From information access to empowerment

In marginalised, resource dependent contexts, inequality lies not just in who accesses data but in who decides what data matters. A digital commons reframes information as a collective asset governed by communities rather than a commodity controlled by the state or private actors.

Extending Elinor Ostrom’s ideas of collective governance, digital commons rely on shared norms, trust, and accountability. In the digital sphere, these principles translate into local control over how information is produced, circulated, and used (Nicola, 2023). Empowerment, therefore, arises when communities shape their own data infrastructures instead of merely consuming externally defined information. Yet, as Berdou (2017) stated, participation in open digital systems is complex in materially deprived settings. Power imbalances, time constraints, and survival needs can limit who participates. True empowerment requires governance structures that address trust and sustainability while recognising the socio-economic realities of participants.

In coastal Indonesia, where climate disruptions are part of daily life, the digital commons model would allow local ecological knowledge of tides, seasons, and habitats, to coexist with external data sources such as weather forecasts and satellite imagery. This hybrid model positions coastal communities not merely as data subjects but as co-governors of the information systems that shape their futures. Such approaches align with emerging global research on participatory seascape mapping (James, 2025), which demonstrates that community-led mapping fills critical data gaps in marine governance, particularly where formal monitoring is limited. Participatory GIS not only generates accurate spatial data at low cost but also strengthens trust among stakeholders which are key ingredients of ecological and institutional resilience.

Documenting the Seaweed Commons

Between 2024 and 2025, our project worked with coastal communities in South Sulawesi, to explore how digital commons could strengthen local resilience. These communities illustrate the paradox of abundance and deprivation: despite living in one of the world’s richest marine regions, they experience persistent poverty, insecure livelihoods, and limited digital inclusion. The project, supported by the DFAT Australia Indonesia Institute, engaged fishers, seaweed farmers, women and youth in a series of participatory workshops. These community consultations revealed three interlinked information priorities. First, weather forecasts were seen as vital for safety at sea amid increasingly unpredictable conditions. Second, communities sought market price information to strengthen their bargaining position against intermediaries. Third, and perhaps most transformative, was the need for resource documentation, particularly the mapping of seaweed plots.

Seaweed farming is the backbone of South Sulawesi’s coastal economy, sustaining more than 35,000 households and contributing over one-third of Indonesia’s national output (Nuryartono et al., 2023). Yet, most smallholder plots (petak), delineated by bamboo poles that shift with the tides, remain informal and invisible to policy systems. Farmers explained that without recognised boundaries or spatial records, they struggle to access credit, disaster recovery funds, or infrastructure support.

In workshops and interviews, participants identified plot documentation as both a livelihood and a justice issue. Ruhon et. al., (2024) shows that seaweed farming in South Sulawesi evolved from a shared marine commons into a patchwork of informal private claims. Without some sort of regulation supported by documentation, these informal claims, though socially recognised, have no formal protection and have become a frequent source of tension among marine space users. The absence of regulation has left farmers vulnerable to encroachment, displacement, and exclusion from credit or government programs.

This vulnerability is magnified as coastal waters face intensifying competition from tourism, aquaculture, conservation, and infrastructure projects. When local use remains undocumented, small-scale users are easily sidelined in spatial planning and blue-economy expansion. Indonesia’s new Law No. 6/2023 with clauses on marine area utilisation deepens this challenge. The law requires all marine-based activities, including small-scale aquaculture, to obtain a KKPRL (Marine Space Utilisation Conformity) permit demonstrating conformity with marine spatial plans. To qualify, operators must submit boundary coordinates, maps, and evidence of compliance with zoning regulations. For large investors, this requirement is manageable; for smallholder farmers, it poses a serious risk. Without proper documentation, they could be excluded from legally recognised marine areas or penalised for non-compliance. Against this backdrop, documenting seaweed plots becomes both a technical necessity as well as means of asserting visibility and legitimacy in contested marine governance.

Looking Ahead: Participatory Mapping for Climate-Resilient Commons

Building on these community insights, the project team plans to co-develop a community-led seaweed mapping initiative that aligns local practice with national marine policies. The project aims to combine open-source mapping tools, satellite imagery, and participatory validation by farmers and cooperatives. Equally important, it will establish data governance protocols to ensure that information is owned, verified, and used by the communities themselves. Documented plots can support negotiations for infrastructure, transparent pricing, and access to legal permits, while also enabling communities to monitor environmental shifts that threaten their livelihoods. Planned activities include: Training and mentoring youth in mapping; Establishing community-led data protocols to define ownership and access; and Partnering with local authorities to align community maps with KKPRL requirements.

The goal is not only to create accurate spatial data but to embed that data within a governance system that reflects local priorities and safeguards collective rights. Within a context of contested marine spaces and intensifying climate risks, the commons model offers a foundation for inclusive, climate-resilient coastal futures.

References

Bidwell, N. J. (2021). Rural uncommoning: Women, community networks and the enclosure of life. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), 28(3), 1-50.

Berdou, E. (2017). Open development in poor communities: Opportunities, tensions, and dilemmas. Information Technologies & International Development, 13, 18–32.

Fuster Morell, M. (2014). Governance of Online Creation Communities: Provision of Infrastructure for the Building of Digital Commons. Routledge.

James, I. (2025). Participatory seascape mapping: A community-based approach to ocean governance and marine conservation, Ocean & Coastal Management, Volume 261, 107531, ISSN 0964-5691, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2024.107531.

Hess, C., & Ostrom, E. (2007). Understanding Knowledge as a Commons: From Theory to Practice. MIT Press.

Nuryartono. et. al. (2021). ‘An Analysis of the South Sulawesi Seaweed Industry’, the Australia Indonesia Centre