Abstract
In this article, I argue that the (un)making of renewable energy, namely Kemiri Sunan (Reutealis trisperma/biodiesel) in post-Reformasi Indonesia, is an awkward assemblage practice. My interlocutors associated this project with new dreams and hopes, as well as new frustrations and anxieties. Drawing from ethnographic fieldwork in East Java, Indonesia, conducted in 2014, 2017 and 2024, this article explores the awkward assemblage of the biodiesel initiative where eco-spirituality, science, nationalism and neoliberalism are entangled in the daily lives of Indonesians in the Post-Reformasi era. The concept of awkward assemblage provides an analytical lens for exploring the paradox within environmental initiatives where humans and nonhuman entities contribute to the making and unmaking of such efforts. This framework offers insights for environmental anthropology, particularly, in a context where local environmental initiatives are fraught with tensions - between aspirations for progress and the recurring spectre of failure.