Archive for June 16th, 2006
LOMBOK, Indonesia (AP) - As the tropical monsoon clouds roll in, obscuring the towering volcanoes along the Bali coastline, the pristine neighbouring island of Lombok seems a world away from Indonesia’s premier tourist destination.
In fact, it almost is. This unique isle lays to the east of one of the sharpest fissures in nature, the so-called Wallace Line that cuts through the Indonesian archipelago and divides the flora and fauna of Asia and that of Australia, Papua, New Zealand and other Pacific islands.
Long overshadowed by Bali, an Asian tourist mecca, Lombok is located some 1,000 kilometres east of Jakarta.
Its two million inhabitants hope its exceptional combination of spectacular unspoiled scenery, wonderful beaches and exotic mosaic of Islamic, Buddhist, Hindu and Christian cultures will provide an adequate lure to tourists seeking a less-developed tropical escape, unobscured by sprawling resorts, fast-food chains, shopping malls or traffic jams.
“Bali has been an internationally well-known brand since the first Hollywood film stars began arriving in the 1920s, while Lombok has usually been overlooked as ‘that place near Bali,’ ” said Kemal K. Kaul, director of the exclusive, Oberoi Hotel on Lombok’s west coastline. “But we see that attitude changing gradually, and last year was our best so far.”
Bali accounts for nearly three-quarters of Indonesia’s earnings from tourism, expected to exceed $6 billion US this year. But tourist arrivals plunged after the terrorist bombings in 2002 and last year, and the traditional hordes of sun worshippers, scuba divers and surfers have been slow to return to this previously prized paradise.
Surprisingly, the downturn in Bali didn’t echo much in next-door Lombok, which had a very good year in 2005. It now ranks among Indonesia’s top earners from tourism, although still behind Bali, the island of Batam opposite Singapore, and Java, Indonesia’s dominant region.
Although Lombok residents know their island is a real gem for those seeking a true tropical escape where they can experience authentic island life, they believe that existing plans to improve the island’s infrastructure and accessibility - including a new international airport - will bring them out of Bali’s shadow, and give them a bigger slice of the burgeoning tourist trade in Asia.
Recent developments on the island have seen an increase in accommodations of an international standard, such as the Oberoi, the Sheraton Sengiggi, the Holiday Inn and the Novotel hotels.
Officials say the lack of air links has been the main factor hampering tourist growth. “If they could only get direct flights from places like Perth and Kuala Lumpur, Lombok could position itself as the second beach resort in Indonesia,” Kaul said.
Singapore’s Silk Air operates the only international flight to the island. There are also daily flights from Bali, which is just a half-hour away by air.
Source : www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/travel
June 16th, 2006
LOMBOK, Indonesia (AP) - As the tropical monsoon clouds roll in, obscuring the towering volcanoes along the Bali coastline, the pristine neighbouring island of Lombok seems a world away from Indonesia’s premier tourist destination.
In fact, it almost is. This unique isle lays to the east of one of the sharpest fissures in nature, the so-called Wallace Line that cuts through the Indonesian archipelago and divides the flora and fauna of Asia and that of Australia, Papua, New Zealand and other Pacific islands.
Long overshadowed by Bali, an Asian tourist mecca, Lombok is located some 1,000 kilometres east of Jakarta.
Its two million inhabitants hope its exceptional combination of spectacular unspoiled scenery, wonderful beaches and exotic mosaic of Islamic, Buddhist, Hindu and Christian cultures will provide an adequate lure to tourists seeking a less-developed tropical escape, unobscured by sprawling resorts, fast-food chains, shopping malls or traffic jams.
“Bali has been an internationally well-known brand since the first Hollywood film stars began arriving in the 1920s, while Lombok has usually been overlooked as ‘that place near Bali,’ ” said Kemal K. Kaul, director of the exclusive, Oberoi Hotel on Lombok’s west coastline. “But we see that attitude changing gradually, and last year was our best so far.”
Bali accounts for nearly three-quarters of Indonesia’s earnings from tourism, expected to exceed $6 billion US this year. But tourist arrivals plunged after the terrorist bombings in 2002 and last year, and the traditional hordes of sun worshippers, scuba divers and surfers have been slow to return to this previously prized paradise.
Surprisingly, the downturn in Bali didn’t echo much in next-door Lombok, which had a very good year in 2005. It now ranks among Indonesia’s top earners from tourism, although still behind Bali, the island of Batam opposite Singapore, and Java, Indonesia’s dominant region.
