Welcome to my thinking space.

I’m Wahyu Zuli Firmanto, a recent Master of Public Policy graduate from the Lee Kuan Yew School exploring economic development, urban planning, labor economics, education policy, industrial policy, and how businesses grow. I’m drawn to understanding what improves people’s livelihoods and why some approaches work while others don’t.

This is where I document my observations. From analyzing why some tourist destinations thrive while others struggle, to understanding how land policy creates urban success, to examining what China’s education system teaches us about inequality. I write about the patterns I notice, the frameworks that make sense of complexity, and the lessons that transfer across contexts.

My perspective comes from building an education company from 3 founders to 30,000+ students, studying economic development policy, and working across education, marketing, and research. This combination lets me approach problems from multiple angles, seeing both the policy framework and the practical implementation, both the theory and the business reality.

These aren’t polished academic papers or final conclusions. They’re thinking in progress.