Where infrastructure fails them: Tracking development change and COVID-19's consequences in Southeast Asia's periphery (additional Corona-related funding)

How does COVID-19 affect people who live in rural areas but are dependent on urban centers and the global economy? In this context, the present 18-month ethnological research project examines the socio-economic and ecological consequences of COVID-19 for rural communities on the East Indonesian island of Flores. Dr. Clendenning will pursue the key question of how the pandemic and economic decline have affected rural livelihoods, cross-generational poverty and the future prospects of young people. In this way, the research project is developing essential knowledge about the consequences of the pandemic in rural areas and vulnerable communities in the Global South. In this context, the study will also focus on the growing influence of China in remote areas of Indonesia by exploring local perspectives on Chinese investments in the region.