Main Article Content
Abstract
This research explores efforts to preserve the cultural heritage of the Suku Laut in the Riau Islands through placemaking initiatives within coastal settlements. Historically dependent on the sea for their livelihood and identity, the community now faces significant challenges in maintaining their cultural traditions amidst modernization and shifts in coastal ecosystems. This research aims to identify design strategies that harmonize traditional cultural values with the demands of contemporary development, focusing on revitalizing the community’s living spaces. Employing qualitative methods, including interviews, field observations, and document analysis, the research highlights the critical role of cultural placemaking. Key elements include incorporating traditional architectural features, using locally sourced materials, and restoring communal spaces to promote sustainable coastal settlement designs. The findings indicate that this approach which respects the cultural values and the Suku Laut's relationship with their natural environment can promote social and environmental sustainability. In conclusion, integrating cultural placemaking into coastal settlement design is pivotal for preserving the cultural heritage and enhancing the quality of life for the Suku Laut amidst the ongoing modernization.
Keywords
Article Details
Copyright (c) 2026 Stivani Ayuning Suwarlan, Carissa Dinar Aguspriyanti, I Gusti Ngurah Anom Gunawan, Amanda Rosetia, Arti Manikam, Kellen, Tari Wahyuni Lubis, Yoseph Seno Prakoso

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References
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- Arifa, N. A., Karman, A., & Ulfain, U. (2023). INTERNALISASI NILAI-NILAI SOSIO-KULTURAL BERBASIS ETNO RELIGI DI MASYARAKAT WANNAS KAMPUNG KOYA KOSO PAPUA. Communicative : Jurnal Komunikasi dan Penyiaran Islam, 4(2), 118–127.
- Atwa Eldek, M. H., M. Ali, S., & El-Sohafi, N. (2022). The Impact of Place-making to Revitalize the Identity of Coastal City. Proceedings of the International Conference of Contemporary Affairs in Architecture and Urbanism-ICCAUA, 5(1), 659–676. https://doi.org/10.38027/ICCAUA2022EN0179
- Bintana, M. G. D., Ekomadyo, A. S., Agumsari, D., & Susanto, V. (2020). Sea Nomads and Cultural Transformation, Case Study: Kampung Baru Suku Laut, Sungai Buluh Village, Lingga Regency, Riau Islands. 123–131. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.201009.013
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- Chanet, N. T., Gunawan, A., & Munandar, A. (2022). Culture-Based Landscape Concept of the Suku Laut Old Kampong of Batam City. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 13(7), 1867–1880. https://doi.org/10.14505/jemt.v13.7(63).07
- Djukic, A., Stober, D., Tiano, P., Negru, M., Maric, J., Sepe, M., & Economou, A. (2023). Chapter 2 Placemaking and Networking of Heritage for Sustainable Tourism. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004542389_004
- Dubois, L.-E., Bodur, H. O., Anderson, J., Tirtiroglu, D., & Dimanche, F. (2023). Augmenting places: The impact of placemaking on behavioral intentions. City, Culture and Society, 32, 100502. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ccs.2023.100502
- Ellery, P. J., Ellery, J., & Borkowsky, M. (2021). Toward a Theoretical Understanding of Placemaking. International Journal of Community Well-Being, 4(1), 55–76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42413-020-00078-3
- Hamzah, A., Arifin, A., Abdullah, S., Salim, M. N. H. M., & Junaid, I. (2024). EMPOWERMENT OF COASTAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH MARINE TOURISM: A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH. PLANNING MALAYSIA, 22. https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v22i34.1633
- Hansasooksin, S. T., & Tontisirin, N. (2021). Placemaking as an urban development strategy for making the Pattaya Innovation District. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 13(6), 1930–1951. https://doi.org/10.1111/rsp3.12400
- Hidayati, I. (2021). Urbanisasi dan Dampak Sosial di Kota Besar: Sebuah Tinjauan. Jurnal Ilmiah Ilmu Sosial, 7(2), 212–221. https://doi.org/10.23887/jiis.v7i2.40517
- Jeong, H. (2022). Rebuilding Cultural Ethos in Urban Storefronts: Two Arts Districts in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Built Environment, 48(1), 76–103. https://doi.org/10.2148/benv.48.1.76
- Lenhart, L. (2001). Orang Suku Laut Communities at Risk: Effects of Modernisation on the Resource Base, Livelihood and Culture of the ‘Suku Laut People’ of the Riau Islands (Indonesia). Nomadic Peoples, 5(2), 67–88.
