November 24, 2015 edition

According to Prasada Rao, ignorance has been the biggest barrier in dealing with the decades-old HIV/AIDS epidemic. This is why he speaks openly about the disease, freely discussing such topics as sex and sex education, which most Asians see as taboo, so that the social stigma attached to its victims can be erased, a first step in the prevention and treatment of the disease.
Rao truly believes that an open discussion of the subject would be the best protection against the disease, yet the biggest challenge in addressing this global epidemic. "For Asians, sex is taboo. It's in your bedroom, not on the road. So there's always that challenge," he told Tempo.

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More On The Record articles in other editions

November 10, 2015 edition

The 2015 Frankfurt Book Fair ended in mid-October. As the guest of honor at the world's largest book fair, Indonesia chose the slogan '17,000 Islands of Imagination' to lead its presentation.
It was a huge success, although the team only had two years to prepare for the event, compared to the five to six years other countries had.

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October 27, 2015 edition

Born in Strasbourg, capital city of Alsace in northern France, Philippe Lacoste, 57, has spent more than 20 years dealing with climate issues. To Lacoste, who grew up in an industrial city, the environment was not a big part of his life. But the holder of a master's degree in environmental science from the National School for Public Infrastructures (ENTPE) decided that he wanted to save the planet. "I saw the damage caused by the waste of industrial revolution," he said.
This year, Lacoste was appointed as the special representative for the climate conference (COP21) in Paris, which will be held between November 30 and December 11. It has been a daunting task for him, given that all 196 signatories in the upcoming conference are expected to come to a consensus on climate change. Nevertheless, Lacoste remains hopeful. He believes that people's mindset toward the issue has begun to change. "People are more aware of it now," he added.

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September 22, 2015 edition

Early this year, Indonesian power plants built by Chinese companies came under heavy scrutiny. One reason was that a number of Chinese-made power plants, some built since 2006 are not operating at their maximum, with reliability predicted at only 60-65 percent. Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said has requested that the Chinese authorities take responsibility.
A study conducted by the energy ministry also found that many of the projects were behind schedule and the quality sub-standard. Among the participating contractors, were the China National Machine Industry, the China Huaidian Engineering Corporation and Dongfang Electric Corporation (DEC).

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