Energi di Indonesia Materials – Lead Impact Institute

Forming the Documentary: Energi di Indonesia

I approached the making of my documentary in a highly organized way. To start, I drew a storyboard based on the different cities I planned to visit to get an idea of how I wanted to structure the documentary. This helped me to develop a clear vision for what I wanted to achieve and to ensure that I did not miss any important information. Once I had my storyboard, I figured out who I wanted to interview and how many people I would need to speak to in each city to get a well-rounded picture of the issues I wanted to explore.

This research helped me identify a diverse range of potential interviewees whom I reached out to well in advance to schedule interviews. However, I did leave some flexibility to allow for additional interviews with those I met along the way. I wanted to ensure that I had a good understanding of the resources and energy grid of each city so that I could ask informed questions during my interviews. By doing this, I was able to gather a range of perspectives on Indonesia’s energy grid and critical minerals and to create a nuanced and engaging documentary that captured the complexity of the issue.

When it came to the interviews themselves, I took a conversational approach, trying to put my interviewees at ease so that they could speak candidly about their experiences and perspectives. This approach helped me to build a rapport with my interviewees and to get them to open about complex issues in a way that was accessible to a wider audience. During the filming process, I made sure to capture plenty of footage that could be used to visually tell the story. This involved filming the energy infrastructure of each city, as well as important landmarks and places of interest. I also took time to capture B-roll footage that could be used to visually illustrate the points made by the interviewees.

Once I returned to the United States, the editing process began, which included translating the interviews and compiling the footage into a digestible format. Overall, making the documentary was a challenging but rewarding experience. It required a great deal of planning and organization, but I was able to create a final product that I am proud of. I hope that the documentary can help to shed light on critical issues related to Indonesia’s energy grid and critical minerals, and spark conversations that lead to positive change.

Ben Rossman's Background

Seven years ago, I finished my high school education in Indonesia. I experienced many new cultures, religions, and languages that I would have never dreamed of learning about in the US schools. During my time in Indonesia between 2016-2017, I picked up on the official language, Bahasa Indonesia, and was able to interact with people from across the country. I realized at the time how modern the United States was compared to Indonesia which had yet to go through the transition of becoming an emerging market. After struggling with many blackouts and a lack of accessibility, reliability, and sustainability in Indonesia, I decided my goal when I came back to the United States was to pursue higher education to help Indonesia for the rest of my life achieve a better lifestyle for the country’s population of 273 million people.

Introduction

Energi Di Indonesia is the title I chose for this documentary that translates to English as ‘Energy of Indonesia’ or ‘Energy in Indonesia.’ During the month of February 2023, I traveled across Indonesia’s five main islands Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, and Papua. These islands contain most of the country’s population and cover most of the country’s land mass. During this entire voyage, I met up with a lifelong friend from my high school SMA 8 named Mareta Larasati, who became my recorder and documented all my findings while in Indonesia. Together, we traveled to numerous cities and islands which both of us had never thought about going to until the story of the documentary guided us.

Yogyakarta

We started in the city of Yogyakarta, on the island of Java where we both used to live and knew most people. Between 2017-2023, I could see how much change happened in the city I used to reside within. From the infrastructure, down to the city’s culture. Yogyakarta was going through its industrial revolution. The inside of buildings was modern and like the United States, air conditioning was in almost every building and home, restaurants became more predominantly inside a building than on the side of the road, and the citizens were going to more foreign restaurants like McDonalds. Everywhere I traveled within the city, individuals were using more English than ever, and there were more tourists now than seven years ago. This is all tied to energy because if these minor changes are happening now and are making a country follow trends or guidance from another country, then a similar outcome concerning energy influence and transition is inevitable. The relations between the United States and Indonesia and China and Indonesia are strong. China has a different philosophy on energy usage compared to the US by wanting Indonesia to increase fossil fuel production, whereas the US are continuing to push for a greener agenda with Indonesia, making it increasingly challenging for Indonesia to continue appeasing both countries.

With this established knowledge, I ended up at my high school, where I could gain valuable insight about Indonesian schools’ teachings on energy and the environment. I interviewed my former vice principal and former teacher with their thoughts on Energy, international relations regarding energy, and on being able to transition away from carbon-emitting energy. Both had similar explanations that everything on all three fronts seemed to be fine in Indonesia, however my former vice principal expressed how she hopes Indonesia one day could strive to raise the country’s economy by itself and not be heavily dependent on foreign entities coming in and taking raw materials to resell back to Indonesia as a finished or semi-finished good.

