician Lula da Silva for a non-consecutive fourth term, delivering a blow to far-right candidate Flavio Bolsonaro. 

An El-Niño-induced intense drought is the match that lit this year's peat fires in Indonesia, which are releasing ancient carbon that won’t be reabsorbed by future forest growth as a dire consequence of land conversion.

Melting sea and land ice in the Arctic is not only changing the climate but also geopolitical alignments and economic rivalry, all the way south to the tropics.

Glossy ribbons and technocratic jargon may sound good in press releases, but only affordable food and verified results can win the public’s trust.

Market routs and wildfire smoke may have clouded October, but Indonesia's rock-solid fundamentals and massive infrastructure boom prove that betting against Southeast Asia’s economic heavyweight is a mistake.

Bank Indonesia is taking a high-stakes gamble with a multi-tool strategy to spur domestic growth while defending the rupiah. But can its competing policy instruments avoid canceling each other out?

The ASEAN membership now will reinforce Indonesia-Timor-Leste partnership, but will also make it easier for the governments to leave the past unaddressed. 

Two years into their five-year mandate, President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka face mounting public dissatisfaction. Widespread protests and falling survey indicators point to deepening frustration over the administration’s performance.

A bloated budget where expenditure growth outpaces revenue growth is typically the hallmark of a crisis. Yet, the official narrative remains sanguine.

Modern nationalism should require Indonesian women and girls to also spearhead science and technology in all spheres of life.

Jakarta is positioning itself not merely as Indonesia’s largest city, but as a place where global talent and local energy meet on terms that benefit residents.

Indonesia does not need more institutions to become a better economy: It needs stronger state capacity backed by accountable institutions, predictable rules and credible law enforcement.

Instead of letting Andrea Bocelli’s upcoming shows in Indonesia divide the country, we should transform his stage into an uncompromising global platform for Palestinian justice and humanitarian solidarity.

The Government respects the findings of the Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC) survey as one reflection of public perceptions of the implementation of democracy in Indonesia.

Knowledge is not neutral; it can be deployed to legitimize those residing in the ivory tower just as easily as those seated at the policy table. Crucially, knowledge must travel if it is to inform state responses to recurring crises.

Two years into his presidency, President Prabowo Subianto is pursuing an ambitious agenda of state-led programs, from the free nutritious meal program to the Red and White Cooperatives. But as billions of dollars flow into these flagship initiatives, pressing needs in education, health care and disaster preparedness remain underfunded. The question is no longer whether Prabowo can fulfill his political ambitions, but whether Indonesians can afford the costs of pursuing them.