Join us on February 18th for an engaging Friends of the Future seminar with Kei Otsuki, professor of International Development Studies at the Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning here at Utrecht University. Otsuki will share insights from ‘Following Frontiers of the Forest City In this seminar. The research project evolves around the highly contested plan…

Since January 7, 2025, two lecturers from Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Indonesia, Dr. Erlis Saputra and Dr. Ari Susanti, have been participating in a staff exchange program with the Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning at Utrecht University’s Faculty of Geosciences in the Netherlands. As part of the program, various activities were organized,…

On the 17th of October Following Forest member Bosman Batubara gave a presentation which identified three distinct yet related qualitative moments of landscape subsumption under capital based on how value is produced and extracted in the location of Indonesia’s new capital city. Logging extraction started in the 1960s in that  area provides an example of…

During the Week of Indonesia-Netherlands Education and Research (WINNER), Dr. Kei Otsuki, Dr. Ari Susanti, and Dr. Rijanta participated in an insightful session addressing Indonesia’s ongoing urban transformation and the pressing need for inclusive development. Hosted by WINNER, an initiative involving institutions like BRIN, ALMI, KNAW, Nuffic Southeast Asia, and government bodies from both nations,…

On August 22, 2024, Dr. Kei Otsuki delivered a guest lecture at BRIN (The National Research and Innovation Agency) focusing on the ecological, social, and economic impacts of Indonesia’s new capital, Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN). Titled “Following Frontiers of the Forest City,” her lecture provided critical insights into the complex dynamics shaping this ambitious development…

On August 19th, Dr. Kei Otsuki held a public lecture at Mulawarman University, sharing insights into the sustainability and inclusivity of Indonesia’s capital relocation to Kalimantan. Dr. Otsuki’s lecture, grounded in a multidisciplinary approach developed through Indonesia-Dutch research collaboration, examined how urbanization in Nusantara might be planned in a way that would benefit both local…

On August 7th, Dr. Kei Otsuki, and Dr. Ari Susanti of the Following Frontiers project, participated in a collaborative discussion at the University of Gadjah Mada (UGM) exploring the development challenges posed by Indonesia’s new capital, Nusantara. Hosted by UGM’s Faculty of Geography and Faculty of Forestry, the event examined the complex environmental and social…

Following Frontiers team members Vandy Yoga Swara, Rizki Adriadi Ghiffari, Agung Jauhari, and Dr. Ari Susanti presented their research projects at the EuroSEAS 2024 conference, hosted from 24-26 July by the University of Amsterdam (UvA). This event celebrates a legacy of Southeast Asian studies that dates back decades, with roots in the work of UvA…

On July 10, Femke van Noorloos presented her insights on “Urban Fair Transitions” at a LANDac Summer School. The Summer School focused on social justice within global environmental transitions and looked at the pressing reality that climate initiatives, designed for global benefits, often impose disproportionate burdens on marginalized communities. This is a reminder of the…

08-09 July 2024  The Forest City Research Project is a four year project that explores broad social and environmental impacts of the new capital city and its urban frontiers in East Kalimantan of Indonesia. On July 8-9, 2024, the Consortium successfully conducted a two-day Writeshop in Soesterberg, the Netherlands, as the inauguration of the new…