Date of Award
2026
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Marine Affairs
Department
Marine Affairs
First Advisor
Tracey Dalton
Second Advisor
Lisa Hiwasaki
Abstract
As an archipelagic State with high levels of biodiversity, Indonesia has adopted international marine conservation objectives, specifically the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) and its "30x30" target, into its national policy. To meet these global commitments, Indonesia has been expanding its network of Marine Protected Areas and Other Effective Area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) while improving their management effectiveness. However, a disconnect exists between these high-level policy ambitions and the realities experienced by coastal communities and field-level implementers of marine conservation efforts. While numbers indicate progress towards meeting area-based targets and in increasing self-assessed management effectiveness scores, this technical achievement masks challenges in addressing the social, political, and cultural aspects of marine resource access and governance. This dissertation examines the institutional dynamics and mechanisms driving this disconnect. By integrating concepts of coloniality, resource governmentality, social-ecological systems, and access theory, I argue that Indonesia’s state governance mechanism navigates these inherent complexities through a process of technocratic translation.
To investigate this, I employ a multi-scale, mixed-methods approach that draws on policy analysis, practitioner surveys, in-depth interviews, and field observations. First, I trace the colonialities within contemporary conservation laws, arguing that they operate within a framework that retains centralized administrative structures. Second, I demonstrate how global biodiversity targets are translated into national strategies that tend to emphasize technical metrics, often at the expense of socio-political substance. Third, I examine the structural constraints faced by field-level implementers who must balance their roles between facilitating bottom-up governance and serving as “surrogate bureaucrats” to support the State in the technical implementation of marine conservation. Finally, I present a case study from Rote Island that highlights the local implications of these structures, showing how marine conservation and resource governance with only symbolic levels of community participation can introduce barriers to local resource access.
This dissertation concludes that the current implementation gap is not a reflection of low technical capacity or malicious intent. Instead, it is a systemic outcome of a technocratic governance approach with deep roots in coloniality. By focusing on technical legibility, the current system struggles to fully address social equity and access. To support the government’s goal of equitable and effective marine conservation, this study recommends that marine conservation and resource governance mechanisms shift away from purely technical management toward an integrated model that legally recognizes customary institutions and safeguards local access rights as core design elements.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Wisesa, Nara, "FROM GLOBAL TARGETS TO LOCAL REALITIES: NAVIGATING COLONIALITY, GOVERNANCE, AND ACCESS IN INDONESIAN MARINE CONSERVATION" (2026). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 4557.
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/4557
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