A woman walks along a muddy street on Nov. 6, in Liloan, Cebu province, after Typhoon Kalmaegi left a trail of devastation across the central Philippines.

Cyclones’ hidden dangers go beyond the storm

Tropical cyclones can be even more deadly, and for a wider range of reasons, than we ever thought.

5 months ago

Defining integrity in carbon markets

International standards for "high-quality" credits risk excluding the projects Indonesia needs most, threatening billions in conservation finance and the ecosystems that define our nation. ...

5 months ago

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Why Indonesia’s clean energy still feeds old inequalities

What began as an inclusive experiment in rural energy has hardened into a top-down industrial regime, where benefits flow upward and accountability flows nowhere. ...

5 months ago

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Customary deliberations held by the Manusela Indigenous Community in the northern part of Seram, Central Maluku, Maluku. (Images courtesy of Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara (AMAN))

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COP30: Turning Indonesia’s indigenous rights pledges into legal protections

Indonesia needs to move away from headline promises and instead step up its legislative efforts to emerge as a global leader in ensuring and enforcing guarantees and protections for indigenous rights, including customary territories.

5 months ago

A number of State Civil Apparatus Candidates (CASN) took part in the action of rejecting the postponement of the appointment of CASN at the West Kalimantan Governor's Office, on Monday, March 10, 2025.

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Why enterprise struggles in a nation that rewards titles

It will take more than catchy slogans espousing innovation and entrepreneurship to change an ingrained habit that has evolved over the centuries in tandem with a system that equates authority and power with prosperity.

5 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (third right) listens to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (second right) as Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (center) looks on, while Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr (second left) speaks with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa (third left) on Oct. 26, 2025, as world leaders exit the stage following the opening ceremony of the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur.

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47th ASEAN Summit: A paradox of diplomacy and delay

While hailed as an overall success, the regional bloc's summit last month demonstrated that its major stumbling block is speed in implementing the various declarations and statements it so loves to issue.

5 months ago

One man show: Ngigoro, 62, an elder of the O’Hongana Manyawa indigenous tribe who left the forest and now lives in a village with his mother, stands beside an allegedly contaminated river on April 16, 2025 in East Halmahera, North Maluku.

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COP30 and the legitimate rights of indigenous peoples

Any climate agenda must involve indigenous peoples, who play a vital role in tacking global warning through the traditional wisdoms they have applied to managing their customary forests and lands, long before "climate change" entered the global lexicon.

5 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto ('left') rides a commuter train from Manggarai Station on Nov. 4, 2025, on the way to inaugurate the newly built Tanah Abang Baru Station in Central Jakarta, a Rp 309 billion (US$18.47 million) project.

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Indonesia’s economy is failing to engage with the world

Prabowo’s strategy must prioritize economic openness.

5 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto meets with United States President Donald Trump during a summit on Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh on Oct. 13, 2025.

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Jakarta should stop begging Washington to be nice

in response to the "America First" policy, Indonesia should build domestic production chains for food, energy and critical technologies, regardless of peacetime efficiency, because they deny adversaries wartime choke points

5 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (second left) walks alongside Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (center) on Nov. 12 on the HMAS Canberra during a visit to HMAS Kuttabul Fleet Base in Sydney, Australia.

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The history behind the landmark Indonesia-Australia defense treaty

The relationship between the two countries has gone up and down over the years, but trust and confidence has perhaps never been higher.

5 months ago

United States President Donald Trump ('left') looks at Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ('right') with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in between them when posing for a leader's photo at the ASEAN Summit on Oct. 26, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur.

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ASEAN will struggle to escape US-China squeeze

While ASEAN exporters face increasing pressure from US tariffs and heightened scrutiny of transshipments, their domestic markets are increasingly being dominated by Chinese goods.

5 months ago

A fisherman parks his fishing boat on Nov. 11, in Kupal village, on Bacan Island, at coastal area in South Halmahera regency, North Maluku.

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Building a climate-resilient, high-growth Indonesia

Achieving both goals requires a balanced development strategy that prioritizes sustainable development, equitable economic transformation, innovation and environmental sustainability.

5 months ago

Nickel smelter chimneys spew a column of emissions on July 7, 2024, into the air above the Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park in Lelilef, North Maluku. Despite coal making up 67 percent of Indonesia’s 2023 energy mix, the country is shifting toward cleaner sources, impacting the nickel industry, which is vital for electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

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The emissions mirage: Understanding what we count and miss

The companies that are starting to count their emissions today are the ones that will remain competitive tomorrow.

5 months ago

Pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) female students undergo blood test during the government’s free health check (CKG) program on Oct. 28, 2025 at Pesantren Nida' Al-Qur'an Paladan in Temanggung, Central Java.

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‘Nobody’s Girl’, sexual violence, Virginia Giuffre and ‘santriwati’

Many cases of sexual violence in pesantren are not revealed because of threats received by victims from perpetrators, a study finds.

5 months ago

The Democratic candidate for New York City mayor in the United States, Zohran Mamdani, waves on stage on election night, Nov. 4, 2025, in Brooklyn after winning the 2025 race.

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What can Indonesian progressives learn from Mamdani’s victory

Mamdani's historic victory should inspire the progressive forces within Indonesian civil society, who are currently at their lowest point, to consolidate.

5 months ago

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani speaks during a press conference at the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Corona Park on Nov. 5 in the Queens borough of New York City. Mamdani won a historic victory to become the city's 111th mayor defeating independent mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo and Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa.

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The Mamdani effect: How government failure sways voters

Rising prices of daily needs have created opportunities for “challenger” politicians and parties to brand themselves with “extreme” policy platforms in the next Indonesian election in 2029.

