Jim Luce Writes on Indonesia & Indonesian-Americans

Jim Luce brings a deeply personal perspective to his writing on Indonesia and Indonesian Americans, drawing from years of humanitarian work and intimate family connections that have shaped his understanding of this vibrant archipelago nation and its diaspora.

Through his dedicated work with orphans across Sumatera, Sulawesi, and Bali, Jim has witnessed firsthand the resilience of Indonesian children facing extraordinary circumstances. His connection to Indonesia deepened through his most personal relationships—his former partner and adopted son Mathew both hail from Indonesia, creating familial bonds that offer him an insider’s perspective on Indonesian culture and values.

For several transformative years, Jim maintained homes in both New York City and Jakarta, living a truly bi-continental existence that allowed him to experience Indonesia not as a visitor, but as someone woven into the fabric of daily Indonesian life. This unique combination of humanitarian experience, family connections, and sustained residence has positioned Jim to write with both emotional depth and cultural authenticity about Indonesian experiences, bridging the gap between Indonesian and American perspectives.

1. Blood and Billions: Devastating Legacy of Indonesia’s Dictator Suharto (July 10, 2025)
2. Eyewitness | Elementary Education in Indonesia (June 23, 2020)
3. From Colonial Resistance to Revolution: PKI’s Role in Indonesia’s Independence (July 9, 2025)
4. Guerrilla Professor: Dr. Katrina Tendean’s Secret Role in Indonesia’s Rebellion (July 8, 2025)
5. Help Empower Teen Mothers in Indonesia
6. How the CIA’s 1958 Indonesia Coup Attempt Unraveled in Failure (July 8, 2025)
7. In Indonesia: The Basics for Americans (May 27, 2012)
8. Indonesia: From Chinese Persecution to Diplomatic Reconciliation (June 10, 2025)
9. Indonesia’s Revolutionary War Ends Four Centuries Colonial Rule (July 10, 2025)
10. Indonesia’s Unhealed Wound: 1965-66 Anti-Communist Purge (July 9, 2025)
11. Photo Essay: A City Destroyed – the Tsunami Erased Banda Aceh, Indonesia (June 8, 2022)
12. Photo Essay: First Pediatric Health Clinic of Orphans International in Indonesia (June 8, 2023)
13. Photo Essay: In Aceh Indonesia, Happy Faces of Young Tsunami Survivors (June 7, 2024)
14. Photo Essay: Post-Tsunami Survival in Banda Aceh, Indonesia (June 9, 2021)
15. Raising Mathew Luce, Incredible Inspiration of “Mathew’s Rule” [draft]
16. Twenty Years Passing Since Great Indian Ocean Tsunami Swept 250,000 to Their Death [draft]
17. Video: Leadership Experience Indonesia – Learning the Song Esa Mokan (July 24, 2018)

Follow Jim Luce on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and X (Twitter).

© 2024 The Stewardship Report on Connecting Goodness – Towards Global Citizenship is published by The James Jay Dudley Luce Foundation Supporting & Educating Young Global Leaders is affiliated with Orphans International Worldwide, Raising Global Citizens. If supporting youth is important to you, subscribe to J. Luce Foundation updates here.