News Update KITLV / Royal Netherlands Institute of
Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies
In the spotlight
Sony Jean awarded a VENI grant Together with ten other Leiden researchers Joseph Sony Jean received funding from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). Jean will use this grant to develop his research ideas in the coming three years. The Veni grants are awarded annually by NWO. More information about Jean’s project can be found here.
Island(er)s at the Helm project
Saba Heritage Center hosts discussion about ancient climate and foods of Saba
On 7 April, the Saba Heritage Center hosted a community session on research currently being carried out in Saba by the Island(er)s at the Helm programme. Researchers Dr. Jaime Pagán Jiménez and Dr. Kees Nooren presented their research plans and initial findings. Participants were also invited to share stories and exchange knowledge on social adaptation to climate change in Saba. More.
Saba Commissioner of Culture Rolando Wilson meets the Island(er)s at the Helm team
On 5 April, Saba Commissioner for Culture Rolando Wilson, welcomed members of the Island(er)s at the Helm research programm working at the Saba Heritage Center to his office, to discuss the potential impact of investigative findings. Read more.
Island(er)s at the helm second online stakeholders meeting
The Island(er)s at the Helm team and stakeholders participated in a second online project meeting on 23 March. New team members and research plans were presented and updates on research progress were given. The discussions were inspirational and have provided ample material to rethink and to move forward in the research. The recordings of this meeting can be found here.
Publications / Publicaties
Utopia beyond the abyss
A special issue of Inside Indonesia, edited by KITLV researchers Yogi Permana and Gerry van Klinken on 'Ecological civilisation in Indonesia'. Read more.
Local brokerage and international leverage: NGOs and land conflicts in Indonesia
In this article Ahmad Dhiaulhaq, Aurelia Deviane and Ward Berenschot analyse how NGOs support communities in their struggle to defend their land against incoming palm oil companies. They find that particularly local NGOs prefer informal lobbying of politicians over a legal strategy. And they find, sadly, that NGO involvement is not making much of an impact on the outcome of palm oil conflicts. Only international NGOs can really change the outcome of these conflicts, because of their capacity to generate market pressure. More.
Anti-corporate activism and collusion: The contentious politics of palm oil expansion in Indonesia
Article by Ward Berenschot, Ahmad Diaulhaq and others. It is the first large-scale study of 150 conflicts between communities and companies in Indonesia. The researchers' findings are worrying and suggest more government and industry measures are needed. Read more.
Advanced article in the New West Indian Guide
‘The Journal of the Galliot Nieuwer Amstel: A 1660 Voyage to Curaçao from New Amsterdam (Manhattan)’, by Julie van den Hout, Jaap Jacobs, and Jeroen Dewulf. In February 1660, supercargo Laurens de Sille sailed from New Amsterdam (Manhattan) to Curaçao aboard the galliot Nieuwer Amstel. De Sille kept a journal of the four-month journey to Curaçao and back; his journal offers a unique insight into mid-seventeenth-century shipping activities at Curaçao. De Sille’s chronicle of his two-month stay on the island depicts Curaçao as it emerged as a hub for the Dutch transatlantic slave trade. More.
Philippus Corts Fonds voor studenten en onderzoekers, werkzaam in Nederland of voor een gezamenlijk Nederlands en Indonesisch team, die in collecties in Nederland en/of Indonesië wetenschappelijk onderzoek verrichten.
Adatrechts Fonds ondersteunt onderzoekers bij hun onderzoek en publicaties op het gebied van Adatrecht.