Although Lombok residents know their island is a real gem for those seeking a true tropical escape where they can experience authentic island life, they believe that existing plans to improve the island’s infrastructure and accessibility - including a new international airport - will bring them out of Bali’s shadow, and give them a bigger slice of the burgeoning tourist trade in Asia.
Recent developments on the island have seen an increase in accommodations of an international standard, such as the Oberoi, the Sheraton Sengiggi, the Holiday Inn and the Novotel hotels.
Officials say the lack of air links has been the main factor hampering tourist growth. “If they could only get direct flights from places like Perth and Kuala Lumpur, Lombok could position itself as the second beach resort in Indonesia,” Kaul said.
Singapore’s Silk Air operates the only international flight to the island. There are also daily flights from Bali, which is just a half-hour away by air.
Source : www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/travel
June 16th, 2006
The colonial city of Bengkulu was founded by the British in 1685 (the called it ‘Bencoolen’). 150 years later, in 1825, the Dutch took power until the Japanese invasion in 1942. Bengkulu still looks like the earlier descriptions: quiet and clean. The rememberances of Bengkulu from the colonial past can best be seen when walking. Start early in the morning, because the mid-day heat will be tremendous.
Start the trip along the west side of Jl. Jend. A. Yani, near the domed monument for Thomas Parr, the impopular governor of Bengkulu; he was stabbed to death and decapitated in 1807, probably by Buginese people. Parr, educated in Bengalen, was used to unending loyalty of a subjected and obeying population. Once in Bengkulu he tried to lower the power of the Buginese Corps. These were recruited to fill up the empty places in the British East India Company.
After the murder on Parr, several suspect leaders were executed and several villages were burned. The relations between the British and Indonesians wasn’t always that bad, and the big Indo-European population brought a British critic to call Bengkulu ‘a real Batavian colony’, in which he meant to say that there was to much mixture between races.
Fortress Marlborough
A little ahead, along the eastern side of Jl. Jend. A. Yani, if Fortress Marlborough. The fortress was built between 1713 and 1719, and it was heavily renovated between 1977 and 1984. It square-shaped with measurements 240 x 170 metres and all of the four corners has a bastion.
Fortress Marlborough was founded to replace Fortress York. How interesting the new fortress looked, both times it was attacked by enemies it fell in their hands; the first time in 1719 during a local revolt, the second time in 1760 when a French vleet passed.
The outer wall is surrounded by a dry trench. Following the reporta the trench was not only for the defence, but it also stopped the guards going to the nearby kampung for buying palm wine.
After 1825 Fortress Marlborough was used by the Dutch until the invasion of Japan in 1942. After the capitulation of Japan the police of the young Republik Indonesia housed in it for a short period of time. After that the Dutch occupied the fortress again to supress the revolution, but in 1950 it was returned to the police again, which used it until the mid 1980’s. Now the fortress is opened as a museum.
Image White fortress
The main entrance from the fortress oversees the south and is protected by a double wall. When entering you will see the encrypted grafestones from British officers, among them the one of Thomas Parr.
The northern entrance as well as the southern one could be reached by small wooden bridges. A small door at the eastern side lead to the place of the Indian soldiers. A back wall is never built, an earth wall protects it from there.
The big wooden fences of the fortress give access to the court. At one side is the prison in which Soekarno was held during the first days of his exile in 1938. The other side houses a museum. Inside the fortification were no buildings: soldiers places, kitchens, offices and others were all built in the wall itself. Some of these chambers are now used to inform about the history of the fortress and showing objects which were found during the last renovation. Several wall paintings now devorate the walls of what once was a prison cell.
The environment of the fortress reflects a sober, melancholic atmosphere, especially at night, when the sad spirit of Raflles still is near the walls, looking over the seas under the sails of the Fame, the ship that should take him and his ill wife out of Bengkulu. The earlier British residence across the fortress, just a short distance away from the main road, has turned into a ramshackle building. Twohundred metres to the north is a viewpoint, Tapak Paderi, with beautifull sunsets over sea. The open square at the southeastern corner of the fortress dates from the time that the British were constructing the fortress.
After leaving Fortress Marlborough go to the olf Chinese quarter in the area of Jl. D.I. Penjaitan, just behind the British residence and close to the Parr Monument. Along borth sides of the street, old, wooden shops of two stores decorate the street. These houses were built in 1926, after one of the frequent earthquakes had destroyed the area.