- Nugraha, W. (2022, December 14). Maritime New Century: The Re-Rise of the Spice Route and the Re-establishment of the Straits of Malacca in Regional Trade in Indonesia. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Social-Humanities in Maritime and Border Area, SHIMBA 2022, 18-20 September 2022, Tanjung Pinang, Kep. Riau Province, Indonesia. https://eudl.eu/doi/10.4108/eai.18-9-2022.2326036
- Nursanty, E., Rusmiatmoko, D., & Widiantara, I. W. A. (2024). Bridging traditions: Placemaking and authenticity in architecture for city branding. Architecture Papers of the Faculty of Architecture and Design STU, 29(3), 15–24. https://doi.org/10.2478/alfa-2024-0014
- Omstedt, A., & Gustavsson, B. (2022). The complex interactions between humans and the marine environment require new efforts to build beauty and harmony. Frontiers in Marine Science, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.913276
- Osborne, N., & Grant-Smith, D. (2021). In-Depth Interviewing. In S. Baum (Ed.), Methods in Urban Analysis (pp. 105–125). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-1677-8_7
- Ounanian, K., van Tatenhove, J. P. M., Hansen, C. J., Delaney, A. E., Bohnstedt, H., Azzopardi, E., Flannery, W., Toonen, H., Kenter, J. O., Ferguson, L., Kraan, M., Macias, J. V., Lamers, M., Pita, C., Ferreira da Silva, A. M., Albuquerque, H., Alves, F. L., Mylona, D., & Frangoudes, K. (2021). Conceptualizing coastal and maritime cultural heritage through communities of meaning and participation. Ocean & Coastal Management, 212, 105806. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2021.105806
- Pendlebury, J., & Porfyriou, H. (2017). Heritage, urban regeneration and place-making. Journal of Urban Design, 22(4), 429–432. https://doi.org/10.1080/13574809.2017.1326712
- Phillips, D. (2021). Southeast Asia, Second Edition. Infobase Holdings, Inc.
- Raposo, O., & Nofre, J. (2024). Cultural placemaking in the black suburbs of the tourist city. Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability, 17(2), 169–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/17549175.2024.2327583
- Reich, C. (2020). Exploring placemaking in Oslo Critical perspectives on the ‘making’ of places.
- Rifai, R., & Haeril, H. (2024). Integrasi Kebijakan Publik dan Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Alam untuk Pembangunan Pesisir di Kabupaten Bima. Journal of Governance and Local Politics (JGLP), 6(1), 25–36. https://doi.org/10.47650/jglp.v6i1.1235
- Rosetia, A., & Harun, N. Z. (2023). Creative Placemaking Key Contribution on Thematic District: An Exploratory Review. 29th ISDRS Conference.
- Rosetia, A., & Harun, N. Z. (2026). A Systematic Literature Review of Creative Placemaking on Creative Approaches in Thematic and Contextual Settings. Journal of Architectural Research and Design Studies, 10(1), 55–68. https://doi.org/10.20885/jars.vol10.iss1.art4
- Samsuddin, N. S., Talaat, W. I. A. W., Saputra, J., & Salleh, H. S. (2024). THE UTILIZATION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE ON THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE TOWARDS ISLAND COMMUNITIES’ SOCIAL WELL-BEING: THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF ADAPTIVE CAPACITY. PLANNING MALAYSIA, 22. https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v22i34.1626
- Sills, C. A. (2021). Colonial capitalism, boundary demarcation and imperial placemaking in South Arabia. Third World Quarterly, 42(7), 1644–1659. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2021.1903856
- Singh, R. P. B., Niglio, O., & Rana, P. S. (2023). Interfaces Among Placemaking and Cultural Landscapes: Review and Appraisal. Placemaking and Cultural Landscapes, 3–21. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-19-6274-5_1
- Suwarlan, S. A., Lee, Y. L., & Said, I. (2024). Socio-cultural resilience framework for the sustainability of the Suku Laut community of the insular city. Alam Cipta, 17(1), 10–17.
