tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-306903072011-10-20T22:14:09.254+07:00"Seek and learn to recognize who and what, in the midst of the inferno, are not inferno, make them endure, give them space." Italo CalvinoDewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.comBlogger1131100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-6777497474258746622011-10-20T22:11:00.002+07:002011-10-20T22:14:09.326+07:00

It sneaked up the middle of the nightA memory triggered by a postureA moment that was known not to lastRushed back contemptuouslyProlonged and enhancedLike an unforgiving karmaWhat was then a stolen joyCrept up as uncaught tearsSoaked up by the blackness and muffled TVA longing that was never mine to fillA loving that was never his to give

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-49583275875419030982011-06-18T21:38:00.004+07:002011-06-18T21:49:30.617+07:00

Image sourceA tingle on the footAnd the tiny cockroach crawledbrown against brownA jerk on the seatAnd the cool air slowly reachedmetal against metalAnd the ground begins to rumblemuffled conversationsturned to waves and facesconsolations and reassurances, ofA partingnot too longA constant push on the hornhow often does it crash?faces pausing and looking,waitinghow long does it take?A stop.people

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-54152952877758620032011-01-09T14:43:00.004+07:002011-01-09T15:19:12.887+07:00

Does the sheer joy of learning belong only to the privileged? For a few years now I have been thinking about the relevance of formal schooling and its curriculum, particularly for members of the society who are marginalized – geographically, economically, politically, socially, or culturally. My encounters with communities living in poverty or in remote areas have made me seriously question what

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-27910091880022510052011-01-01T20:23:00.002+07:002011-01-02T10:41:52.050+07:00

Happy quadruple one! I have resolved to start blogging again this year, to outlet experiences, thoughts, reflections, hopes, expectations along my personal and professional journeys through life, and to channel them through writing, which had hopefully reached its all-time low productivity in 2010. I did try putting matters into words, but it was awfully difficult, not because of a writer’s block

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-84113755502966053052008-06-29T22:22:00.004+07:002008-06-29T22:30:51.670+07:00

“[C]an human nature be changed in such a way that man will forget his longing for freedom, for dignity, for integrity, for love ... ?” asked Erich Fromm in his afterword to George Orwell’s 1984. In his haunting novel, Orwell described very convincing procedures through which even the most ardent believer in humanity, “a minority of one” in the sea of an otherwise brainwashed society, could be

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-74028166954046701492008-06-21T16:43:00.001+07:002008-06-21T16:47:01.370+07:00

For a while I’ve been thinking that the previous title of this blog – Space & (Indonesian) Society – hasn’t quite captured the development of my own thoughts over time. But I couldn’t quite pin point what are the threads of my interests and writings that have been captured within. Yesterday, an idea that has always been there hit me: It’s Italo Calvino’s quotation that I put under the title of my

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-35048465086838469462008-05-27T15:46:00.009+07:002008-05-29T17:41:24.337+07:00

Image sourceThe months of May through August (or what used to be known as the dry season in Indonesia before climate became quite unpredictable worldwide) bring a certain delight for markisa (passion fruit in English, maracuja in Portuguese, maracuya in Spanish) lovers. I have only become recently addicted to markisa, but I have mostly been absorbed by the beauty of this fruit's structure and

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-89267802292218597492008-04-12T21:19:00.002+07:002008-04-21T20:46:19.030+07:00

Have you ever wondered why, when meeting a person either for the first or hundredth time, you seem to be attracted to some while appalled by others? Have you ever met a person, who you immediately felt like you’d known this person for your whole life, and become instant long-lost siblings you never had? And who, you knew, could never cross that line to become your lovers? On the other hand,

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-55812717365677095542008-04-03T22:15:00.003+07:002008-04-03T22:26:51.402+07:00

In memoriam, 1999:A man’s age is something that creates an impression. It is the epitome of his whole life. It has accrued slowly, the maturity that is his alone. It has come together in the teeth of all the obstacles conquered, the grave illnesses overcome, the pains that flesh is heir to, the despairs surmounted and the risks courted, of most of which he knew nothing at the time. It has come

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-60239292022066713022008-03-14T18:55:00.002+07:002008-03-14T19:11:36.873+07:00

I recently finished reading Francis Collins’ “Language of God” (2006). Having read Richard Dawkins’ “God Delusion” (2006), albeit belatedly, I am now able to contextualize TIME Magazine God vs. Science debate conducted almost two years ago now. For me, Collins’ writing is more accessible and kinder (more politically-correct) than Dawkins’, although Dawkins’ emotional and carefully worded rant

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-14620804141251825792008-03-05T21:57:00.005+07:002008-03-06T21:26:49.851+07:00

Marketing, branding, and promoting in these past few years have upped their bars to reach an unprecedented level of superb, aesthetically pleasurable, collaboratively sensual experiences. In a post written almost a year ago, I mentioned briefly about British Council’s traveling exhibition Love & Money, which showcased works of artists and designers from the UK, done as part of the government’

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-49313137906707644702008-03-01T23:43:00.004+07:002008-03-03T20:49:20.535+07:00

Opinion, The Jakarta Post, 1 March 2008Published as "University Competitiveness"*Various newspapers and weblogs have, in the past few weeks, discussed about the controversial ranking of Indonesian universities by Globe Asia magazine (February 2008). The ranking is controversial because it places Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH) directly under Universitas Indonesia and above other universities

