Gary Dean

Gary Dean

From the West, Northward to the East

Gary Dean

Systems engineer, researcher in applied anthropology, writer.

I was born and raised in Perth, Western Australia, in the pre-Sputnik era, and brought up in a mono-cultural English/British suburban environment.

I am a Gemini and a Rooster. My MBTI is INFJ, my blood type B-, and I’m an Aspie. I tend to overshare.

My life has largely unfolded across South East Asia. I emigrated to Indonesia in 1996, and I am an Indonesian citizen.

My role models include Robert Sapolsky (professor of biology and neuroscience at Stanford); Gotama (of the Pali Canon); Germaine Greer (who likes to troll); and Pa Kettle (whose only talents are avoiding work and winning contests), among many others.

Before Indonesia

I came to Indonesian studies late, and by a crooked route. Music first — at a special government high school where instrumental lessons, orchestra rehearsals and theory classes took twenty hours+ a week — then the Australian hippie trail at sixteen, then dairy goats in Tasmania and Fremantle, which I eventually formalised into qualifications in animal technology and agriculture. In 1985 I was hired as a computer programmer by a front company for the Australian Labor Party, largely on the strength of a least-cost ration formulation program I had written for ruminants; I spent the next eight years building systems for opinion polling, electorate management and direct mass mail. By 1993 I was quite burnt out by non-stop political campaigning. I began full-time Indonesian language training in 1995 and left Australia for good the year after.

The longer version is in Meet Gary Dean, an interview first published in Jakarta Expat.

Writing

I have been publishing essays and articles since 1997: on Indonesian politics and business, the krismon of 1997-98 and the fall of Soeharto, applied anthropology, secular dharma, prosociality, and more recently on AI and open technology. Some of it is academic, some polemic, some journal and memoir. It is collected here.

Interests

I have several pursuits, including:

  • Group theory/Prosociality
  • The evolution of humans: biological, cultural, technological, political
  • Nutritional biology
  • Human discourse
  • Secularised dharmas
  • AI and AI programming
  • Horizontal internetworking (P2P, Mesh, FidoNet, Usenet), and quasi-autonomous internetworked human communities
Gary Dean
Amsterdam Centraal

Over the years, I’ve acquired some knowledge and experience in several areas, including:

  • Anthropology & Politics
  • Human cultures, political systems, and international relations
  • History, culture, and politics of Maritime Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia
  • Proficiency in Indonesian language
  • Insight into political processes, governmental structures, and geopolitics
  • Advocacy for open political systems and technologies
  • Commitment to secular dharma
  • Computing
    • Skills in application programming (PHP, SQL, Bash, C)
    • Linux system administration and scripting
    • Support for open-source technology and software
  • Biology
    • Knowledge in animal husbandry, particularly ruminants
    • Interest in controlled-environment food production (hydroponics, aquaponics, and invertebrate protein production)
    • A focus on human evolutionary biology/psychology

I welcome dialogue, collaboration, or business propositions in these or related fields. Please feel free to contact me.

Business Endeavours

Founder and chairman of the Okusi group of companies, established on 11 August 1997 in Yogyakarta, moved to Jakarta in 2000, with offices since opened in Bali and Batam. Okusi provides corporate services to (mainly) foreign companies investing in Indonesia, including company establishment, accounting and taxation, audit, merger and liquidation, immigration formalities, and research. It has established more PMA (foreign investment) companies than any other firm in Indonesia.

Director of a number of other Indonesian companies operating in various fields.

Formal Education

  • 1996-2000 | Bachelor of Asian Studies — Murdoch University, Perth, Australia. A four-year specialist programme focused on Indonesian anthropology, complemented by politics and international relations, including a year at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta; the remainder completed externally from Indonesia.
  • 1995-1996 | Diploma of Social Science (Indonesian) — Central Institute of Technology, Perth, Australia. A two-year course in Indonesian language.
  • 1983-1984 | Associate Diploma of Agricultural Technology — TAFE Agricultural Extension Service, Perth, Australia. Specialised in livestock husbandry with a focus on ruminants.
  • 1981-1982 | Certificates in Animal Technology and Animal Nursing — Bentley Technical College, Perth, Australia. Covered husbandry of various species used in medical research.

Organisations

CC BY