Why do infrastructure projects in Indonesia end up stalled and abandoned (mangkrak)? 

Drawing from fieldwork in a West Papuan coastal city, this presentation argues that infrastructural failure in Indonesia is not merely the result of public-private corruption but is structurally embedded within the project-based economic system itself.

Mangkrak thus becomes a mode of capitalist production in its own right. Consequently, it not only enables Indigenous land dispossession but also serves as a springboard for land rushes and exacerbates ecological degradation.

Speaker

Anna Tsing  is a Professor of Anthropology at Aarhus University and Distinguished Professor at the Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Cruz. She is a world-leading theorist of globalisation, environment and transnational interconnection.

Discussant

Hatib Kadir is an environmental humanities researcher specializing in ecological crises in peripheral regions at KITLV. Over the past seven years, he has conducted research in coastal areas of the Eastern Indonesian archipelago, spanning from Maluku to West Papua. His work delves into the intersections of the Anthropocene, human and non-human interactions, and ecological disruptions caused by resource exploitation, infrastructure projects, political policies, human activities, settler colonialism, and invasive species.

Moderator

Ward Berenschot is a professor of comparative political anthropology at the University of Amsterdam and a senior researcher at KITLV. Studying politics in India and Indonesia, his research focuses on the role of money and informality in election campaigns, while a second field of research concerns the character of civil society and citizenship in these countries.

Format, date, time & venue

This seminar is an online event via Zoom, on Thursday 11 June from 15.30–17.00 PM (CET).  

UUKS  seminar series

The seminar series Unravelling Unconventional Knowledge Systems examines how diverse, often overlooked forms of knowledge can inform responses to contemporary ecological and climatic crises. Rather than privileging institutional science, the series emphasises the cultivation of knowledge through everyday practices, spiritual engagements, ecological relationships, and grassroots adaptations across generations.

Image

Picture of a mangkrak, an ruined house on top of drained swampland in West Papua.

Flyer

PDF version (A3 poster)