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-51504521441789008582008-02-28T23:56:00.006+07:002008-02-29T00:13:16.967+07:00

Most of us would consider Lego as children’s toy – a pretty cool one too at that. Apart from choking hazard for children under 3 years old as is written in most Lego boxes, we would not consider Lego as harmless for children in general. But an early childhood after-school program in Seattle’s Hilltop Children’s Center discovers that through the making of Legotown, children could very much be in a

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-41477103613121516412008-02-22T22:29:00.003+07:002008-02-22T22:38:59.096+07:00

Nothing could better capture the agony of waiting - the very state I am in at present: "His mind and flesh were incapable now of enduring any uncertainties. Quivering like a piece of fruit inside a dish of jello, he waited impatiently for the moment when the gelatine would kindly harden. It seemed to him that the coagulation of the world would have to be completed before he could look up

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-972534315396231962008-02-03T23:03:00.000+07:002008-02-05T23:20:02.465+07:00

Every time you lie, deceive, or cheat, you lose a little bit of your soul – Poi Dog Pondering, I’ve Got My Body I hate, detest, and can’t bear a lie. … there is a taint of death, a flavour of mortality in lies – Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness Pain forces even the innocent to lie – Publilius Syrus, Sententiae, no. 171 In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-64626531548507073092008-01-20T13:45:00.000+07:002008-01-20T17:51:10.696+07:00

It's not What you thought When you first began it You got What you want Now you can hardly stand it though, By now you know It's not going to stop It's not going to stop It's not going to stop 'Til you wise up…So just give up Wise Up, Aimee Mann (Magnolia, 1999) More than five years ago, when I decided to return to Indonesia and focus my work in the field of education, I read a book that

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-45670337752715709622008-01-08T22:27:00.000+07:002008-01-08T22:45:47.474+07:00

Fear the Chinese, declared my sister upon the conclusion of our recent trip to Western China. Not because they are the growing, massive, hard working nation to watch out for, but because of their ability to endure harsh, unsanitary lives on a daily basis.As I do a quick run over the internet on Chinese toilets, it becomes apparent that many people have written about their experiences in China

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-56285985259838630022008-01-06T12:40:00.000+07:002008-04-03T22:26:37.343+07:00

Happy New Year everyone! I have been away these past few weeks, reading Steven Pinker’s “How the Mind Works”, and came across this following passage, which only confirms my previous posting on “The Fittest of Human”: Nature does not dictate what we should accept or how we should live our lives. Some feminists and gay activists react with fury to the banal observations that natural selection

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-8666212165626519312007-12-01T14:21:00.001+07:002008-03-02T00:08:15.255+07:00

Opinion, The Jakarta Post, 1 December 2007Published as "The Rise of Privately Funded Education" * The delivery of education in Indonesia has long been operated by private educational institutions. But more recently, with increasing cost of running an educational institution and funding its programs, and decreasing government subsidies to support such costs, most educational institutions have to

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1347375446539450422007-11-17T23:52:00.000+07:002007-11-18T00:03:31.626+07:00

I recently heard from a friend that someone I know is going through a rough family crisis. He is one of the most curious, driven, insightful, and intense architect and thinker that I know in person, and I have always wondered at what personal cost he does these with. Coincidentally, I am reading Nelson Mandela’s “Long Walk to Freedom” (1994) , and reaching the part where he went through a

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-44382238165488593722007-11-17T12:45:00.000+07:002007-11-17T12:47:12.324+07:00

When you hear about Darwin’s survival of the fittest, and look at your own circle of friends and acquaintances, who do you think would survive in the long run? I used to think that Darwin’s survival of the fittest means the survival of the strongest, healthiest, and smartest. Among my own circle of friends and acquaintances, I think of those sensible people who are smart and open minded,

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-15543842328527527002007-11-07T22:20:00.000+07:002007-11-07T22:26:00.582+07:00

In discussing the state of Indonesian education with a colleague recently, I was reminded by this statistics in Naomi Klein’s “No Logo”: “Youth (age 15-24) unemployment as a percentage of total unemployment in Indonesia was 72.5% in 1996”. I was shocked by such a high figure, the highest in the list as a matter of fact. As a comparison, in 1997 the percentage was 45.4% in the Philippines, 35.9%

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-64879705340906351322007-10-08T19:59:00.000+07:002007-11-11T13:39:39.528+07:00

In this age of hyper-commercialization, even burying process has become a one-stop service like many others. Within this context, what happens with burial rituals and traditions, and even the process of grievance? Does it matter anymore whether we understand the rituals and traditions we do, or do these have become so commercialized as well that we no longer can tell whether they are real or

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-53442042590680372012007-10-01T16:24:00.000+07:002007-10-01T16:26:17.532+07:00

Some hard facts on how bad the state of Indonesian education is: An OECD survey (2004, as cited in World Bank report 2006) revealed that “[Indonesian students’] performance … signals serious deficiencies in students’ ability to use reading as a tool for acquisition of knowledge and skills in other areas” (World Bank, 2006: 5). Another statistics from the Indonesian Ministry of National