European Graveyard
Along Jl. Letkol Santoso in the southeastern part of the city, about 15 minutes walking from the fortress, is an obelisk. This shrine was founded for Captain Robert Hamilton, ‘which died on 15 December 1793 on the age of 38 as the commander of the troops’.
From here it’s only a few hundred metres to the European graveyard. Most British graves date from the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century; the later graves are from the Dutch. During the British rule only a handfull of European women lived in Bengkulu. A few gravestones carry messages of love: The one of Captain Thomas Tapston ‘was founded in the rememberance of his deeply hurt girlfriend, Nonah Jessminah’. Unfortunately most of the graves have been vandalized. Possibly this is also the location where the three children of Raffles, who died in Bengkulu, are buried.
Soekrno’s House
A short trip towards the east takes you to the house where Soekarno, his first wife Inggit and his adopted daughter Ratna Juami were banned to between 1938 and 1941. The house is located along Jl. Soekarno Hatta, in the area Anggut Atas.
On the verandah is the bike which Soekarno used to win the heart of his second wife, Fatmawati. In wooden drawers are his books, most of them in Dutch, and his clothing. Several old pictures are shown. A small entrance fee is demanded, but that’s all. The museum is open following museum guidelines, mostly in the morning and early afternoon and closed on Mondays and Sundays.
Fortress York
Fortress York, built in 1685, was located about two kilometres north of Fortress Marlborough, on the southern banks of the Bengkulu river. The area is now called Pasar Bengkulu, a rememberance to earlier times, then the most important market was located near the fortress. There are no visible remains of the old stone structure, but archeologists have found fundaments of the fortress under a current location of a school, as well as objects which were used by the residents of the fortress. The hill offers a view on a landing stage where fishermen moor early in the morning to sell their catch.
The provincial museum
The provincial museum is located in the southern outskirts of the city (Padang Harapan). It has an extensife collection of prehistoric stoned ans several less old brone drums, as well as wooden models of traditional houses. In other rooms the traditional Engganese weavings and machines are showed. Especially very interesting are the batik weavings which are mainly made in Bengkulu (kain besuruh), with motives from the Arabian calligraphy and the sunshine Majapahit.
The museum also displays imported ceramics and tabut, towers of paper and wood which are used in a local ritual with the same name. Every year, the towers, which can be over ten metres high, are carried through the city on 10 Muharram, the first month of the Islamic year, to honour the grandson of the representative Muhammad, Husain, which died in the battle near Karbala in Iran in 680 AD.
This ceremony is a remainder of the earlier sjititic influence, however Bengkulu currently supports the soenite branch of islam. The city has two small temples, where participants of tabut sometimes burn candles to ask for help. When their prayers are heard, they gife financial support to the construction of the tabut-tower. This museum is also opened on Sundays.
Environment
At the border of the city of Bengkulu are three important attractions for people who love nature. One of them is the 7-km beach which starts at Pantai Nala, and runs towards the south where the name changes into Pantai Panjang Gading Cempaka, Gading Cempaka was a legendaric princess, with a skin as white as ivory (gading) and as odourous as jasmin (cempaka). Swimming is not dangerous, but big waves and a strong undercurrent demand care. The most safe places for a swim are signed.
The lake Danau Dendam Tak Sudah (Lake of the everlasting resentment) is about eight kilometres south of the cith. It is surrounded by low hills, overshadowed in the far distance by the high summits of Bukit Barisan. Along the northern side of the water is a nature reserve where a special spiecies of orchid grows, the Vanda hookeriana.
The small island of Pulau Tikus (Rat island) is about five kilometres off the coast. It’s only 60 x 100 metres and is part of a much larger coral reef which is below it. During the colonial time, ships moored on the inside of the reef to be protected from big storms. Big iron anchors in the reef are the proove of this. Snorklers and divers tell the maritime life is very rich.
Trips in the province
The province of Bengkulu has many interesting sights for lovers of natural environments. Most of them are in the Barisan mountain range and can be reached via the curvy route Bengkulu-Kepahiang-Curup.
