Workshop: Commodity, Plantation and Colonialism in IndonesiaCurrent Research in Social, Economic and Architectural History

This workshop brings together historians of different disciplines engaged in the histories of commodities, plantations, and colonialism with a particular area focus on Indonesia. It aims to foster dialogue among scholars based in and around Germany whose work spans the architectural, social, and economic history of the subject over a long period from the early modern to the contemporary. The event is also organized in conjunction with the visit of the distinguished historian and anthropologist Pujo Semedi from Yogyakarta. Rather than centering on a single thematic framework and historical period, the workshop profits from a shared subject, area focus, and attitude—a critical engagement with the structures and legacies of colonial economies, lifeworlds, and built environments. These already provide all speakers with a common ground for meaningful exchange.

Compulsory Registration
contact@sagonese.de

Location
Pavillon 333
Türkenstraße 15, 80333 Munich
(Place is subject to change. Updated information on the websites.)

Program

Thursday, July 23, 2026
12:30 - 1:00 p.m. arrival

1:00 - 1:30 p.m.
Opening
Geraldus Martimbang
Abdul Kadir Jailani (Current Indonesian Ambassador for Germany)
Prof. Dr. Andres Lepik

Panel 1
1:30 - 2:00 p.m.
Sam Miske (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
Cultivation and Colonisation: Nutmeg Production, Labour, and Ecology on the Banda Islands before and after the Conquest of 1621

2:00 - 2:30 p.m.
Dr. Joëlla van Donkersgoed (University of Luxembourg)
Afterlives of the Perkenierstelsel: Nutmeg’s Legacies in the Banda Islands

2:30 - 3:00 p.m.
Prof. Dr. Grace Leksana (Universiteit Utrecht)
Learning from small commodities: Kayu putih and colonial strategies in the Moluccans

Break 3:00 - 3:15 p.m.

3:15 - 4:00 p.m.
Q&A Panel 1

Break 4:45 - 5:00 p.m.

5:00 - 6:30 p.m.
Keynote
Prof. Dr. Pujo Semedi (Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta)
Sharing in Indonesian Plantations 1870-2020

Friday, July 24, 2026

8:30 - 9:00 a.m. arrival

Panel 2
9:00 - 9:30 a.m.
Wijnt van Asselt, MA (Stichting Indisch Thee- en Familiearchief, Amersfoort)
Karel Felix Kerkhoven. The Life of a Colonial Tea Planter 1887-1966

9:30 - 10:00 a.m.
Geraldus Martimbang (Technische Universität München)
The Making of "Native" Architectures by Priangan's Planters 1830-1940

10:00 - 10:30 a.m.
Q&A Panel 2

Break: 10:30 - 10:45 a.m.

Panel 3
11:00 - 11:30 a.m.
PD Dr. Friederike Sattler (Goethe-Universität Frankfurt)
German Investments in the Plantation Economy of Southeast Asia: The Case of the Straits and Sunda Syndicate 1910-1945

11:30 - 12:00 a.m.
Dr. Will Davis (Università della Svizzera italiana, Mendrisio)
A Villa is a Plantation

12:00 - 12:30 p.m.
Panel 3

12:30 - 1:30 p.m.
Concluding Discussion