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-72404191811368499152007-09-18T22:03:00.000+07:002007-09-18T22:32:57.173+07:00

I didn't know that the digital smiley :-) was invented by a Professor! And it was done 25 years ago! (I thought it was invented more recently.) And it wasn't until recently either that I fully realized why using the computers could be so intimidating for those to whom these otherwise helpful machines were foreign.My mom and dad, well in their 60s and 70s, were only recently learning to use the

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-38065146303633009412007-09-01T15:32:00.000+07:002007-09-01T15:38:04.932+07:00

Outsourcing. Flattener #5 in Thomas Friedman’s list of ten forces that flattened the world (2005), and how it changed India: “There are currently about 245,000 Indians answering phones from all over the world or dialing out to solicit people for credit cards or cell phone bargains or overdue bills. These call center jobs are low-wage, low-prestige jobs in America, but when shifted to India

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-56924060989945220142007-08-28T22:29:00.000+07:002007-08-28T22:40:37.731+07:00

Wouldn't it be great to read two books simultaneously at one time? :) Below is photograph of William Wegman, Reading two books, 1971.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-81835411754501823432007-08-22T23:03:00.000+07:002007-08-22T23:23:06.357+07:00

I have decided to start blogging in Bahasa - to improve my ability to write in my mother tongue, which unfortunately has not been as developed as my ability to write in English (shame on me!). But I beg to differ: I start to learn how to write properly in English, and never have done so in Bahasa. Many fellow Indonesians I know who learned to write properly in English, though, also tend to be

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-16929265634216405572007-08-20T12:15:00.000+07:002007-08-28T22:41:49.956+07:00

There is a saying that beggars can’t be choosers, and while this may be true for most cases, I think there are exceptional ones. To take the saying literally, most beggars become one because they have no choice. But there are those who choose to be beggars, and even to the extreme case of doing so for the sake of principles – like the 1981 year-long ‘performance’ of Tehching Hsieh who “lived

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-14275173651741118792007-08-13T23:43:00.000+07:002007-11-11T13:43:26.292+07:00

It has been a while since I went to the beach, and the trip to Carita over the weekend was my solace to the years of neglect in coordinating with the waves. And I failed miserably the whole first day. The waves kept leaving my boogie board behind, or I was too fast, or too slow, or completely taken over by them. Hopeless, embarrassing attempts. I did only a little better with the kayak. The waves

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-53470429016209962222007-08-08T15:38:00.000+07:002007-08-08T15:51:29.706+07:00

The debate on God has apparently warmed up again. From Goenawan Muhammad to Steven D. Levitt, the question of belief and disbelief has triggered a lot of interests, mine included.My interest in the topic was triggered none other by 9/11. A specific book that I purchased then was Mark Juergensmeyer’s “Terror in the Mind of God” (2000), for the reason that, in Juergensmeyer’s words:This book is

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-66075782604902927722007-08-08T11:52:00.000+07:002007-08-08T11:57:33.210+07:00

I recently trained high-school students who got scholarships to pursue education overseas. The purpose of the training was to make these students becoming aware of their blocks to critical and creative thinking – one of the main problems is stereotyping.One of the biggest stereotypes that Indonesian has is against communism, specifically the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI). When asked about

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-13299462485417663062007-08-03T08:49:00.000+07:002007-08-03T09:14:56.109+07:00

A friend told me recently that her brother got into one of the most prestigious public university in Indonesia. He got in through the exam administered by the university on the first phase of the admission.What is of interest to me is the several phases how one could get into this public university, and the respective entrance fee:1. To go through the entrance exam administered by the university,

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-85970244928374024822007-07-31T22:32:00.001+07:002007-07-31T22:58:37.559+07:00

Here's an interesting news from Kompas today:The Commission for Election DKI Jakarta wish all institutions in DKI Jakarta to submit to government's request to let all of their employees to take a break on August 8, 2007. If not, they could be suspected to prevent people from using their voting rights in the election for governor and vice governor of DKI Jakarta....According to the jury, those [

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-14363982267945587822007-07-30T13:58:00.000+07:002007-07-30T14:07:42.252+07:00

This image was one of several that I received recently in my inbox. The text said:Handbag Euro 32,-Food for a week Euro 4,-I've heard of people buying handbags for thousands of US dollars - and on waiting list too! Hope the same people can't wait to contribute to poverty.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-71741683612900288092007-07-27T21:52:00.000+07:002007-07-28T09:45:27.043+07:00

Image credit: (left) www.bma.go.th, (right) Suryono HerlambangThis is a long due post, and follow up to this Bangkok-Jakarta comparative study, which result was recently disseminated in a national workshop. Background to the study was written by Sri Palupi from Institute for Ecosoc Rights here and by a Kompas reporter here. The workshop presented survey findings conducted by Institute for Ecosoc

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-34462654423570677372007-07-26T21:29:00.000+07:002007-07-26T21:43:59.928+07:00

The following may help define what specifically is being referred to in the recently passed, controversial Indonesian law on CSR.William Damon, a Professor of Education at Stanford University and a co-researcher of Good Work Project, in his book “The Moral Advantage” (2004), categorizes business morality into four dimensions:"1. Generative morality arises from deep inner purposes and beliefs.2.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-37879690527294993492007-07-25T21:15:00.000+07:002007-07-25T21:31:20.957+07:00

