Peatland Life in Indonesia
Indonesian peat swamp forests cycle and store globally significant amounts of carbon. They provide essential ecosystem services, including regulating water across the landscape and buffering salt/freshwater transitions in coastal areas. They host unique and often endangered species such as orangutans, and provide critical habitats for migratory birds. Local people traditionally benefit from peat swamp forests for timber to build their houses, nutrient-rich wild food and fish to supplement their diet, clean water and access to medicinal plants. These natural riches can also be a source of income and well-being. Growing demand for arable land, in particular for palm oil production, lack of suitable unused uplands, and the attractiveness of peatlands’ availability and flat topography, have all led to intense conversion and drainage of peatlands in recent decades. Weak and unclear land tenure has likewise prompted overlapping land claims between individuals, communities, companies and governments, consequently facilitating their appropriation. Peatlands now represent a contested frontier region. Beside that economically viable and environmentally sustainable livelihood options for smallholders in Indonesian peatlands are limited, underdeveloped and urgently need to be enabled and expanded.
Sunrise for Gayo Coffee
At 2,000 meters above sea level, the moun- tains are high enough to trap the clouds, which nestle in the hills around Laut Tawar Lake in Central Aceh just before dawn. As the sun rises over the hills, the temperature climbs from a chilly 18 degrees and the cloud dissipates, revealing a wide vista of lush green coffee plants spread out over thousands of hectares up the hillsides surround- ing the lake. This area is home to Gayo coffee, among the most sought-after coffees in the world. To be sure, other Indonesian coffees are more widely known, such Sulawesi Toraja, Sumatra Mandheling and even the notorious Kopi Luwak. Yet Gayo’s star is rising, especially amongst those who are looking for organic and fair-trade coffee. Also on pure taste, some say Gayo, which is 100% Arabica ranks among the world’s best, compared favorably to other high- growth coffees such as Blue Mountain from Jamaica. It is found here in this part of Aceh and nowhere else.
Heroes of The Pandemic, Heroes from Home
Life during the pandemic has been hard for most. People lost their jobs or switch jobs and their income decreased significantly, only to earn much less than usual. The arrival of COVID-19 has created unprecedented challenges for the world. In Indonesia, the coronavirus has infected more than a million people since the first confirmed cases in March 2020 and tens of thousands have died. Many stayed at home and limited social interaction. Moreover, living under constant threat is far from pleasant. It’s really not an easy life for many of us here. This visual campaign is a tribute to ordinary people who follow the rules by staying at home to support the fight against the spread of Covid-19. Who stay happy during this strange. The storm will likely pass, but life and us, will unlikely remain the same. Photo by Ahmad Zamroni/HKV The commissioned works for IndiHome (Project: #PahlawanDariRumah )
Heavenly Cruise Raja Ampat
The world’s richest reefs or the “kingdom of coral” are some names given to Raja Ampat, it’s a name well deserved as the Raja Ampat islands encompass over four million hectares of land and sea o the far northwestern tip of Papua. It consists of approximately more than 600 islands, including the four largest: Waigeo, Batanta, Salawi, and Misool (also known as Butanme). The Raja Ampat name (meaning four kings) comes from the period when the region was under the in uence of the North-Moluccan sultanates of Ternate and Tidore, who ruled Raja Ampat for a period of at least 400 years. This trip to Raja Ampat was done aboard two luxury phinisis from the legendary Aman Resorts, the Amandira and Amanikan. The first is a custom-build 52-meter, two-masted phinisi that o ers ve spacious cabins with a crew of 14. This phinisi was handcrafted by the Konjo tribe of Sulawesi, and launched in 2015. While similar, Amanikan is a smaller 32-meter custom-build coastal cruiser with three above-deck cabins, and a foredeck with a bar for outdoor dining. These vessels combine the romance of the spice trade with modern amenities and technologies. Both provide dive equipment essential to enjoy the beautiful waters of Raja Ampat, and, as expected, have outstanding services. The phinisi spent ve days exploring the mesmerizing waters of Raja Ampat. The price for a trip? It starts at $9,150 for a cabin per night, exclude the flights to go there.
The Phinisi Shipbuilding
Phinisi may be the world’s last seaworthy wooden sailboats still in wide use today. The phinisi is a traditional wooden two-masted sailing ship, which were mentioned as plying the waters of Indonesia as early as the 14th century. The ships today are built at Tanjung Bira beach by the Konjo, a subgroup of the Bugis living in the Bulukumba regency of South Sulawesi. While modern power tools can be used, the boats are largely built using the design and construction techniques handed down over hundreds of years. These boats may be the world’s last large seaworthy wooden sailing ships being built. While many serve as humble cargo ships, some become high-end yachts.
Indonesia Inspiring Women
Potrait of Indonesia's inspiring women. They come from a variety of backgrounds, and are high achievers in their respective fields. Some of Whom names may be familiar and others less so. They are, in that sense, more of a representative sample than an exclusive club.
2006 Yogyakarta Earthquake
The 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake occurred at 05:55 local time on 27 May with a moment magnitude of 5,9 for 57 seconds. Around 5000 dead, tens of thousands injured, and financial losses of Rp 29.1 trillion ($3.1 billion). With limited effects to public infrastructure and lifelines, housing and private businesses bore the majority of damage (the 9th-century Prambanan Hindu temple compound was also affected), and the United States' National Geophysical Data Center classified the total damage from the event as extreme. Although Indonesia experiences very large, great, and giant thrust earthquakes offshore at the Sunda Trench, this was a large strike-slip event that occurred on the southern coast of Java near the city of Yogyakarta.