Masalah kota, masalah kita – rusuh kota, rusuh kita

Menanggapi kerusuhan di Inggris -yang juga melanda kota dimana kami tinggal di Manchester- saya menulis catatan di bawah ini sebagai reaksi atas berbagai analisis yang gencar muncul di media. Catatan ini saya kirim ke harian Kompas 11 Agustus dan, setelah diedit sana-sini, dimuat tanggal 22 Agustus 2011 (silakan baca di sini). Sebelumnya, juga saya ‘kicau’kan di Twitter, yang diarsip rekan saya mas Suryaden di blognya (di sini).

Selamat menikmati catatan (yang lebih lengkap) ini – semoga berguna.

NGOs, the Internet and Sustainable Development

NGOs, THE INTERNET AND SUSTAINABLE RURAL DEVELOPMENT
The case of Indonesia

Information, Communication and Society, 13(1):88-120, 2010

Yanuar Nugroho

Abstract
Today sustainable rural development is of paramount importance in Indonesian development. Yet, different social actors have different perspectives on it. Non-government organizations (NGOs) in Indonesia have established themselves in pivotal positions in the social, economic and political landscape across the country, and a large amount of their work has been connected with development in the rural sector. But, there has been little attempt to understand how NGOs in Indonesia, particularly rural NGOs, engage with the issue of sustainable rural development itself. Since rural development is one of the oldest issues to be discussed among activists, since the early days of Indonesian NGOs, it is interesting to see how they understand the issue of sustainability in rural development and rural reform. An empirical study was conducted recently to see how some Indonesian NGOs, in their endeavour to respond to and broaden the discourse, utilize Internet technology. The study employs a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches to build a detailed story about how different organizations working in rural development deploy strategies to deal with the issue. By doing so, it aspires to contribute to the advancement of theory relating to the efficacy of the Internet as a tool for social reform and sustainable development by taking Indonesia as a case study.

Microfinance and Innovation: Are we reinventing the Wheel?

I had an opportunity to co-author with my ex supervisor Professor Ian Miles to write an opinion in the world magazine MicrofinanceInsights. The piece appears in the latest edition (Vol 15, Nov/Dec 2009). I quote the editorial’s comment:

Innovation: Are we Reinventing the Wheel?

In this issue, we look at different innovations—product, technology, and financial—that are adding value and efficiency to the sector. In our Commentary, Ian Miles and Yanuar Nugroho of the University of Manchester, argue that microfinance is now poised to bridge the gap between the privileged and the bottom of the pyramid, with the help of innovations that bear no resemblance to the Wall Street machinations that helped bring the global economy to its knees. In our cover story, Stephen Hodgson of Redport International and Yana Watson of Dalberg Global Development Advisors, question the nature of innovation that has taken place in microfinance to date; cite examples from the annals of financial history that could work well when applied to microfinance; and conclude that the sector might be better served if it adopts models that have been tried and tested in other spheres of finance. The issue brims with examples of innovations that work—from mobile technology in India to financial education for Mongolian teenagers to ATM-style kiosks in Georgia—and ones that don’t, such as the Business Correspondent system, which has faltered in India. In this issue’s Survey, our team polled 180 microfinance institutions about how Information & Communication Technology has influenced their work. You will also find the results of a Reader Survey we conducted in September to gauge what our audience thinks of Microfinance Insights so we can tailor the content to suit their preferences.

Mencerna Kondisi Sosial Dunia

Media Indonesia – OPINI – 15 September 2005

Yanuar Nugroho

MUNGKIN karena riuh rendah persoalan ekonomi, politik, dan sosial di Tanah Air hari-hari ini, banyak dari kita tak tahu saat PBB merilis laporannya 25 Agustus lalu.

Padahal, laporan berjudul The World Social Situation: Inequality Predicament (‘Situasi Sosial Dunia: Parahnya Ketimpangan’) ini amat penting untuk diketahui. Mengapa?

Wajah Ganda Pembangunan

Media Indonesia – OPINI – 23 Nopember 2004

Yanuar Nugroho

MINGGU lalu, Bank Dunia baru saja merilis laporan tahunan tentang status pembangunan dunia tahun 2005 yang berjudul A Better Investment Climate for Everyone (Iklim Investasi yang Lebih Baik bagi Semua) (World Development Report 2005). Apa isi laporan ini? Ringkasnya, sektor bisnis swasta baik skala kecil, menengah, ataupun besar, memegang peranan penting dalam pembangunan saat ini karena ia mendorong pertumbuhan ekonomi yang sangat dibutuhkan untuk mengurangi kemiskinan.

Akuntabilitas

TEROPONG – Mingguan Hidup, November 2004

Yanuar Nugroho

Sampai hari ini, masih ramai soal Teluk Buyat. Konon kabarnya, dari tambang emas yang dikelola oleh PT. Newmont Minahasa Raya itu, dibuang ke laut lebih dari 2.000 ton tailing atau limbah tambang yang mengandung logam berat setiap harinya. Akibatnya, lebih dari 100 warga Buyat, Ratatotok, Kabupaten Minahasa Selatan, Provinsi Sulawesi Utara, menderita penyakit Minamata, yaitu kerusakan saraf. Mereka menderita gatal-gatal dan kejang pada tubuh, kemudian muncul benjolan. Benjolan yang muncul dalam banyak varian pada sejumlah penderita, yakni di tangan, kaki, tengkuk, pantat, kepala atau payudara ini diduga sebagai akibat kontaminasi logam berat arsen dan merkuri yang mencemari Teluk Buyat dari PT NMR .

21st-century crusade to reduce world poverty

The Jakarta Post – Headline News, 17 October 2003

by Yanuar Nugroho

In spite of the development of agriculture, scientific knowledge and modern technology, the wealth of the poorest group has actually fallen. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) this year reports that more than 1.2 billion people across the world — two-thirds of them women — live in crushing poverty, and face difficult access to food, safe water, sanitation, basic education and health services.

Health issue: The art of playing God?

OPINION & EDITORIAL – The Jakarta Post, 12 September 2003
Yanuar Nugroho

Having less money means less opportunity to survive — to keep alive. We are in a world in which death and life are no longer “natural,” but “manufactured.

The association of pharmaceutical industries in the United States, PhRMA, quoting last year’s World Health Organization report, describes how diseases quickly and harshly kill people — 4 million people die annually due to respiratory infection, 2.2 million from typhus-cholera-dysentery, 1.7 million from tuberculosis, 1 million from malaria, 900,000 from blood-fever and 3 million from AIDS-related diseases.