In the autumn, most of the times in November, the Rafflesia arnoldii flowers along the water rich areas of the rainforest. The area around Taba Penangjung, Bengkulu’s official rafflesia-reserve along the main road from Bengkulu to Kepahiang, is the best location to see the biggest flower in the world. Who doesn’t want to go out on good luck, you can check whether a rafflesia is currently flowering at the PHPA-office in Bengkulu.
Curuo, about 85 kilometres northeast of Bengkulu, is an attractive city, located high in the Bukit Barisan with a market where agricultural products are sold. The most important crops are rice, coffee and vegetables like carrots and colliflower. A good road connects the city with Bengkulu. This road runs across the forests in Bukit Barisan and offers a splendid view over Bengkulu city and the Indian Ocean. In the Tebong valley around Curup, waterpowered rice mills can still be found.
The hot water source, Suban Air Panas, a few kilometres outside Curup, is a popular location for short trips. In earlier times it seems to be a religious location, because a low enraisement carries the foot of a statue and a primitive Siwa Linga. A few metres higher on the slops is a rectangular block of stone, which plays a role in the legend about the princes Puteri Swangka. Another old remain is a big flat stone (Batu Panco), which was probably used by religious people as a place of meditation.
From Curup, a road runs to the north, towards Muara Aman, the centre of the gold mining during the colonial time. The route runs along Danau Tes, the biggest lake of Bengkulu and locally famous because of it’s beauty.
The province counts a number of vulcanoes like the Bukit Kaba (1937 m) near Curup, with two main and 12 smaller craters, with exhaust sulphuric fumes. The most heavy eruption took place in 1844, in which 150 people died.
Bengkulu has two major parks. In the north it’s Gunung Bukir Gedang, near Seblat, which is part of the national reserve Kerinci-Seblat. This park, the biggest in Indonesia, is the habitat of rare animals like the Sumateran elephant, rhinoceros and tiger and more common spiecies like several spiecies of deer, birds and monkeys.
In the south it’s National Park Bukit Barisan Selatan that consists of Kaur Timur area. Accept elephants, tigers and crocodiles this park also houses the slow lori and the Sumateran mountain goat. In Bengkulu Utara subdistrict is the island of Enggano about 114 km off the coast. This island had magnificent coral reefs and beautifull beaches. The coastal area however, is swampy. Also remember that the island (29 x 18 kilometres) can only be explored on foot!
June 16th, 2006
The Mentawai Islands Rain Forests have had a long geographic isolation that has resulted in numerous endemic mammal species, including four primates. There are seventeen endemic mammal species (39 percent), which on a per-unit area ranks it with Madagascar in endemic mammal species, notably primates. Of the four endemic primate species, these forests have the world’s only exclusively monogamous leaf-monkey, the Mentawai leaf-monkey.
Location and General Description
This ecoregion covers the moist forests of Mentawai Islands and Enganno Island, off the west coast of central Sumatra, Indonesia. Approximately 70 million years ago, the Indian subcontinent collided with the Asian landmass, forming the Himalayas.
An associated thrust formed Sumatra’s Barisan Mountains, and as the Barisan Range buckled upward, it formed a deep water channel to the west of Sumatra. During this time the islands of Simeulue and Enggano were formed. The Mentawai Islands separated from the Sumatran mainland via the Batu Islands more than half a million years ago. The rainfall on these islands is approximately 4,500 mm/year (Whitten et al. 2000). Based on the Köppen climate zone system, this ecoregion falls in the tropical wet climate zone (National Geographic Society 1999).
The natural vegetation of these islands is tropical lowland rain forest and is similar to but not as diverse as Sumatra’s lowland rain forests. These forests are characterized by large buttressed trees, dominated by the Dipterocarpaceae family. There is an abundant presence of woody climbers and epiphytes. The general characteristics of these forests are canopies 24 to 36 m high, with emergents reaching more than 45 m. The emergent trees are dominated by dipterocarp species (Dipterocarpus spp., Parashorea spp., Shorea spp., and Dryobalanops spp.) and, to a lesser extent, species in the Caesalpiniaceae family (Koompasia spp., Sindora spp., and Dialium spp.). Dipterocarps also dominate much of the canopy layer, but there are many other tree families such as Burseraceae, Sapotaceae, Euphorbiacae, Rubiaceae, Annonaceae, Lauraceae, and Myristicaceae (Whitten et al. 2000). Ground vegetation is limited to small-diameter trees, and an herbaceous layer is uncommon.
