With this thesis I will end my six years of study on the field of Cultural Anthropology. I started off at the University of Cologne, taking classes in Anthropology, Political Science and Indonesian Philology. I met a lot of inspiring and motivated people there and some have become my closest friends, who never grow tired of comforting me when times are rough. The Master program in Leiden gave me the opportunity to work with teaching staff, which is very enthusiastic about Indonesia, which fuelled my interest and created a work atmosphere that was very fruitful. The fieldwork trip to Indonesia was the “rite de passage” for me in becoming a real anthropologist, going through hard and exhausting times while writing the proposal as well as in the field, but meeting some of the greatest people who cared for me and welcomed me in their homes after knowing me just for a very short time. My thank goes to the staff of some local NGOs, who provided me with information and did not grow tired of my questions: Yayasan Griya Mandiri, WalHi Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, Media Alamku, Pondok Rakyat, Dian Desa, and Lestari. I want to thank my supervisors, Gerard Persoon and Bart Barendrecht for their critique and fruitful input on my thesis and their patience with me. I also want to thank Sylvia Tidey, Sanne Simmers, Ali Al Hadaui, Annemarie Samuels, Esther van Stam, Yanti de Boeren and Anita Kuscerova, who were my companions on the fieldwork trip and I could not have wished for better company during the preparation period and the three month in Yogyakarta. The topic of my research has become a heart topic, because I am utterly convinced that this world can be an even better place if we manage to care more for each other, do not waste our resources and create an atmosphere of more equality so that every human being has everything one needs to be healthy, nourished, comfortable and safe. Now and in the future. [...]
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction to the Research Question
Chapter 2: Theory on Resources and Common-Pool Resource Management
2.1. Forms of Resource Management
2.2. Rational Choice and Irrational Outcomes
2.3. Rules for Common-Pool Resources
2.4. Civil Society and Non Governmental Organisations
2.5. The Principles of Gotong Royong and Tanggung Renteng
Chapter 3: The Flow of Water: Providing Drinkable Water to the Poor
3.1. Drinking Water on a Global Scale
3.2. Drinking Water in Indonesia
3.2.1. The Privatization of Service Utilities in Indonesia
3.2.2. The Bottled Water Industry in Indonesia
3.3. Drinking water on a Local Level: Yogyakarta
3.3.1. Hygiene and Housing in a Javanese Kampung
3.3.2. The Municipal Utility of Yogyakarta
3.3.3. The Private Water Industry in Yogyakarta
3.3.4. The Private Home Industry
Chapter 4: Methods of the Field Research
4.1. The Situation of a Field Experience
4.2. The Search and Choice of Information
4.3. The Methods and Techniques
4.4. An Example: Water Test and Focus Group Discussion
Chapter 5: The Actual Case Study
5.1. The Kampung: Jogoyudan
5.1.1. The Population of the Kampung
5.1.2. The River Code
5.1.3. The Predominance of Dug Wells
5.1.4. The Water Tower “Tirta Mandiri”
5.1.5. The Problem of Sewage
5.2. The Local Non Governmental Organisations
5.3. The Water Supply Company: PDAM “Tirta Marta”
Chapter 6: The Example of Good Resource Management: Kampung Jetisharjo
6.1. The Kampung’s History of Water Management
6.2. The Organisation and Institutions
Chapter 7: Back to Theory and Resource Management
7.1. Setting the Rules for Common-Pool Resource Management
7.2. The Comparison of the Kampungs
Chapter 8: Discussion and Analysis
8.1. Conclusions
8.2. Recommendations
Research Objectives & Topics
This thesis investigates how the urban poor in Yogyakarta manage their access to clean drinking water, specifically analyzing the roles of public utilities, the private sector, NGOs, and the local community in the context of common-pool resource management.
