1 - Building Resilience in Dutch Overseas Settlements: From Jakarta to Other Port Cities in VOC Asia

The coastal settlements built by the Dutch East India Company (Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, VOC) since the seventeenth century are historically and currently on the frontline of environmental impacts. These Asian port cities are the result of centuries of colonial conflicts and climate adaptation, and continued urbanization, and is best exemplified by the establishment of the VOC headquarter of Batavia (1619). Just like the obstacles Jakarta is currently facing, Batavia shares similar environmental threats like extreme climate and floods, as well as societal problems like overpopulation and sanitation. This research focuses on the intra-Asia knowledge exchange hub of Batavia to understand how the Dutch construction mechanism, strategic governance and collaboration with local hybrid communities help build a resilient Batavia. These knowledge exchange networks also extended to other VOC settlements facing similar problems, e.g. Banten, Makassar, Melaka, Galle and Colombo.

This research also explores how local wisdom and technology contribute to Dutch urban planning and management, and help tackle the extreme environments. For example, the Dutch relied heavily on the diaspora Chinese’s knowledge and technology to build sustainable port city lives in Southeast Asia. It aims to rethink the colonial heritage through the lens of climate change, re-considering multiple dissonances between colonial history, heritage, environment, and governance, which could be applied nowadays to foster sustainable heritage preservation and urban development of coastal settlements in a time of climate crisis. Especially how can we learn from the past to inform the sustainable development of the constantly flooded and sinking Jakarta.