People-profile-ClausDauselt

People-profile-ClausDauselt

JP/20/CLAUS

German engineer remains loyal to Kupang locals

Yemris Fointuna
The Jakarta Post/Kupang

Modest in appearance, polite and open in his attitude as well as
fluent in Indonesian, Dr. Claus Jurgen Dauselt also speaks a
little Dawan, the language of West Timor.

Born in Munich, Germany, on Jan. 13, 1955 and an engineering
graduate of Munich University with a specialization in
development management, he has dedicated 15 years of his life to
Indonesia, in particular East Nusa Tenggara, Kalimantan, Sulawesi
and Maluku, as well as East Timor and several other Southeast
Asian countries.

Known as Claus to locals, he is well-known among the rural
people in East Nusa Tenggara and several other areas. He is
regarded in these places as a hero, as the benefits of his work
are enjoyed by poor communities in over 90 remote villages in
Indonesia.

He came to Indonesia in September 1989 as an engineering
consultant for a clean water sanitation project, the fruit of
cooperation between the Indonesian and German governments. Once
here, he decided to leave behind the buzz of the metropolis in
his country, give up his urban lifestyle and live with the poor
community in the places where he was assigned.

Thanks to his persistence and achievement, he was later named
head of the Southeast Asia Representative Office of Wind Guard, a
German company with an international license dealing specifically
in renewable energy technology.

Despite his title, Claus, who is married to Susi Katipana,
prefers to have his office in Kupang. "I can work more peacefully
here as it is far from any noise. My work territory covers the
whole of Southeast Asia, but I don't want to have my office in
Bali, Jakarta or Singapore.

"I prefer to live among the villagers. I can joke with them,
share love with them and we can appreciate one another," he said
at his beautiful home on Jl. Perintis Kemerdekaan, Kota Baru,
Kupang.

His development work involves solar energy, clean water
sanitation facilities, public latrines and aid for natural
disaster victims.

The fruits of his work have been enjoyed in many villages.
"Many people say that East Nusa Tenggara is poor, barren and dry.
God, however, has bestowed this region with a lot of solar energy
and wind. This potential cannot be found anywhere else. So, why
don't we tap this potential for the welfare of the locals?" he
asked.

Claus said Indonesia was once one of the world's largest oil
exporters. Today, however, it has become an oil-importing
country. This shows that there is a decrease in the world's
natural oil and gas reserves and that some day these reserves
will be depleted.

This concern has prompted him to help people in East Nusa
Tenggara, Kalimantan, Maluku and Sulawesi to be able to tap the
potential of solar energy and the wind as a source of
environmentally friendly alternative energy.

Claus has carried out wind surveys in Kupang, Rote Ndao and
Central South Timor regencies and also in several other regencies
in Maluku. He then established a wind database for the
construction of a power-generating turbine -- the largest in
Indonesia and the most sophisticated in Southeast Asia.

Wind power is utilized as a source of renewable energy, a way
of addressing the fuel crisis, and has also been used to distill
seawater into fresh water, a response to the shortage of potable
water in many parts of Indonesia.

"I visited many villages. Most complain about a lack of water
and electricity. I have told them they have great solar energy
and wind potential. Then there is technology to overcome the
shortage of water and electricity.

We can build a turbine. The government has said that it is
impossible to build a diesel-powered, electricity-generating
station in many villages due to the high cost and difficult
topography. We helped the villages by providing them with solar
power," said Claus.

In advanced countries, he said, electricity was essential
because it allowed people to work day and night. Thanks to
electricity, people can make use of technology to build their
businesses.

Electricity also allows children to study without
interruption. Thanks to electricity and communications
technology, the community can keep up with the latest
information. East Nusa Tenggara, Maluku, rural areas of
Kalimantan, Papua and several other regions are still considered
the least developed due to a lack of electricity.

"Take Oeledo village, Rote Ndao regency and East Nusa
Tenggara, for example. Before 2001, this village was really
isolated. We have helped this village with solar power. At first
each family earned less than Rp 60,000 but now their income has
risen to over Rp 500,000.

"These villagers make use of electricity for their home
industry. They can use electronic gadgets. They also have public
telephones and can communicate with the outside world," he noted.

Claus, who has also collected over 6,000 traditional ikat
(tie-dyed) woven fabrics from various regions, suggested that
Indonesia, which is a tropical country, with much of its
territory being dry, should move swiftly to alternative energy as
a source of electricity.

"Many advanced countries like Germany, Denmark, Britain, the
United States and many others in Europe, have, since the early
1980s, campaigned for the use of alternative energy. More than 10
percent of the energy requirements in these countries is supplied
by wind turbines and solar power. Their climate is different to
Indonesia's. You have only wet and dry seasons in this country,"
he said.

Perhaps, owing to his great love for Indonesia, and
particularly because of his affinity with the poor, smiling Claus
has repeatedly refused to be transferred to Europe or Africa.

As the driving force of Wind Guard in Southeast Asia, he
controls the operations of the company in the rocky, dry and
barren city of Kupang.