In light of these recent disasters in Indonesia, I was reminded of a sticker that was given to me by some of the people in Common Room last week. The prints on the back said:" Several countries have issued travel warnings not to visit Indonesia. It is now your time to make statement that Indonesia is too beautiful to be passed. Please stick this on your vehicle, luggage, etc." Here is where I

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-44275765257768743192007-07-19T22:04:00.000+07:002007-07-19T22:39:12.858+07:00

The top 10 advertising expenditure by brand in print and TV in 2004 (in Indonesia) were, not surprisingly, for the promotion of products (shampoo and skin, cigarettes, oil lubricants), mobile phone providers, and political campaign.And guess what comes directly after this top 10?It's paranormal (!!!) - at 121,596 million Rupiah (13.5 million USD.)If you are wondering whether or not this data is

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-26921578165123734302007-07-13T23:04:00.000+07:002007-07-13T23:23:10.453+07:00

Just found out that Tintin in Congo is considered very racist. Being a huge fan of Tintin, I read most of the series, but Tintin in Congo is not one of it unfortunately. So what I have to say next would have to be taken in the context of this ignorance: who, except the most conscientious ones, in 1930s were not racist? Placing this comic into its historical context should be the fair thing to do

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-81105929394846041222007-07-13T08:50:00.000+07:002007-07-13T09:05:10.839+07:00

I'm not sure how much this new science of parking will help Jakarta's traffic. Higher parking cost in combination with better public transportation would do a little (as when the parking cost doubled and with the introduction of busway).But perhaps not allowing buses, minibuses, and any vehicles to stop haphazardly would help the most - and figuring out how to prevent pedestrians from leisurely

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-82730355289336735642007-07-08T20:24:00.000+07:002007-07-08T20:36:05.887+07:00

We blog for different reasons, one of the main ones is to share our ideas with the wider public instantly, or almost as soon as we come up with the ideas. And it seems that this desire to publish may link with the vanity to know how far our ideas spread and influence other people which, with the help of search engines, is not that hard to track. Take for example Puspa mentioned Greg Mankiw, who

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-33042183870477201502007-07-02T16:13:00.000+07:002007-07-02T19:32:32.406+07:00

Maybe I shouldn't feel too bad about switching careers every so often! The end of this saga is that I will be going back to school in September, taking my second master's in Arts in Education program at HGSE. Yay!

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-70116111203085960412007-07-01T20:30:00.000+07:002007-07-01T20:42:29.897+07:00

I am often reminded by a professor that as an academic, I should always attempt to be neutral (he senses that I am not). Thus, I'm glad to have re-read this following excerpt:"There is no such thing as a neutral educational process. Education either functions as an instrument that is used to facilitate the integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-36210776747808147992007-06-23T10:54:00.000+07:002007-11-11T13:43:26.293+07:00

In this previous post, I shared my worries on religious institution camouflaged as educational institution. In this one, I would like to share some quick run through the responses to the surveys we gave. What we found were even more disturbing.Some of the survey questions were modified to fit the participants as teachers in training. These included a question that asked what the participants

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-19382056242427522642007-06-23T00:17:00.000+07:002007-11-11T13:43:26.294+07:00

Along with two colleagues, I was recently invited to train students on introduction to creative thinking. As part of the continuation of our study last year, we handed out pre- and post- surveys to find out the role of motivation and culture in teaching creative thinking.While waiting for the students to fill in their post-surveys, I looked around the room, which walls were filled with pinned up

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-81427541459876195262007-06-21T21:33:00.000+07:002007-06-21T21:47:23.956+07:00

Recently, an article in Business Week mentioned the clash between creativity vs. efficiency in 3M, (used to be?) known as one of the most creative companies in the world. Even more recently, another article from the same source discussed Frank Gehry’s Stata Building at MIT which mentioned as well the clash between creativity vs. efficiency in the context of space.Being trained as an architect by

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-86439966163457386662007-06-20T20:38:00.000+07:002007-06-20T21:17:11.445+07:00

Sao Paulo is on the move to become a city with no advertising sign. In the long run, if this city persists, how might it alter the perception of its citizen?Contrast this with Italo Calvino's image of an industrial city of nothern Italy in the 1960s:Born and raised in the city, ... [Michelino] had never seen a forest, not even at a distance. ... [Michelino and his brother] walked around the city,

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-64198405601947447122007-06-13T22:26:00.000+07:002007-06-13T22:34:20.277+07:00

Graduation time is in the air. Yesterday, a post in one of the mailing lists I subscribed to forwarded Bill Gates’ remarks to graduates of Harvard, which I find very inspiring, particularly this part:“… But taking a serious look back … I do have one big regret. I leftHarvard with no real awareness of the awful inequities in the world – the appalling disparities of health, and wealth, and

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-78853262211134741462007-06-01T14:47:00.000+07:002007-06-01T18:07:48.996+07:00

President Yudhoyono has launched a vision for Indonesia: by 2030, Indonesia will be among top five economic powers in the world. In the past three days, Kompas published a seminar that attempted to relate this vision with education. The second article in the series is of interest in this post. In it, the article stated that the vision, albeit feasible, is impossible to achieve by 2030,