- Access to clean water for the urban poor in Yogyakarta
- Common-pool resource management theory applied to local urban settings
- Roles and interactions of public, private, and civil society actors
- Community-based initiatives and traditional Javanese principles (Gotong Royong)
- Comparative analysis of water management in two specific Kampungs
Excerpt from the Book
3.3.3. The Private Water Industry in Yogyakarta
In the context of this research in Yogyakarta, bottled water turned out to be the kind of water the people were eager to drink, because they associated health, modernity and progress with it. When I was visiting the kampung inhabitants and asking them about their source of drinking water, it struck me that I was told repeatedly that galleon-water was mostly bought for the use of the children or grandchildren only. As the income of most of the people there is very low, they were not able to afford the bottled water for the whole family, but were particularly concerned with the health and wellbeing of the children. For older people, many said, it is not so important anymore which water they consume, the healthier bottled water or the common, boiled water from the well or the tap. I observed this pattern in houses where there were connections to the PDAM but also where people were dependant on well water. Especially the brand AQUA is considered to be healthy and pure, because the brand is advertising the water as being taking from mountain areas and being filtered and treated with modern equipment. Many private households also posses of a dispenser for water galleons. It is mostly on open display, perhaps decorated with a doily or a fancy cover, standing in the guestroom of the house next to the television or other electronic devices the family might own (Picture 3).
The AQUA-Galleon is a status symbol, a statement that tells the visitor about hosts who care for their health and who have enough money to afford the mineral water. Even when the dust layer on the galleon is already thick, people still assure that they buy new water galleons on a regular basis because they do not want to give the impression of being poor or careless of their health. New galleons can be purchased almost everywhere, there is home delivery service on the back of motorbikes and many small shops exchange the containers. The price of a galleon was between Rp. 8,500 and Rp. 9,000, containing 19 litre of water that might last a family with four members about two to three days.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1: Introduction to the Research Question: Outlines the research focus on water access for the urban poor in Yogyakarta and establishes the theoretical and social relevance of the study.
Chapter 2: Theory on Resources and Common-Pool Resource Management: Explains the theoretical framework of common-pool resources, rational choice, and local Javanese concepts like Gotong Royong as organizational tools.
Chapter 3: The Flow of Water: Providing Drinkable Water to the Poor: Examines global water challenges and narrows the focus to the specific situation and infrastructural limitations in Indonesia and Yogyakarta.
Chapter 4: Methods of the Field Research: Describes the qualitative fieldwork approach, including observations, interviews, and the challenges of conducting research in an urban community.
Chapter 5: The Actual Case Study: Provides a detailed empirical study of the Kampung Jogoyudan, examining its demographic, social structure, and existing water management attempts.
Chapter 6: The Example of Good Resource Management: Kampung Jetisharjo: Analyzes a successful community-based water management project to highlight effective strategies and organizational practices.
Chapter 7: Back to Theory and Resource Management: Applies Elinor Ostrom’s design principles to compare the water management outcomes between the two studied communities.
Chapter 8: Discussion and Analysis: Concludes by summarizing findings on water problems, usage patterns, and provides recommendations for policy improvement and community-based solutions.
Keywords
Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Urban Poor, Drinking Water, Common-Pool Resource, Kampung, Water Management, Gotong Royong, PDAM, Groundwater, Sustainability, Civil Society, NGOs, Water Privatization
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this research?
The research focuses on the management and accessibility of clean drinking water for the urban poor in the Javanese city of Yogyakarta.
What are the primary thematic areas explored?
The study explores community-based water management, the role of local government and state-owned enterprises, the influence of NGOs and civil society, and the impact of traditional Javanese communal principles on resource distribution.
What is the primary objective of this thesis?
The primary objective is to understand how urban poor communities manage their water access and to identify how such management can be improved through sustainable, locally-led institutional designs.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The study utilizes a qualitative anthropological approach, involving immersive fieldwork, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and observations within the communities of Jogoyudan and Jetisharjo.
What does the main body of the work address?
It addresses the intersection of theoretical common-pool resource management with empirical data, comparing a struggling water management project in one Kampung with a more successful, autonomous project in another.
Which keywords characterize this work?
The work is characterized by terms such as Common-Pool Resource, Kampung, Yogyakarta, Water Management, and Gotong Royong.
How does the situation in Jogoyudan compare to the theoretical ideal?
Jogoyudan shows that while community projects exist, they often suffer from "leadership crises" and a lack of proper institutionalization, preventing them from reaching the efficiency seen in theoretical models.
What role do traditional Javanese principles play in water management?
Principles like Gotong Royong serve as cultural foundations for mutual aid, which NGOs and community leaders attempt to leverage to organize collective work for building and maintaining water infrastructure.
- Quote paper
- Laura Engel (Author), 2006, Piped Dreams Drinking Water for the Urban Poor: The Management of a Common-Pool Resource in Yogyakarta, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/65338
