Category: Feature

Talk With the Experts Balirsquos Solar Energy Providers By Bill Dalton If you want to know the truth about a specific topic ask the people who know I wanted an answer to why the penetration of solar energy technology has been so disappointingly slow in Bali and Indonesia as a whole The vast Indonesian archipelago 17000 islands straddling the equator along a 4200kmlong arc is one of the sunniest regions on earth Yoursquod think that the nationrsquos potential of providing nearly unlimited free solar energy would be exploited to the fullest But the reality is that the development of this endlessly renewable source of power generation has been taking place at a snailrsquos pace With recent technological and regulatory developments that might be changing In order to learn what the critic

Yayasan SukacitaA Unique Approach to Mentally hallenged ChildrenBy Ines Wynn A trio of dapper Dutch ladies is carving out a unique niche in Bali in an area that is lacking adequate expertise and funding the world of the mentally disadvantaged children In 2010 Marieke Nijland Mila van der Meer and Yolanda Onderwater created an organization named Yayasan Sukacita literally meaning happiness and joy Sukacita is a Dutch philanthropic foundation headquartered in the Netherlands with a field office in Ubud and the specific goal of contributing expert knowledge tools and education to Balinese parents teachers educational groups and institutes caring for children with intellectual disabilities The three founders are steeped in ways on how to handle and contribute to the development of children whose intelligence is considered below normal Yolanda is a child therapist Marieke is a s

Village Sanctuaries for Bali Dogs By Ines Wynn The Bali dog population has been under a lot of stress since the 2008 rabies outbreak The lucky ones were vaccinated and left alive many more were culled a euphemism used by the government to hide the fact that most of these dogs were mercilessly poisoned with strychnine hunted down and shot or eliminated in other gruesome ways Fast forward to 2015 and the island is still not rabiesfree The governmentrsquos antirabies campaign seems to have a few lethal holes of its own More culling sprees are planned Caution about scientific evidence that culling is not an effective means of combating rabies has been compromised In the earlier stages of the rabies outbreak the Ubud based Bali Animal Welfare Association BAWA played an active role in jumpstarting a campaign of humane antirabies vaccination rather than culling Balirsquos population of roaming a

SOLES WITH SOULRepurposed Tire Rubber SandalsBy Jennifer Juno Indosole is a lifestyle brand which is based around resourceful thinking through footwear that features a repurposed motorbike tire sole and natural organic uppers Indosole primarily make sandals as well as shoes tshirts and bags While on a surf trip to Bali Indonesia during 2004 Californian native Kyle Parsons was affected by environmental issues surrounding the population Inspired by an unusual pair of sandals discovered on the island Kyle creatively realized how to repurpose one of the major byproducts of South East Asias motorbikes and he used the discarded rubber from tires to create stylish ecofriendly hand crafted sandals that are now available in outlets across the world ldquoI was looking to buy a unique pair of sandals and I found a pair with motorbik

Doing Well by Doing GoodThe Nevhouse CompanyBy Ines Wynn Nevhouse Company calls itself a philantrocapitalist organization This concept in essence means that any forprofit business venture can opt to earmark a certain percentage of profit from their business to benefit the philanthropic goals of their choice The term philanthrocapitalism was coined by economists Matthew Bishop and Michael Green who coauthored a book How the Rich Can Save the World published in 2008 Its premise is that the profit motive can be harnessed to achieve social good The entrepreneurial skills of successful capitalists can be applied directly to help solve the worlds most pressing challenges the fight against poverty disease unequal wealth distribution etc Business billionaires like Ford Rockefeller and Bill Gates have traditionally set aside a portion of their wealth to establish charitable foundations whose many projects aim to imp

COOL TREATS Gelato joints in Bali By Skye Laphroaig We love living in the tropics for all the ice cream we get to eat Chocolate vanilla or tamarillo and ginger its hard to resist a scoop in this awesome weather If you are over the branded commercial ice creams which taste really artificial Bali now has several professional Gelato joints and a single scoop cup costs only 20000 rupiah Gelato is all the rage in Bali We have our favourite spots of course but they are all quite excellent Each outlet has a European creator who produces gelato right here on the island while infusing the product with certain characteristics and charm Compared to todays Americanstyle ice cream gelato has less fat in the base and less air churned into it during the freezing process American ice creams are heavy on the cream and

THE MYSTICAL VIBERio Sidik Jazz QuartetBy Polly Christensen Rio Sidik is Indonesias most famous jazzfusion musician and singer and is well established on the international music scene He has played as the headlining act in venues such as Ronnie Scotts of London as well as appearing at international jazz festivals Together with his previous band Saharadja Rio has performed all over the world As a composer Rio continues to write music for other bands as well as producing and writing his own music while travelling the globe Rio was born and raised in Surabaya Rios first appearance on stage was at the age of 10 with his brothers and sister Music was always a big part of his life and Rios grandfather Dariono was the front man of a Big Band and the encouraging mentor who introduced young Rio into the world of m

Alas Purwo Making it Rough to Save It By Bill Dalton One days hard drive from Bali at the end of a long dark corridor through a mahogany forest lies a mammoth and richly endowed national park essentially unbeknownst to tourists Alas Purwo on Blambangan Peninsula at the southeastern tip of East Java province is renown for its lowland tropical rainforests huge banteng cattle scenic proximity to the ocean pilgrimage spiritual sites and worldclass surfing Although this national treasure boasts one of the best lefthanders in the world at Gland I discovered that the vast reaches of the park in the islands easternmost regency are emphatically not just for surfers Along with Banyuwangis Ijen Plateau this unique reserve is an estimable tourist destination in its own right The seacoast at Plengkung Gland on Grajagan B