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-57171099070822492902007-05-30T13:01:00.000+07:002007-05-30T13:12:58.433+07:00

"... words were consequential in a way ... [that] pictures were not. The pictures belonged to their instant; though they could serve memory, they were not the same as memory. You could not quarrel with the pictures. You could not change what they insistently and irremediably saw. But as the words rushed in in torrents, as they proliferated, becoming more and more various and removed, some broke

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-51206665701509752462007-05-23T21:50:00.000+07:002007-05-23T22:11:59.585+07:00

I attended a seminar today, a small part of which discussed about the state of Higher Education in Indonesia.One of the speakers said that currently the Indonesian Higher Education aims to promote internationally-recognized programs. If any institutions are interested, they are encouraged to "copy the curriculum from overseas program".The speaker continued in saying that he attended a meeting

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-12110915627969730212007-05-12T11:02:00.000+07:002007-05-13T11:51:14.263+07:00

On Wednesday, I went to two of the eighteen communities under Urban Poor Consortium’s network to observe their alternative educational programs. Both were located near Jakarta Kota. The first one was inside a small and rather dark but paved and clean alley. Here and there people were sitting, with some doors opening into small cramped rooms.Fifty meters into the alley, the ambience got denser as

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-75744959614995019502007-05-10T22:06:00.000+07:002007-08-20T12:22:01.299+07:00

I always have a lot of interests, not only in what I do, but what I want to do. I am currently holding two part time, two freelance, and one volunteer jobs. It’s been like this for the past eight years, the last few of which I’ve grown restless and started thinking about going back to school. The problem is, with my diverse interests, I want to learn more about not just one subject. After much

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-54159901721631984662007-04-23T21:58:00.000+07:002007-04-23T22:18:22.513+07:00

From Margaret Atwood's "Negotiating with the Dead":I would like to begin by talking about messengers. Messengers always exist in a tringular situation - the one who sends the message, the message bearer, whether human or inorganic, and the one who receives the message. Picture, therefore, a triangle, but not a complete triangle: something more like an upside-down V. The writer and the reader are

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1297599776083504512007-04-18T20:07:00.000+07:002007-08-20T12:22:01.300+07:00

Do you ever wonder why some people seem to be un-detachable from their cell phones, some must get connected to the internet very often if not most of the time, and others don’t get attached to either, but seem to be with people all the time?Recently it dawned on me that people can be categorized into three groups according to their preferred means of communication and coordination with other

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-86356969221988200822007-04-16T23:46:00.000+07:002007-04-23T22:19:27.045+07:00

Sorrow, piled on my pillow, what is your shape?Like waves in rivers and seas, you endlessly churn.How long the night, how dark the sky, when will it be light?Restless, I sat up, gown thrown over my shoulders, in the cold.When dawn came at last, only ashes remained of my hundred thoughts ...That poem, believe it or not, was written by Mao (taken from this book). All humans are subject to sorrow.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-40656733741955484212007-04-14T12:39:00.000+07:002007-04-14T12:49:22.634+07:00

Several weeks ago, while on a business trip in Ubud, I took a moment to go see the famed rice terraces. As is typical in tourist sites of Bali, the moment I got off from the rented car, a group of people swarmed around me to sell things off. I walked quickly passed them and cascaded down to be at the edge of a cliff from where I could savor the view much treasured by most urbanites who have been

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-72740429009322585172007-04-11T22:50:00.000+07:002007-08-28T22:41:49.957+07:00

Several weeks ago I went around some cities to visit arts and design industries, communities, and schools. I thought the visits to the universities would be most interesting, but as it turned out, the visits happened towards the very end of the week so most of the schools were rather quiet and one was in dilapidated condition. Nothing was happening.The arts and design communities, though, were

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-29550378645316793732007-04-06T18:24:00.000+07:002007-04-06T20:04:29.293+07:00

A new Atom triagonal clips No. 303 box.Attempt #3.I leave it up to your imagination.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-89164986617578689382007-04-01T22:11:00.000+07:002007-04-01T22:22:47.199+07:00

I recently visited Yogyakarta. I didn’t expect the remains of the earthquake could still be seen throughout the city. Here are some photographs from Institut Seni Indonesia, the Research Institute building – or what’s left of it. They could surely research the structural failure of the building from its remains now.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-28367041019378105532007-03-19T22:05:00.000+07:002007-03-21T22:33:32.982+07:00

Frogs: jumpling, flipping, stretching.Dragonflies with broken wings. Hoover craft and safe boats. Hands holding on, or are they just ramps connecting? A new Atom triagonal clips No. 303 box.Attempt #2.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-43396682832562782932007-03-18T23:15:00.000+07:002007-03-19T00:57:46.797+07:00

This past week, British Council Indonesia has posted several advertisements in Kompas about the upcoming IYCEY (International Young Creative Entrepreneur of the Year) Music Awards. Indeed, the end of this month all the way through April will be a busy time for British Council. The Education UK will be promoting UK universities in Jakarta and Bandung, and Love and Money Exhibition, will be

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-81865013264911764992007-03-13T21:53:00.000+07:002007-05-13T11:52:36.555+07:00

After a few years of teaching, I began this semester with a little excitement: I had a Japanese Indonesian in my studio. The first one I had. But apart from this identity, he would probably not had attracted my attention further was it not for what he said during the first lecture I gave.I was talking about the importance of being creative, of having ideas rather than simply knowledge. Right

