One of the main problems with most community development projects is that when the outside/foreign help leaves, the project usually ends. This is why it is crucial that any development project is ‘owned’ by the community themselves. If members of communities want to see change happen, they will step up and take responsibility to make it happen. In Thailand many projects are started, but not many endure the long haul and in the end the people are left without any improvement. So what is the benefit of outside help at all? Well, as community developers, our role is to come alongside the community members and guide them as they identify their greatest needs, set up a plan, appoint a leadership team to make sure the plan is carried out and then implement it. All these steps are ‘owned’ by the community, not the outside help. The community developer acts as a mentor, but the problems are solved by the community. This way, when the developer leaves to go and help the next community, the original community can carry on with the project and even start new projects on their own. This is how long term and sustainable change will occur.

The SEEDS team in South Thailand is on the verge of partnering with a few communities that want to see change for the better. This is an exciting time as many discussions take place with the leadership about potential areas of development and getting the communities to work together. A long road of hard work lies ahead, but the reward of seeing lasting change makes the planning and the contribution of all the community members worth it.

Rapid development within the ASEAN community has prompted governments and academics institutions alike to push their educators to be able to participate in the global discourse of teaching and research, invariably requiring the use of the defacto franca lingua of English. Despite some of the significant hurdles facing these professionals in upgrading their communicative abilities, a number in the State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kassim (Riau, Indonesia) are seeing success due in part to the motivation and skills equipping provided through a SEEDS supported initiative.

Throughout these past few semesters, several groups of lecturers have been developing their ability in academic writing and reading in English, in addition to growing confidence in speaking and listening in order to successfully qualify for further study and research grants. Currently five lecturers are in the process of application for federal bursaries to continue their studies abroad. In addition to assisting these academics with upgrading their language abilities through classes, the SEEDS consultant is currently conducting research (as part of a TOEFL graduate studies program) which will facilitate improved methodology and increased program effectiveness. Currently, an investigation and analysis of learners’ needs is underway, from which the findings will be used to modify the language-teaching curriculum.

By focusing on seeing key educators increase their academic competence, SEEDS aims to multiply the impact of invested development to the next generation of Indonesia’s academics.

Is it a myth that fishing communities are poor? If not, what is it that is stopping households in fishing communities escaping poverty? And what can be done to speed up this ‘poverty-escaping’ process?
These are questions that one SEEDS worker has been grappling with for many years. Following hundreds of interviews with fishers and their families in 25 fishing villages, SEEDS worker Dr. Richard Stanford has published his findings in a new book. This concise, easy-to-read, summary is written both in English and Indonesian for maximum impact. Published in collaboration with Andalas University, the book is currently being distributed to government departments related to poverty and fishing communities. Richard reports: “Previously we have only published our work in peer-reviewed scientific publications. While this gives credibility to our findings, it does not get our findings where they need to be…in the hands of policymakers and decision takers in the Indonesian government. We hope that this book, coupled with presentations that we are giving in government departments and universities, will be a trigger for better programs that targets the needs of the poor”.

One crucial finding outlined in the book is that current poverty alleviation programs are failing to develop human resources in fishing communities. While nets, boats and machines (physical assets) are widely distributed, the more painstaking job of developing people through education, mentoring and practical skills is a missing piece in these programs. Richard and his team are currently testing pilot projects in fishing villages designed to fill this gap.

Download Dr. Richard Stanford’s book here.

The English Zone started as a place for Indonesian young people to practice English by participating in lively discussion groups, daunting public speaking sessions, and challenging pronunciation practice. While that’s still true, what the English Zone has become is an overwhelmingly supportive community.

On any given afternoon, an English Zone member rushes through the front door, laptop and notebooks in hand, and asks for help editing a scholarship application or essay that they’ve written in English. Often times, a long standing member will read it through and suggest changes or sometimes the entire room joins in and suddenly everyone is arguing about tenses, grammar, Eurocentric versus American spelling, or what synonym is best to use, and all this in their second language.

Often, when an English Zone member is preparing for an interview or examination in English, they gather with other members around the little coffee table in the back room and spend hours coming up with possible questions and perfecting articulate answers. Every once in a while, someone will briefly slip into speaking their native tongue before half the room erupts with a shout of, “English please!”

It’s truly amazing to see so many young people reaching fluency and a level of comfortability in English that should take years of study or immersion to accomplish. But not only that, all this is happening outside of a classroom and without a curriculum. These Indonesian students, entrepreneurs, teachers, and others from every walk of life are able to reach their goals with the help and support of their English Zone community.

What is the difference between Nasi Goreng and Rice?
One is an ingredient or staple, the other a dish. There are many ways of cooking Nasi Goreng but we would probably all agree that its main component is rice.

In computer systems the analogy would be between “System on Chips (SoC)” (complex integrated chips with a processor) and “Embedded Computer Systems” (electronic product consisting of hard- and software). Just like rice can be used in many different dishes, the SoC appears in different embedded devices. Most of us are not aware of how much these embedded systems influence our daily life. Appliances, home devices, vehicles, medical equipment, and of course the indispensable smart phones – embedded computer systems are found everywhere. Can we imagine how our life would look like without these smart devices? As most of our Asian friends would probably agree a dish without rice is not complete.

If we asked a “digital native” what a computer is we would get a different answer than from a “digital immigrant”. “Digital natives” (born after the millennium) grew up from early childhood with smart phones and tablets and are thus “native speakers” of the languages of computers, social media, video games and the internet. “Digital immigrants” (born before the millennium), in contrast, only gained familiarity with digital technology as adults. For them computers are primarily laptops and desktops.

In the academic world – especially in engineering courses and computer science – we need to give this generation of “digital natives” access to cutting-edge digital technologies and further equip them as they engage with this new exciting digital era.

