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Remote Sensibilities: Discourses of Technology and the Making of Indonesia’s Natural Disaster

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  • Emily Harwell

Abstract

During the extended El Nin˜o drought of 1997–8, fires devastated Indonesia’s forests, creating a vast shroud of smoke that reached as far as mainland Southeast Asia. This article examines the interpretation of these fires — their causes, damages and solutions — by the Indonesian government, international donors, environmental activists and local farmers. It explores the contexts and consequences of these discourses of disaster, and specifically investigates the central role of remote technology — a ‘hegemonic’ representational tool, in some circumstances creatively appropriated to serve new democratic agendas. A narrow focus on remotely sensed data is not strictly a methodological but also a political choice, one which obscures alternative experiences of disaster and produces solutions that do not address long term social and political processes leading to the fires. What is missing from most current analyses of the fires, and from remote assessments in general, is a textured understanding of social landscapes and the role they play in creating fire hazards.

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  • Emily Harwell, 2000. "Remote Sensibilities: Discourses of Technology and the Making of Indonesia’s Natural Disaster," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 31(1), pages 307-340, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:devchg:v:31:y:2000:i:1:p:307-340
    DOI: 10.1111/1467-7660.00156
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    Cited by:

    1. George A. Bouma & Halina T. Kobryn, 2004. "Change in vegetation cover in East Timor, 1989–1999," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 28(1), pages 1-12, February.
    2. Dove, Michael R. & Kammen, Daniel M., 2001. "Vernacular Models of Development: An Analysis of Indonesia Under the "New Order"," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 619-639, April.
    3. Jenny E Goldstein, 2016. "Knowing the subterranean: Land grabbing, oil palm, and divergent expertise in Indonesia’s peat soil," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 48(4), pages 754-770, April.
    4. Hecht, Susanna & Rajão, Raoni, 2020. "From “Green Hell” to “Amazonia Legal”: Land use models and the re-imagination of the rainforest as a new development frontier," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    5. Carmenta, Rachel & Cammelli, Federico & Dressler, Wolfram & Verbicaro, Camila & Zaehringer, Julie G., 2021. "Between a rock and a hard place: The burdens of uncontrolled fire for smallholders across the tropics," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    6. Macauley, Molly K., 2009. "Earth Observations in Social Science Research for Management of Natural Resources and the Environment: Identifying the Contribution of the U.S. Land Remote Sensing (Landsat) Program," RFF Working Paper Series dp-09-01, Resources for the Future.
    7. Lauren Baker & Michael Dove & Dana Graef & Alder Keleman & David Kneas & Sarah Osterhoudt & Jeffrey Stoike, 2013. "Whose Diversity Counts? The Politics and Paradoxes of Modern Diversity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 5(6), pages 1-24, June.
    8. Luca Tacconi & Sango Mahanty & Helen Suich (ed.), 2010. "Payments for Environmental Services, Forest Conservation and Climate Change," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14052.
    9. Julie Cidell, 2008. "Challenging the Contours: Critical Cartography, Local Knowledge, and the Public," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 40(5), pages 1202-1218, May.
    10. Sletto, Bjørn, 2008. "The Knowledge that Counts: Institutional Identities, Policy Science, and the Conflict Over Fire Management in the Gran Sabana, Venezuela," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 1938-1955, October.

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