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-7522456290189697992007-03-11T11:40:00.000+07:002007-03-11T12:56:01.015+07:00

Three dimensional forms can be created out of flat planes. Packaging boxes are examples of such attempts. Other than creating the boxes they are intended for, what other forms can they create? These sets of explorations will fall under the simple heading 'boxes'. A bus shelter.A girl with ponytails, sitting on the floor, playing.A dog running, waggling its tail.A life guard post.A child

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-91952510475434356762007-03-04T16:03:00.000+07:002007-06-20T21:02:21.747+07:00

The city is redundant: it repeats itself so that something will stick in the mind. …Memory is redundant: it repeats signs so that the city can begin to exist.Italo Calvino, “Invisible Cities”, Harvest Book, 1974: 19. Take a look at these series of pictures below. They are taken from the point of view of a passenger car running at 20-30 kilometer per hour. Can you see where RCTI is?It’s on picture

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-71529830417770186312007-02-28T16:11:00.000+07:002007-03-02T00:31:22.129+07:00

My colleague Undi has an interesting hobby, if you can call it that. I have teased him as a person who has prioritas tidak jelas (unclear priority), with a peculiar inkling towards books especially in their handling. Like most people who love books, he can’t resist from buying books. Yet unlike most people who love books, he worships books to the extent that he would copy his own books and read

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-12316071848215861082007-02-22T21:17:00.000+07:002007-02-22T21:18:56.115+07:00

Flood in Bandung. More ferry and plane accidents. Sigh.Had lunch with Head of Outreach from a well-known educational foundation that conducted teacher trainings, distributed scholarships, etc. Asked him how they go about selecting the schools to target their teacher training programs, and how the responses are.It hasn’t been easy. Most teachers and headmasters would rather not get any programs

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-11669789407207032372007-02-22T20:19:00.000+07:002007-02-22T20:23:26.592+07:00

Recently I’ve been working on a survey for a continuation of this study. My colleagues and I are interested in how we can infer a person’s habit in delaying instant gratification. I came up with this idea that since some people would eat their best meal last, wouldn’t it reflect their behavior in saving the best for last?This naive idea was soon dropped out of the survey as in a quick survey with

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-36263127022059194782007-02-21T00:26:00.000+07:002007-11-11T13:43:26.296+07:00

On Monday, Institute for Ecosoc Rights (Ecosoc) organized a workshop on public participation in urban planning, inviting various stakeholders of Jakarta from citizens, professionals, academics, activists, and government officials. A brief summary of the workshop was covered in this Kompas article [1].What I found interesting from the workshop was the comments that were brought up by the audience.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-71402459814411510422007-02-16T22:46:00.000+07:002007-02-16T23:09:12.509+07:00

A child in Morocco, his life ended by gunshots.A Japanese teenage girl, drowned by her own sorrowful thoughts.Babel. Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu's.The American couple was saved by a U.S. helicopter from a remote Moroccan village. Their Mexican nanny was soon deported from the U.S.What is the value of a life?Is it depend on we the living?Or on them who govern nations and decide upon how much lives

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-42845679053953645352007-02-15T22:47:00.000+07:002007-06-20T21:02:21.750+07:00

It’s been a while since I passed through Meruya in West Jakarta until the other day when I found that the otherwise straight route now has two additional detours. The first detour enforces vehicles to turn left into a side street right into a housing area and before turning left again to reach the main street. The second detour enforces vehicles to turn left again, makes a U-turn before turning

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-9608066399217362672007-02-09T12:17:00.000+07:002007-02-09T12:18:11.712+07:00

Over the past week, as I watch and read the news of Jakarta’s flood, I couldn’t help feeling helpless and hopeless for this country. First it’s the reactions of the victims, and second it’s the reactions of the governments.Most of the victims, rather than getting very angry towards the government for not taking responsibility of the flood, are pasrah - accepting with a sense of helplessness and

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-24675952914557490692007-02-02T11:26:00.000+07:002007-02-02T11:38:13.763+07:00

We all know that the world is changing. But have you ever thought about how fast is the rate of change? A presentation at “Creativity or Conformity? Creativity in Higher Education” Conference at University of Wales Institute Cardiff, by Rodney Hill, professor in Teaching Excellence at Texas A & M University, got me thinking:By 2014, your iPod will hold the contents of the Library of Harvard

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-58963808950936388822007-01-31T10:29:00.000+07:002007-01-31T12:59:11.089+07:00

For several months now, I have been contributing to The Jakarta Post with a colleague, friend, and boss of mine, Kayee Man. After a while we thought that maybe not many people read our articles, as we got very few responses from our readers. But some days ago, I checked my office email address, which is forwarded to my personal email, and found an email that was sent back in July 2006 and

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-78129152834708114482007-01-31T10:21:00.000+07:002007-05-13T11:52:36.557+07:00

On Monday, I met with my students from last semester and chatted a bit. Two issues came up.The first one is their confession that they are unmotivated this term – to whom I would refer to “Incentive to Learn” posting, which may not change their motivations, but I hope would make them think twice and realize that education is a shared responsibility.The second issue has to do with what I would