Palembang

Palembang, a city that is in the southern region on the Island of Sumatra, is known for being rich with coal. The city is known for being a large exporter of coal to the other main islands of Indonesia by using the city’s central river along with other resources such as natural gas, gold, and petroleum. Although this city is considered one of the oldest cities on the island of Sumatra, the economy is continuing to grow. Infrastructure has been upgraded, and better transportation has been implemented into the city’s traditional roots. Palembang will continue to supply the rest of Indonesia with natural resources for the next several decades.

Medan

Medan is the largest city in Sumatra. This city is in the northern region of Sumatra, just south of the Province of Aceh. Medan plays a unique role in foreign trading and finances for the island of Sumatra. In Palembang, many goods are distributed, whereas in Medan, many of the country’s business transactions and agreements are overseen. South of Medan, there are numerous villages and smaller towns that are beginning to develop unique traits. As an example, an area called Daerah Batubara is increasing production for aluminum at a rapid rate. The goal is to use the resources from Palembang to help the production of aluminum reach maximum potential, then export the goods to other islands and countries. The revenue generated from this process will then be invested into renewable energy that the town will then use as a long-term energy solution. Aluminum in the international market can be used for several things, but in the energy field, batteries are one of the main focuses. These batteries are part of the modern wave for Electric Vehicles (EVs) that are becoming more popular in hopes of reducing carbon emissions from traditional combustion engine vehicles.

Currently, hydro power is the ideal renewable energy source for the town. The renewable energy provided will also reduce tension for remote areas that have weaker access to electricity. The further one travels from Medan the fewer the roads, making transportation and shipments a larger challenge. If a town, city, or island can make the first big impression of self-reliance by using renewable energy, then it will set the stage for other regions of Indonesia to set similar goals.

Pontianak

Pontianak is a city located on the south-west side of Borneo. This city is known for having close relations with two other countries (Malaysia and Brunei) as these three countries share one island. Through mutual agreements, each country has a binding agreement where if one country were short of resources (especially energy) the other two would help each other out. I learned through one of my informal interviews with a professor from a university in Pontianak that the relations of these countries revolve heavily around energy as this is a major agenda. From a different interview in the development planning governmental office, I was told that Pontianak could be the next city in Indonesia to have the majority of influence for the rest of Indonesia. The relevance of using biomass to fulfill local needs is another goal stated by the professor I interviewed. Biomass will be used in future energy projects in Pontianak and will help improve the city’s energy grid using innovative technology that drastically improves the sustainability of bioenergy.

If Pontianak were to become successful in bringing new technology to the table, it would increase the chances of moving away from fossil fuels, a market upon which the country is currently dependent. Pontianak is also located on the equator, making solar energy another option with immense potential to help shift from fossil fuels. Lastly, the people of Pontianak have a high level of trust in its governance, meaning that the city’s government is well respected and has a strong reputation for implementing policies and ideas for the betterment of its citizens.

Makassar

On the island of Sulawesi, in the far south-west corner of the island is a city known as Makassar. Makassar is well known for its rich diversity of minerals that are extracted from the mines south of the city. Nickel and Gold are considered the highest value from the mines and there is an entire street dedicated to gold. Makassar has only recently begun to develop and improve its infrastructure to withstand the economic boom within its city’s borders. While staying in Makassar, I was able to capture and witness the mass infrastructure planning for new buildings throughout the entire city. Most of the construction could be seen as hotels that were from foreign countries like Australia or a European nation. A brand-new masjid was built that is by far the largest in the surrounding area. A new road, bridge, and island was built dedicated to expanding the city’s efforts to keep up with the demand. Observing from within my hotel room; I was able to see how Makassar was building manufactured islands all through the ocean to create more space for housing, shipment stops, and tourist destinations.

Makassar is a key player with Jakarta (the capital of Indonesia) and has a high reputation for economic stability over the past decade. The city’s influence and persuasive power over foreign investors to join the bandwagon of doing business with Indonesia is incredibly high. The country has an abundance of natural resources that are needed for many projects and energy transitions in the rest of the world.

One concern that is growing is how rising sea levels, flooding, and loss of land will impact the city which is remarkably close to the ocean. The police officer I interviewed gave a unique perspective that there is not much of a concern; however, from personal experience during the Monsoon Season, flooding of roads is an issue that has yet to be solved. Adaptation is going to be the next factor when planning decades in advance within the city of Makassar.