5 months ago

United States President Donald Trump waves on, Nov. 5, 2025, while boarding Air Force One at Miami International Airport, Florida, the US.

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America's future is being sacrificed for short-term ‘wins’

The US is trading long-term strategic advantages for immediate tactical gains, and the costs are accumulating in ways that won’t become apparent until it’s too late to reverse course.

5 months ago

United States President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk as they leave a bilateral meeting on Oct. 30 at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Busan, South Korea.

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Strong finance to power quality growth

For China to support high quality growth would require it to deepen long-term pension, insurance and private equity funds that can produce patient capital to absorb high-risk projects and investments.

5 months ago

Jakarta Environmental Agency workers spray mist on Sept. 19, along Jl. TB Simatupang in South Jakarta. The agency sprayed 4,000 liters of mist at several strategic points to reduce air pollution in an attempt to clean the cities air ahead of Jakarta Eco Future Fest (JEFF) 2025.

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Global energy and emissions trends since Paris treaty

In the decade since the landmark COP21 Paris Agreement, both a lot and a little has changed when it comes to the energy sector makeup and the trajectory of emissions.

5 months ago

Riau Governor Abdul Wahid (center) is escorted on Nov. 4, by officers upon his arrival at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) headquarters in South Jakarta. The KPK arrested nine individuals, including Abdul, in a sting operation on Monday in Riau.

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Riau's paradox: The 'cursed' resource riches amid neglect and graft

Bribery, embezzlement and collusion are widespread in Riau, contributing to state revenue losses, regional budget deficits, delayed development and environmental degradation.

5 months ago

A member of a civil society movement holds a banner reading “Suharto is not a hero“ during the Kamisan (Thursday) rally opposing the government's plan to grant former president Soeharto national hero status near the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Nov. 6, 2025.

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Democracy doesn’t need heroes

Democracy itself is anti-heroic. Progress does not come from the benevolence of a single messiah but from the collective operation of an impersonal system.

5 months ago

Oxfam activists wearing oversized masks representing (from left to right) European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa, Argentina's President Javier Milei, United States President Donald Trump and Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney pose during their “Big Heads“ protest stunt at the riverbank of the Federal University of Para in Belem, Brazil, on Nov. 5, 2025 on the sidelines of the COP30 United Nations Climate Summit.

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Why climate finance is not enough

If the Global North is no longer willing to meet its funding promises, it can still demonstrate good faith through another form of solidarity: sharing the knowledge, technology and intellectual property that underpin the green transition.

5 months ago

Junior high school students play the online game ‘Roblox’ on Sept. 9 during the Edublox extracurricular activity at the Solo Technopark in Surakarta, Central Java.

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Today’s heroes are building Indonesia’s digital future

Today’s heroes require the same sort of courage that defined Indonesian independence, but this time to carve out the nation’s place in the global digital economy.

5 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (second left) stands among other world leaders (from left) Paraguayan President Santiago Peña, United States President Donald Trump Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as they gather for a photo op on Oct. 13 during the 2025 Gaza Peace Summit, also known as the Sharm el-Sheikh summit after the Egyptian city that hosted the event.

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Mediating in a broken world: How Indonesia can make a difference

Indonesia’s "free and active" foreign policy, its laissez-faire mediation style as well as its cumulative experience, from the national revolution to the post-tsunami Aceh peace process, might succeed in helping to resolve geopolitical conflicts in Southeast Asia as well as the Middle East amid the global breakdown in the rules-based order.

5 months ago

Former Constitutional Court chief justice Jimly Asshiddiqie (second left), former coordinating political, legal and security affairs minister Mahfud MD (center), Coordinating Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Services Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra (left), National Police chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo (second right) and former National Police chief Idham Aziz attend the inauguration of members of the Police Reform Acceleration Commission on Friday at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta.

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Police reform: Turning resistance into a path for transformation

The real transformation of the National Police lies in nurturing a professional culture built on accountability, empathy and trust.

5 months ago

Farmers collect paddy during harvest time on Dec. 9, 2021, at a rice field in Candipuro district, Lumajang, East Java.

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Agriculture at the heart of security

While many factors have contributed to rising food insecurity, the most important is conflict.

5 months ago

More languages in schools: President Prabowo Subianto ('right') and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva attend a press conference on Oct. 23 after their bilateral meeting at the presidential palace in Jakarta. During their bilateral meeting, Prabowo said he plans to add Portuguese to foreign language education in Indonesia, while the sector also prepares to make English a compulsory subject in schools.

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From Portuguese to ‘gratis’: Prabowo’s double-edged language politics

Skepticism toward state paternalism, visible in online critiques of the free nutritious meal program rollout and in discussions about Prabowo’s ASEAN diplomacy, reflects a generation less easily swayed by spectacle.

5 months ago

A member of civil society movement groups holds a banner reading “Soeharto is not a hero“ during a Thursdays (Kamisan) rally on Nov. 6 opposing the government's plan to grant former president Soeharto a national hero title near the presidential palace in Jakarta. Former president Soeharto, who died in 2008 aged 86, ruled Indonesia with an iron fist for more than three decades after grabbing power in 1967 following a failed military coup.

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Heroes are not saints: Rethinking the National Hero Law

Soeharto resembled Dhritarashtra, the blind king who fathered the Kauravas. Dhritarashtra’s failure was not in what he did, but in his permissiveness.

5 months ago

A Palestinian youth walks past the rubble of destroyed buildings on Nov. 2, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City.

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The Netanyahu Cabinet’s complicity in the Gaza genocide

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has indicted Israel’s prime minister and his former defense minister for the Gaza atrocities. Several other cabinet members have contributed to these crimes, but none have been charged.

5 months ago