The people of Indonesia & their culture, politics, economy and environment - Inside Indonesia: The peoples and cultures of Indonesia

Pollution

Buried under the weight of a recycling crisis

When paper waste imports started began 20 years ago most Bangun residents sold their farms to work as waste collectors for paper mills. Now many are dependent on waste sorting

Moving toward a circular economy

The complexity of plastic waste in Indonesia

The waste emergency

Government, producers and the public must all cooperate to tackle Indonesia’s waste problems

Review: Palm oil and patronage

An investigation into the transboundary haze and the palm plantations in Indonesia

Haze of democracy

Schools were closed for over a month due to the forest fires - Ardiles Rante/Greenpeace

Elections are fuelling the forest fires in Central Kalimantan

Undercutting Kalimantan's future

Forest conversion in Kalimantan is a local, national and global concern

Big business, big damage

Bioprospecting is threatening Bunaken National Park

Sun, sand and smoke

Air crashes, riots, smog, and a currency crisis dented tourist arrivals in 1997. But, says ANNA KARIN EKLÖF, newly rich Asian tourists will save the industry in the long term.

Indorayon's last gasp?

Popular protest closes a huge paper and pulp mill in Sumatra, but others go on polluting

Pesticide policy in Indonesia

What sort of attempt is being made to control the use of pesticides?

Jakarta's rubbish nightmare

Mountains of garbage and nowhere to put it

Polluting Bali

Environmental groups protest a power plant at Lovina

Water, land, and Suharto

Review: Both books illustrate the way the Suharto family exploited Indonesia

Latest Articles

Esai: Raja-raja hutan

Jan 22, 2025 - JAKA HENDRA BAITTRI

Cara manusia Sumatera menghormatinya harimau

Essay: Kings of the jungle

Jan 22, 2025 - JAKA HENDRA BAITTRI

How Sumatrans honour the tiger, both mystical and real

Sukarno's Indonesia as seen from Yogyakarta

Jan 06, 2025 - MARK WOODWARD

Sukarno's dedication to the arts and obsession with creating a nationalist ideal live on in luxury hotels he built in the 1960s

Essay: Beyond cultural awareness

Dec 31, 2024 - VICTORIA WINATA

What is cultural awareness? Is it about knowing the habits and languages of other people? These are good intentions, but there is a lot more work to be done

Tetangga: These are the stories of our neighbours

Oct 23, 2024 - ASHLYNN HANNAH & SOFIA JAYNE

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Lontar Modern Indonesia

A selection of stories from the Indonesian classics and modern writers, periodically published free for Inside Indonesia readers, courtesy of Lontar.