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-31013642648476206732007-01-28T14:15:00.000+07:002007-04-01T22:25:59.473+07:00

An article in Kompas January 23, 2007 entitled “Mimpi Buruk Setelah 28 Tahun” (Nightmare after 28 Years), featured an eviction of 136 houses and 200 kiosks in Pedongkelan, Kelapa Gading area by some 1500 government officials. The area was illegally turned into vendors’ market some 28 years ago, and now with the plan to turn it into a flyover, the buildings were bulldozed over, leaving many

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-60261445770809739742007-01-16T22:52:00.000+07:002007-06-20T21:02:21.751+07:00

As I walked through Khao San Road in Bangkok for the first time, I was mesmerized by the hustle bustle, lively ambience of the street: highly energetic yet relaxed, radiantly foreign yet subliminally familiar. As part of a half-day trip organized by the International Association for the Studies of Traditional Environment (IASTE) conference, I only had a little more than an hour to savor in this

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1168676149599391162007-01-13T15:00:00.000+07:002007-01-13T15:38:53.140+07:00

Finally I found the perfect image for my profile! I came across these set of signs in Cardiff: apparently Dewi is Welsh for David. Coincidence? I think not. It’s just that some society, somewhere got it completely right! :) So if you keep looking for something, somehow, somewhat, somewhere, you will find it.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1168109081183195252007-01-07T01:44:00.000+07:002007-01-07T01:44:41.186+07:00

I left Bangkok yesterday for Cardiff, UK to present in another conference – this time on creativity in higher education. After thinking mostly about spaces and the fights among different stakeholders for spaces in the past few weeks, the shift in mind set will have to come in faster than the jetlag between continents. Meanwhile, other shifts that I must adapt to present itself along the way.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1168108988387610622007-01-07T01:36:00.000+07:002007-04-01T22:25:59.475+07:00

On New Year’s Day, despite the bomb that blasted in parts of Bangkok and killed three people, the streets were still swamped by tourists and locals paying homage to the many temples of Bangkok. Not much difference with previous days, except that on New Year’s Day, there were many more people wearing yellow t-shirts walking around – making an interesting landscape of yellow subjects moving at

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1167537724845086982006-12-31T10:57:00.000+07:002007-04-01T22:25:59.476+07:00

On December 30, 2006, as Saddam Husein was executed at Iraq’s dawn, a small community was woken up abruptly at Bangkok’s dawn by the sound of hammers knocking down doors, windows, and walls. The dawn is not the only aspect on how the stories relate.Wang Lee community has been living in Chareon Krong 52 Lane by the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok. Renting out shop houses on a land that belongs to Wat

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1167137465289347662006-12-26T19:43:00.000+07:002007-04-01T22:25:59.477+07:00

Apologies for the long absence from blogging. I'm currently in Bangkok, conducting research on Bangkok's urban poor. More to report later when I have access to internet on a more regular basis. But for now, here's some pictures of Christmas in Bangkok, in which Christmas is not even a public holiday, but where Christmas is nevertheless celebrated - however commercially. The stars above the trees

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1163159651336804022006-11-10T18:45:00.000+07:002006-11-10T18:54:11.350+07:00

I had been pretty much bedridden with fever for three days since Tuesday – which I used as yet another excuse to read non-work related books. The first one is a continuation of Junichiro Tanizaki saga: “The Secret History of the Lord of Musashi” [1], and the second one is a science book my friend dropped for another friend, but which I confiscated out of necessity at least for the time being:

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1162914413498234682006-11-07T22:45:00.000+07:002006-11-07T22:46:53.513+07:00

Here’s a quotation from a bookmark my brother brought from his recent business trip to Singapore, courtesy of The Mandarin Oriental Hotel:If you can imagine it, you can create it.If you can dream it, you can become it.William Arthur Ward

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1162714771673689782006-11-05T15:08:00.000+07:002006-11-05T15:19:31.686+07:00

Two literary works that are often referred to by architects are Italo Calvino’s “Invisible Cities” and Junichiro Tanizaki’s “In Praise of Shadows”. These past few weeks, out of procrastination, I read other works by these authors, namely Calvino’s “Marcovaldo, or The seasons in the city”, and Tanizaki’s “Naomi”, and “The Key”.After reading Tanizaki’s novels, followed by Calvino’s, the contrast

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1162714065867609862006-11-05T15:00:00.000+07:002006-11-05T15:57:32.036+07:00

From an interview with Eko Prawoto:“Manusia itu adaptif, bisa tinggal di lingkungan ekstrem panas dingin, luas sempit, tapi juga nanti ada satu saat dimana dia rindu pada hal-hal yang tertanam kuat dalam diri. Semacam nilai-nilai rasa.”See here for full article in today’s Kompas.May this bring light to this and this? From the same interview, Prawoto revealed that from the late Mangunwijaya he

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1162215906243047982006-10-30T20:42:00.000+07:002006-10-30T20:45:06.256+07:00

I finally got my own copy of the classic “Learning from Las Vegas” and finished reading it over the break. Here’s an excerpt from the book:There is a perversity in the learning process: We look backward at history and tradition to go forward; we can also look downward to go upward. And withholding judgment may be used as a tool to make later judgment more sensitive. This is a way of learning from

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1161960918418571022006-10-27T21:53:00.000+07:002006-10-27T21:55:18.433+07:00

As if holiday season has not been commercialized and transformed enough with mobile technology, here’s a text message I received from a friend that captures it all :)Hatiku mungkin gak sebening XL atau secerah Mentari.Banyak salah yang kubuat.Fren, kuminta Simpati-mu.Bebas-kan aku dengan maafmu.Selamat Idul Fitri 1427H.Semoga amal ibadah kita mendapat acungan Jempol di mata-Nya.