- Wheeler, R. (2016). Local history as productive nostalgia? Change, continuity and sense of place in rural England: Social & Cultural Geography: Vol 18, No 4. Social & Cultural Geography, 18(4), 466–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2016.1189591
References
Aguspriyanti, C. D., Benny, Christine, V., Fernando, D., & Tan, A. (2023). Between Architecture, Story, and Place Identity: A Narrative Approach for Creative Placemaking in Museum Design. Jurnal Arsitektur Terracotta, 5(1), 13–22. https://doi.org/10.26760/terracotta.v5i1.9183
Alidousti, S., & Sahli, F. (2024). National and sectoral information technology planning: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Public Sector Management, 37(4), 465–485. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPSM-09-2023-0286
Arifa, N. A., Karman, A., & Ulfain, U. (2023). INTERNALISASI NILAI-NILAI SOSIO-KULTURAL BERBASIS ETNO RELIGI DI MASYARAKAT WANNAS KAMPUNG KOYA KOSO PAPUA. Communicative : Jurnal Komunikasi dan Penyiaran Islam, 4(2), 118–127.
Atwa Eldek, M. H., M. Ali, S., & El-Sohafi, N. (2022). The Impact of Place-making to Revitalize the Identity of Coastal City. Proceedings of the International Conference of Contemporary Affairs in Architecture and Urbanism-ICCAUA, 5(1), 659–676. https://doi.org/10.38027/ICCAUA2022EN0179
Bintana, M. G. D., Ekomadyo, A. S., Agumsari, D., & Susanto, V. (2020). Sea Nomads and Cultural Transformation, Case Study: Kampung Baru Suku Laut, Sungai Buluh Village, Lingga Regency, Riau Islands. 123–131. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.201009.013
Byrne, J. A. (2021). Observation for Data Collection in Urban Studies and Urban Analysis. In S. Baum (Ed.), Methods in Urban Analysis (pp. 127–149). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-1677-8_8
Chanet, N. T., Gunawan, A., & Munandar, A. (2022). Culture-Based Landscape Concept of the Suku Laut Old Kampong of Batam City. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism, 13(7), 1867–1880. https://doi.org/10.14505/jemt.v13.7(63).07
Djukic, A., Stober, D., Tiano, P., Negru, M., Maric, J., Sepe, M., & Economou, A. (2023). Chapter 2 Placemaking and Networking of Heritage for Sustainable Tourism. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004542389_004
Dubois, L.-E., Bodur, H. O., Anderson, J., Tirtiroglu, D., & Dimanche, F. (2023). Augmenting places: The impact of placemaking on behavioral intentions. City, Culture and Society, 32, 100502. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ccs.2023.100502
Ellery, P. J., Ellery, J., & Borkowsky, M. (2021). Toward a Theoretical Understanding of Placemaking. International Journal of Community Well-Being, 4(1), 55–76. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42413-020-00078-3
Hamzah, A., Arifin, A., Abdullah, S., Salim, M. N. H. M., & Junaid, I. (2024). EMPOWERMENT OF COASTAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH MARINE TOURISM: A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH. PLANNING MALAYSIA, 22. https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v22i34.1633
Hansasooksin, S. T., & Tontisirin, N. (2021). Placemaking as an urban development strategy for making the Pattaya Innovation District. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 13(6), 1930–1951. https://doi.org/10.1111/rsp3.12400
Hidayati, I. (2021). Urbanisasi dan Dampak Sosial di Kota Besar: Sebuah Tinjauan. Jurnal Ilmiah Ilmu Sosial, 7(2), 212–221. https://doi.org/10.23887/jiis.v7i2.40517
Jeong, H. (2022). Rebuilding Cultural Ethos in Urban Storefronts: Two Arts Districts in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Built Environment, 48(1), 76–103. https://doi.org/10.2148/benv.48.1.76
Lenhart, L. (2001). Orang Suku Laut Communities at Risk: Effects of Modernisation on the Resource Base, Livelihood and Culture of the ‘Suku Laut People’ of the Riau Islands (Indonesia). Nomadic Peoples, 5(2), 67–88.