At the Department of Electrical Engineering of Hasanuddin University we’re developing a new syllabus and related laboratory work that addresses this need.

Based on other fundamental courses in the field of digital system design students learn how to design these embedded systems (dish) by applying modern design method and implementing the needed system functions/building blocks (ingredients). It is a complex task but (to continue using the “Nasi Goreng” illustration) there are good cookbooks available. The students are still finding out how the “ingredients” work together (e.g. how can we display information on a LCD monitor that is received from a light sensor) but already get a first impression of how it tastes.

It is my hope that students in East Indonesia will become more confident and knowledgeable as they “pick & mix” the ingredients and create delicious dished that have the seal of a Masterchef!

Starting from mid-2016, a SEEDS member, who is a native Chinese speaker, starts teaching Chinese courses at UNM. One of the students show increased interest in Chinese culture and, after taking Level 1-3 Mandarin courses, she applied for a teaching job in China and got accepted in Aug 2017. She is now teaching Indonesian language in a private university in China. The Mandarin courses had helped equip her and made her more competitive for this new challenge.

From early 2017 a SEEDS member starts to teach at the undergraduate Mandarin program at UNM. There are 2 batches of students (Year 1 and Year 2). Our member teaches them how to write Chinese characters as well as writing short articles. Students enjoy learning Chinese through various creative activities, including games, competition, group research and presentation.

Even though the students claim it is hard to study Chinese, some did show obvious improvement. A girl -who came from a village 10 hours away- came to the city to study Mandarin. In her first year, she barely passed her exam. She was so sad and she even begged the teacher to give her a chance to retake the exam. Our member encouraged her to not give up and gave her some tips on how to study. In her second year she started with making a lot of mistakes in her homework, but she was encouraged to persevere and to repeat her work again and again until she understood all the materials. Finally she got quite a satisfying result during the test. She shed tears when she saw her test score because she never imagined she could do it!

A SEEDS health consultant has been working in this Riau Village for over five years. The process of helping to change attitudes toward acceptance of modern medicine is slow work, and to encourage healthy lifestyle changes is even harder.
Yet the work of the community health promotion program has gained the villagers’ trust. Many days are repetitive, with measuring blood pressures and recurring teachings on such dangers as hypertension and benefits of a healthy diet.

This day seemed like many others, with older ladies gathered around to have their blood pressure taken, when a younger woman approached and mentioned that she had a growth under each of her arms that has become painful. Examination revealed grapefruit-sized fatty lumps under each of the woman’s arms that were growing closer to the front of her chest.

The SEEDS worker explained the importance of being evaluated at the government medical facility. She also explained the steps involved in receiving free care provided by the government. The worker expected to return the next week to explain the process again, since there are obstacles to receiving care at a facility that does not use the village’s dialect, and it is difficult for people with low literacy to fill in the paperwork. However, to the SEEDS worker’s surprise, the woman came up and thanked her for the advice. She had already had her first operation, and was waiting to recover before having the growth removed from the opposite side.

The work of a community health program is more than pills and bandages; it is a relationship of trust.

“Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.” ― Anthony Brandt

Since February 2014, SEEDS workers, in partnership with Yayasan Pendar Pagi Jakarta, have been running a parenting course for parents of children under 5.

This course is an adaptation of both an Indonesian Early Childhood book series for parents, ‘Seri Bacaan Orang Tua’, and a UK Early Learning based program ‘PEEPS’ (now PEEPLE).

The main message/focus of this course is that parents/guardians are the first, and key educators of their children. Parents are encouraged to recognise the importance, impact, and value of their role, and given the opportunity to learn together about topics such as: Developing your child’s character; Reading with your child; Benefits of play, and more. ‘TIps’, on how this can be done and incorporated as a part of everyday life, are also a core element of the course.

This latest course began in September, and has been modified from a fixed 6 session course, to a weekly 40 minute session run in conjunction with a local kindergarten. This change was suggested by the head of this kindergarten, as she felt it would encourage greater take-up and engagement of the course. She was right! We have a core group of 8-10 women who have been regularly attending, engaging, and participating.

While the children have their weekly exercise, we gather with the Mums. Journeying, and learning together, as they envision the future of their families-envisioning them as they want them to be.

We are hopeful that, as we engage with these Mums, and by extension their families, that we can play our part in seeing that what they have envisioned would come to pass.

A SEEDs worker in West Sumatra who has spent more than five years researching poverty in 25 fishing communities has noticed distinct motivations and opportunities that allow poor families to escape from poverty. In some fishing villages, he has met an atmosphere of distrust, negativity and resignation. In others, groups of fishers trust one another and borrow money; in essence believing that change is possible.

There are clear differences too between families. While still struggling economically, one family is determined to change: they diversify income sources, the wife sells the catch in the market, they save for the future and prioritise children’s education. Along the beach in a similar family attitudes and behaviour are markedly different. They have no alternative income, are risk averse and seem to lack both the desire and the ability to change their future.

The research to date has underlined the importance of building self-esteem and entrepreneurial spirit, and motivating households and communities to try new things, and now researchers are investigating how to do these things in four ways.

Firstly they are exploring the underlying beliefs and attitudes that are creating this culture of poverty in fishing communities. Secondly, with the help of fishermen and their families, they aim to develop a people based approach that will address the needs of fishers, quite different from most poverty alleviation approaches. Thirdly, they will test the approach in fishing communities amongst young people. This means creating ‘self-help’ groups of young people and providing mentoring to optimise their potential. And fourthly, they will evaluate whether this new approach has made a significant contribution to the poor.

If it works, this could be one of the missing keys for unlocking the potential of the coastal poor.