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1161934163512012782006-10-27T14:28:00.000+07:002006-10-27T14:29:23.523+07:00

With parents and old friends coming to town, I went out entertaining people most of the time during this holiday break. And guess where we go? The malls. Where else could we Jakartans go? And guess why Jakarta’s streets seem so deserted? Its because those who are in town are in the malls. These places are literally swamped with people, I get so drained from simply being immersed in the wasted

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1161489645725078362006-10-22T10:59:00.000+07:002006-10-22T11:00:45.736+07:00

The Ied is just around the corner now. Nicest time of the year to be in Jakarta: traffic-free streets and significantly reduced density. The atmosphere even feel almost eerie as you start wondering whether everyone has evacuated the city because they know something you don’t. Holidays like the Ied here in Indonesia or Thanksgiving in America always make big impact on the density of cities, as

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1160848611586214892006-10-15T00:53:00.000+07:002006-10-15T00:56:51.596+07:00

Having said that importance of anything is subjective in this posting, here is a posting to argue why architecture is important, objectively speaking.Here’s a start: The study of architecture is the study of the built environment. By this definition, then anything built (be it actual, mental, virtual, or hyper, to name a few) by human is architecture. The discipline has existed as long as human

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1160720169294881962006-10-13T13:11:00.000+07:002006-10-13T13:16:09.306+07:00

Take a good look at this photograph.Yup, you got that right! It’s the new BMW 116i being showcased in front of the main gate to UPH’s campus. If you think that the two image don’t seem to belong together, and the campaign seems a rather early induction for a desired life style, you may want to think again :)

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1160576563260245592006-10-11T21:15:00.000+07:002006-10-11T21:22:43.276+07:00

About two weeks ago, I stopped by a gas station. I noticed that it was a lady that helped me pump the gas into my tank. I started talking to her, because I never saw her there before. She said that she was usually there in the afternoon to late evening hours. She told me that in the morning hours, she teaches in a middle school somewhere in Pancoran (the gas station is in Kebun Jeruk area), goes

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1160496984940989172006-10-10T23:07:00.000+07:002007-05-13T11:52:36.558+07:00

Yesterday I was invited to speak on a panel discussion with Albertus S. Wang, from the University of Florida about Space and the Making of Space makers, with Prof. Gunawan Tjahjono & Prof. Herman D. Sudjono as panelists. Mr. Wang presented his experiences about pedagogy, practice, and place, while I shared my experiments in teaching thinking in architectural design studio.At the end of his

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1159986780020965692006-10-05T01:28:00.000+07:002006-10-05T01:33:00.036+07:00

This quotation from David Friedman in this posting by Arya Gaduh (sorry ‘Ry, I got to use your quotation first) has somehow got to the back of my mind:"The fundamental mistake is in taking the patterns we observe around us as facts of nature. They are not; they are the result of rational individuals adjusting to a particular set of constraints... Change the constraints and, given a little time to

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1159715048959103562006-10-01T21:59:00.000+07:002006-10-01T22:04:08.973+07:00

Herlily, a friend and a Ph.D. student at UC Berkeley, forwarded me this article in The Jakarta Post, about books that are (still) barred from entering Indonesia (thanks Mbak!). Interestingly, it coincides with my recent re-reading of an unpublished article written by my professor at UC Berkeley, Jill Stoner on “Reading and the City” (1992):Historically, the very existence of libraries raised a

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1159507654108023142006-09-29T12:20:00.002+07:002007-05-13T11:52:36.559+07:00

Here’s a paradox to this posting.I will actually jump from the fourth floor of a building, if:… the building was on fire and there is a slide from the window to the ground where strong-built firemen were waiting to catch me :)… the building I was in was at the scale of 1:10 (which would reduce the height from about 15m to 1.5m)… I had with me a parasail (still can’t afford trying it in real life)

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1159369997389751602006-09-27T22:08:00.000+07:002007-05-13T11:52:36.561+07:00

If I ask you to open the window on a fourth floor, go out, and jump – will you jump?Mid term review in my architectural design studio. With 17 students presenting, similar patterns soon were becoming obvious: every single one of my students proposed their designs in the form of (mostly color-coded) boxes. Even now that I have to go over the images for grading purposes, I start to get confused

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30690307.post-1159111439429100552006-09-24T22:18:00.000+07:002006-09-24T22:30:33.746+07:00

Yesterday’s Kompas featured several articles on consumption. One of the articles here noted that according to AC Nielsen study, 93% of Indonesian consumers are recreational shoppers, while “only” 68% of American society –known as consumer society – are recreational shoppers [1]. Consumption of goods contributed to 66.5% of Indonesian gross national production in 2004, and it increased to 74% in

Dewi Susantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373005724962961543noreply@blogger.com0