Nugraha, W. (2022, December 14). Maritime New Century: The Re-Rise of the Spice Route and the Re-establishment of the Straits of Malacca in Regional Trade in Indonesia. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Social-Humanities in Maritime and Border Area, SHIMBA 2022, 18-20 September 2022, Tanjung Pinang, Kep. Riau Province, Indonesia. https://eudl.eu/doi/10.4108/eai.18-9-2022.2326036
Nursanty, E., Rusmiatmoko, D., & Widiantara, I. W. A. (2024). Bridging traditions: Placemaking and authenticity in architecture for city branding. Architecture Papers of the Faculty of Architecture and Design STU, 29(3), 15–24. https://doi.org/10.2478/alfa-2024-0014
Omstedt, A., & Gustavsson, B. (2022). The complex interactions between humans and the marine environment require new efforts to build beauty and harmony. Frontiers in Marine Science, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.913276
Osborne, N., & Grant-Smith, D. (2021). In-Depth Interviewing. In S. Baum (Ed.), Methods in Urban Analysis (pp. 105–125). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-1677-8_7
Ounanian, K., van Tatenhove, J. P. M., Hansen, C. J., Delaney, A. E., Bohnstedt, H., Azzopardi, E., Flannery, W., Toonen, H., Kenter, J. O., Ferguson, L., Kraan, M., Macias, J. V., Lamers, M., Pita, C., Ferreira da Silva, A. M., Albuquerque, H., Alves, F. L., Mylona, D., & Frangoudes, K. (2021). Conceptualizing coastal and maritime cultural heritage through communities of meaning and participation. Ocean & Coastal Management, 212, 105806. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2021.105806
Pendlebury, J., & Porfyriou, H. (2017). Heritage, urban regeneration and place-making. Journal of Urban Design, 22(4), 429–432. https://doi.org/10.1080/13574809.2017.1326712
Phillips, D. (2021). Southeast Asia, Second Edition. Infobase Holdings, Inc.
Raposo, O., & Nofre, J. (2024). Cultural placemaking in the black suburbs of the tourist city. Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability, 17(2), 169–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/17549175.2024.2327583
Reich, C. (2020). Exploring placemaking in Oslo Critical perspectives on the ‘making’ of places.
Rifai, R., & Haeril, H. (2024). Integrasi Kebijakan Publik dan Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Alam untuk Pembangunan Pesisir di Kabupaten Bima. Journal of Governance and Local Politics (JGLP), 6(1), 25–36. https://doi.org/10.47650/jglp.v6i1.1235
Rosetia, A., & Harun, N. Z. (2023). Creative Placemaking Key Contribution on Thematic District: An Exploratory Review. 29th ISDRS Conference.
Rosetia, A., & Harun, N. Z. (2026). A Systematic Literature Review of Creative Placemaking on Creative Approaches in Thematic and Contextual Settings. Journal of Architectural Research and Design Studies, 10(1), 55–68. https://doi.org/10.20885/jars.vol10.iss1.art4
Samsuddin, N. S., Talaat, W. I. A. W., Saputra, J., & Salleh, H. S. (2024). THE UTILIZATION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE ON THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE TOWARDS ISLAND COMMUNITIES’ SOCIAL WELL-BEING: THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF ADAPTIVE CAPACITY. PLANNING MALAYSIA, 22. https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v22i34.1626
Sills, C. A. (2021). Colonial capitalism, boundary demarcation and imperial placemaking in South Arabia. Third World Quarterly, 42(7), 1644–1659. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2021.1903856
Singh, R. P. B., Niglio, O., & Rana, P. S. (2023). Interfaces Among Placemaking and Cultural Landscapes: Review and Appraisal. Placemaking and Cultural Landscapes, 3–21. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-19-6274-5_1
Suwarlan, S. A., Lee, Y. L., & Said, I. (2024). Socio-cultural resilience framework for the sustainability of the Suku Laut community of the insular city. Alam Cipta, 17(1), 10–17.
Wheeler, R. (2016). Local history as productive nostalgia? Change, continuity and sense of place in rural England: Social & Cultural Geography: Vol 18, No 4. Social & Cultural Geography, 18(4), 466–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2016.1189591