Sorong

Papua Barat or West Papua is a region of Indonesia of which the world still has surprisingly limited knowledge. The city known as Sorong is on the most western side of West Papua. The island has a lot of civil unrest that needs to be resolved, which makes traveling here a big concern. Off the coast of Sorong, there is a chain of islands that are known as Raja Ampat. In this region, Nickel is abundant and untapped by foreign investors. West Papua also has a high abundance of gold, silver, and copper. The country’s government has a low approval rate for foreigners entering this region for many reasons, but the ones that are accepted and qualified have only recently begun work. For the United States, there is only one company that is fully tapped into the islands off Sorong for extracting Nickel and the rest of the countries are mainland. China, India, Brazil, the United States, and Indonesia are the main players within this region.

Sorong is very remote compared to the rest of the country, making communication a big constraint for fostering relations with the rest of Indonesia and the world. Sorong is a city that has yet to begin its industrial revolution phase and has a limited supply of electricity. While roads here still serve the remote populations, conditions are poor and main roads for driving are extremely limited. The culture here is vastly different from the rest of Indonesia, making agreements on energy resources hard to meet. Traveling by boat is the most crucial form of transportation for this city. Sorong is very dependent on the ocean, as shipping and trading are difficult with the rest of Indonesia. The city is heavily dependent on itself for developing innovative ways to meet its needs concerning energy, food, water, infrastructure, and more. From my one interview here in this city, I learned that when Sorong capitalizes and shifts from exporting raw materials to semi-finished and finished goods, the city and rest of the island will be respected and recognized as a key component of Indonesia’s economy.

Jakarta

The capital of Indonesia is Jakarta, which is located on the western part of Java. Jakarta has a severe problem of rising sea levels, smog, and blackouts. Millions of people live within the city limits and experience these issues every day. Although blackouts may not last long, the frequency of them causes serious interruptions to daily life. From personal experience while staying in Jakarta for a few days, I would experience a blackout every day, every hour for a few minutes. This may not seem like too much of an issue, but when this happens unexpectedly and continuously, the temporary, yet frequent inability to continue work, education, and daily life is a challenge.

Jakarta is trying to produce a solution that can transition from fossil fuels to renewables which would reduce the reliability of a sole source of energy, reduce smog and pollution, reduce overall global climate change, and reduce flooding. The benefits would include increased sustainability, having multiple energy sources as backups to mitigate blackouts, and improving quality of life. Jakarta is faced with numerous factors that can pose challenges to this transition, as the fossil fuel industry has a strong influence and there is a certain degree of economic gain from the continuously increasing cost for energy associated with fossil fuels, whereas renewables would be reducing the costs over a long-term period and would make Indonesia become more independent in terms of its energy.

Findings

After an entire month in Indonesia, I learned how mineral rich this country really is compared to the rest of the world. Each island is different, yet all tied together in some way. The country has all the resources to construct finished goods which would give the economy the upper hand when it comes to international trading. Indonesia’s relations with foreign trading have been primarily to help boost the country’s economy and gain an influence in the international arena. Currently, Indonesia is the south-east leader in terms of GDP which is a key indicator of rapid growth. The citizens are aware of the nation’s potential for becoming the next world leader and challenging the stable hegemonic countries of the modern day.

Most of the country’s resources have yet to be fully tapped by markets or deteriorated, making the country become more of an asset for international governments. Indonesia understands its role of staying neutral between both the United and China, while also starting to develop its own independence and self-governance. Laws are becoming stricter to protect the wildlife and preserve what is unique to Indonesia. The country is also participating in many global platforms where Indonesia is being heard and taking a stance.

Conclusion

When Indonesia fully invests time, money, and energy into its own capabilities and implementing laws to protect domestic labor and capitalize on finished goods, the country will flourish. As the emerging market that the rest of the world knows, Indonesia is gaining more responsibility and attention, putting pressure on the country’s government. Policies and implementing laws are influenced by international entities, making Indonesia a country to appease and mitigate any confrontation. The country has all the resources possible for making modern technology such as batteries for EVs. Indonesian citizens are becoming more self-aware and understanding how important and vital Indonesia is for the rest of the world. Indonesia can also set an example for the rest of the world by showing how to mitigate and combat against pollution, ocean conflicts, and helping the citizens of the country, by switching to renewable energies for which the country has a high potential.

Each island, city, town, and person in Indonesia may have a different culture, belief, language, or religion, but the one thing that each part of Indonesia has in common is its unity. With this unity, the country will continue to succeed in its endeavors in achieving the highest goals set for Indonesia.