Biodiversity Features
The Mentawai Islands have been separated from the mainland for more than half a million years, and the long isolation has allowed the survival of relicts of an early Indo-Malayan fauna as well as the evolution of many endemics (Whitten et al. 2000). Although this small ecoregion has a depauperate mammal fauna, consisting of just forty-four species, seventeen species are endemic and one is a near endemic
Four endemic primates are found on the Mentawai Islands: the Mentawai gibbon (Hylobates klossii), Mentawai macaque (Macaca pagensis), Mentawai leaf-monkey (Presbytis potenziani), and snub-nosed monkey (Simias concolor). Almost all monkeys live in single- or multi-adult male groups with more females than adult males. There is only one exception: the Mentawai leaf-monkey. Like gibbons, it lives in permanent monogamous groups (one male and one female) within home ranges. The snub-nosed monkey is in an endemic primate genus but is related to Borneo’s proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus). The primary difference is that the snub-nosed monkey has a shorter tail (Whitten et al. 2000). The Mentawai gibbon has one of the most splendid songs of any land mammal.
Numerous other mammals found on the Mentawai islands are also endemic, and these include the Mentawai palm civet (Paradoxurus lignicolor), Mentawai squirrel (Callosciurus melanogaster), Mentawai three-striped squirrel (Lariscus obscurus), and Mentawai flying squirrel (Hylopetes sipora) (Whitten et al. 2000).
Enggano Island probably was never connected to Sumatra and has extremely impoverished mammal faunas. However, Enggano is an EBA (159) containing two restricted-range bird species (Stattersfield et al. 1998). There are three endemic species
Current Status
Although the forest cover data indicate that over 60 percent of the habitat is intact, in recent years larger-scale forestry operations have taken hold. There are three protected areas that cover 1,090 km2 (18 percent) of the ecoregion (table 3). Two of the three protected areas in the ecoregion are small, but one is almost 1,000 km2, although it is unknown how well protected these reserves are in light of the recent logging operations.
Source : http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/im/im0127_full.html
June 16th, 2006
I am honored and privileged to give a keynote speech at this session of the 6th International Seminar on Sustainable Environment and Architecture here today. This is truly a momentous occasion; for we are graced by the presence of professionals in architecture, planning, and engineering, gathered here to share views, visions, and experiences in facing the challenges of urban-living.
As a member of the Indonesian Cabinet, I consider this topic appropriate, because the government is proceeding into its National Development implementing sustainable development in all disciplines of life.
Furthermore, the topic assigned to me is indeed timely, with the concept of sustainable development and global efforts at achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) underscored by the UN Summit just last week. Consequently, integrating Architecture as a factor in the MDGs should be a major guideline in developing new concepts of environment and architecture.
To refresh our memory, almost two decades ago, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), chaired by the then Norwegian premier Gro Harlem Brundtland, defined it as ‘Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’.
For the WCED, sustainable development includes two key concepts. First, the concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world’s poor, ‘to which overriding priority should be given’ and second, the idea of ‘limits’ to the environment’ stability to meet present and future needs, be imposed by the state of technology and social organizations. To translate Brundtland’s report into action, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) organized an Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. One result was the Agenda 21 action plan, which provided for the first time an international agreement on the practical implications of sustainable development for cross-cutting issues such as trade, consumption and population growth, and sectoral issues among which architecture was included.
For these strategic purposes, mainstreaming sustainable development in our activities is very important, and should be included among others: Influencing national development guidelines and plans; nurturing local innovations, facilitating dialogs and partnerships among key stakeholders, creating public awareness campaigns, and supervising enforcement and compliance to that effect.
Indonesia has experienced important milestones in the environmental field yielding precious lessons learned to proceed further in our development.
Firstly, we have joined the urban millennium, where towns and cities will be met with continued rapid population and economic growth. This will be accompanied by significant urban expansion with its excessive energy and resources consumption, in the expense of natural resources, natural ecosystems, and environmental problems. It is also noted that in the future, the low and middle-income population group will be the most significant factor at shaping the outcome of urban-living in our country. How we manage that population growth and our behavior in respect to the environment and architecture disciplines will be crucial toward influencing future livelihoods and prosperity.
Secondly, the devastating earthquake and tsunami of 26 December 2004 in Aceh and Northern Sumatra give us new insights and made us realize that we always live in the shadow of natural disasters. Now we fully appreciate that all living things play an important part in the prevention of natural calamities. The functions of the environment itself can be used as a tool to prevent or at least mitigate the effects of future disasters. An example of this would be to utilize natural ecosystems as barriers and damage-minimizing factors. In addition, the tsunami has raised environmental concerns that threaten human health. Moreover, the need for continuous livelihood became more urgent. These are the lesson learned and it would be irresponsible if they were not included in the total concept of “an environmentally friendly architecture“.
Distinguished guests,
The important milestones I mentioned above will lead us to a series of architecture challenges that need to be addressed in this seminar.
First challenge, how could “better living environment” be implemented indiscriminately? It is the responsibility of architecture and planning professionals to provide engineering solutions to overcome extreme low quality urban living. Those solutions should aim for high environmental quality as a statement in response to environmental sustainability.
Since 1992, an array of local and national strategies has been designed to tailor these recommendations to specific conditions facing different communities across the world. One particular aspect has to be pointed out in this context: the steadily increasing energy consumption, and building designs or architecture, urban design and planning not adapted to local climatic circumstances. Too often climatic factors are neglected in construction because they are not of immediate interest and concern to the building industry, builders, designers, developers and owners. This is true not only for structures.
In hot climate zones, but also for those in temperate and cold climate zones, with the input of sufficient energy almost everything seems possible. Present construction trends in tropical and subtropical regions still show little awareness about energy conservation.
As you all have known, sustainable design in architecture is meant to apply the basic principles of achieving “green form” and “green process”. Green form manifests in environmental-friendly designs, while green process covers planning and building phases which are sensitive to the environment. I strongly believe that you all have mastered producing beautiful, healthy, sustainable and resource-efficient building, yet I still face a great number of such “green buildings” built insensitively to the local communities. Large real estate projects that boast “eco-designs” and “eco-living” are often isolating existing communities, disconnecting sources of water and open space between areas, and simply do not fit in because of a total transformation from rural neighborhood into modern, sophisticated urban area. Some of these projects are also known to have displaced a great number of people from their homes and jobs, thus indirectly causing new pockets of urban poverty and slum areas.
Other developing nations have proven to be successful in promoting sustainable environment that empower marginal communities in the shadow of economic crisis. The principles of using natural and renewable materials that are abundant locally and promoting self-build has empowered local communities to achieve eco-friendly living. It is the intervention of architects and planners that have helped producing such houses beautiful and aesthetically-pleasing. I wish these experiences can be shared publicly, so that it also serves the goal of educating the public.
Second challenge, how could we develop advanced technology that is environmentally friendly? In that context, the building and construction industry is regarded as consuming some of the highest resources in the industrial branch due to the masses of building materials transported and used, and it is also responsible for creating a major part of the anthropogenic emissions that have a detrimental effect on the climate.
A building can be regarded as a success when its construction is linked to a sensible and conscious approach towards energy as well as meeting numerous other requirements (quality of life, health, social aspects, affordability, future property value etc.) Architecturally creative and technical solutions thus have to be created and realized in view of all these specific requirements. “Good Architecture” has to fulfill many requirements – and a sensible approach towards energy is definitely one of them Hi-tech buildings and housings should not consume excessive amounts of energy, and their existence must not disrupt the delicate natural ecosystems. Their structures should not have been derived from building materials or processed through a system that endangers the well being of nature. The fact that some modern housing now adopt the “natural look” does not mean that they are allowed to exist at the expense of overused natural resources, such as wood or stone. Hence it is important to inspect the belief that modern buildings that are energy and material-efficient will be inexpensive and environmentally friendly.
Third challenge, how can we make “living” apply not only in physical dimensions, such as translating it into beautiful designs of homes? Could we also integrate social and economic aspects of the home’s inhabitants and surrounding communities? I am sure that all of you have previously acknowledged this issue; however, I understand that knowing the truth does not necessarily make its implementation easy. But if we strive to implement pro-poor and inclusive designs and technology, the end result will be satisfactory.
The often used terms such as “inclusive” and “pro-poor” do not denote only our government’s path of development, but it is the world philosophy in development. We now see that socio-economic and environmental problems will always influence one another. We also know that global and local matters are closely intertwined, with the example of local poverty spawning an international network of terrorism. Natural disasters and environmental degradation can also join together to wreak havoc in both poor communities and up-scale neighborhoods.
In our professional field, those issues often become the starting point of our work. Therefore, marginal communities should be treated as important as those who are more privileged, so that the term “better-living environment” can be achieved in its truest manifestation devoid from any forum of discrimination I suggest you make them the priority of the discussions.
We have discussed the numerous challenges arise in connection with this new complexity and diversity within the context of sustainable environment and architecture. A basic social obligation can be seen in every architectural era and it now focuses on the topic of sustainable development – i.e. an all-round economic, ecological and social approach. The search is on for systemic solutions and this often leads to conflicts in the realization of concrete development programs. The whole topic of sustainability requires a systemic approach. A change in user behavior in the office and residential building sector has also left its mark on new building constructions, thus requiring the total integration of ever-changing user needs when employing a systematic approach.
New building constructions are becoming more complex and equally diverse in design due to the increasing use of innovative materials, technologies and construction methods nowadays. The amount of chemical substances used in the building and construction industry has, for example, increased a thousand fold within the last century, and architecture is constantly endeavoring to incorporate these innovations in the design of new buildings.
Another aspect of development is the considerations of traditional wisdom ever present within our sphere of life, To complete the full circle of understanding human habitat , and to achieve a historical perspective on sustainable development, architects should not only create new buildings, but also rejoice in the wisdom that emanates from classical architecture that encapsulate the wisdom of our forefathers. That is why it is very important that we recognize this wisdom in the Old Towns of any big city or metropolitan area. These numerous examples are invaluable therefore we have to regenerate, preserve, and re-use these historic buildings. These icons of the past provide a window for the younger generation, to understand and appreciate the thoughts and expressions of their predecessors.
Ladies and Gentlemen There is presently a quiet, but widespread movement towards an architecture which treads more lightly on the planet. This movement has been given various names, and encloses many disciplines, criteria, and methodologies. It is my hope that, after discovering available alternatives, you will develop dissatisfaction with standard building practices and begin a search for true home.
You are the instigators, managers, practitioners, and the source of inspiration for the large hordes of young professionals. Your strong collective commitments are necessary in making this seminar’s credo and its scope relevant to present day needs. I fervently hope that this international seminar heralds the new age of architecture, that is ultimately inclusive, pro-poor and pro-environment.
In conclusion, I wish you luck and success in this seminar, and thank you for your kind attention.
Minister of Environment,
Ir. Rachmat Witoelar
June 16th, 2006
Pekanbaru - The Indonesian minister of forestry and the governor of Riau Province last week announced plans to expand Tesso Nilo National Park to 100,000 hectares, a move WWF applauds as necessary to ensure adequate habitat for elephants in central Sumatra. The park currently covers 38,000 hectares.
The announcement was made to public by the Minister of Forestry Mr. Kaban on his visit to the park on May 29 and in the launching of Tesso Nilo Foundation on May 30. WWF helped create the foundation to ensure funding for the park and facilitate collaborative management of the park.
“We are encouraged to see that the minister of forestry has announced plans to expand Tesso Nilo to make it viable elephant habitat and to make Riau Province the Centre of Sumatran Elephant Conservation,” said Nazir Foaed, director of policy and corporate engagement for WWF-Indonesia. “WWF is committed to working with the government, the paper and palm oil industries, and other concerned parties to ensure that the elephants of central Sumatra have a future.”
Members of the WWF elephant flying squad team, which helps to reduce conflicts between humans and elephants, with the Riau Governor, © WWF-Indonesia/Sri Maryati, 2006
The loss of natural forest on Sumatra through legal and illegal forest conversion is so severe that conflict between homeless elephants and local people has reached crisis levels. WWF has documented that the population of elephants in Central Sumatra has declined from 1067-1617 elephants in 1985 to 353-431 elephants in 2003.
WWF’s support for the conservation of Sumatran elephants comes not only from WWF-Indonesia and its supporters in Indonesia, but also from the WWF Network and supporters worldwide. Recently, WWF received signatures from nearly 40,000 WWF’s supporters in 149 countries from Austria to Zambia, the United States to South Africa, Germany, Netherlands, Indonesia, Japan and many others. These WWF supporters, representing five continents (23,093 from North America, 568 from Latin America and the Carribean, 217 from Africa, 3,279 from Asia Pacific, 175 from the Middle East and North Africa and 10,519 from Europe), are urging prompt action to address the root causes of the human-elephant conflict in Riau, and to immediately stop encroachment and conversion of elephant habitat.
June 16th, 2006