Sleman, October 6, 2026 — Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) has been officially entrusted to lead Indonesia’s HUB in the AAS Project: CHSS (Cultivating the Humanities and Social Sciences and Supporting Under-Represented Scholars of Asia Project) 2026 through international collaboration. The announcement was made at Universitas Gadjah Mada on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. Western Indonesia Time (WIB). This appointment affirms UGM’s position as one of the key hubs for the development of humanities and social sciences in Asia.
CHSS 2026 is an international academic forum held on 23–27 September 2026 at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore, Pakistan. The forum brought together academics, researchers, and institutional leaders from various Asian countries to shape a more inclusive and future-oriented direction for humanities and social science scholarship.
In this event, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) participated through representatives of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences (FIB) UGM, namely Prof. Dr. Wening Udasmoro, Dr. Aprillia Firmonasari, and Dr. Merry Andriani. Their presence reflects FIB UGM’s strong commitment to capacity building for scholars, particularly those who have long been under-represented in global academic conversations.
The event was attended by the President of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), Elora Shehabuddin, along with AAS leaders including Krisna Uk, Hilary Finchum-Sung, and Brandon Johnson. The presence of these prominent academic leaders underscored the growing global attention to equal access and equal opportunities within the international academic community.
Also in attendance was Eren Zink, Senior Research Advisor at SIDA (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency). SIDA’s involvement highlighted the importance of development policies that promote education for sustainability in the Global South, ensuring that scientific progress is shared equitably across nations.
Other participants included representatives of the HUB from Indonesia, led by Universitas Gadjah Mada, as well as HUBs from Vietnam, Pakistan, India, Thailand, and Timor-Leste. The participation of these countries made CHSS 2026 a vital platform for cross-national discussions on the future of humanities and social sciences in Asia.
The meeting focused on the Theory of Change, an approach used to maximize outcomes that directly benefit society in CHSS programs. Through this approach, every academic activity is designed not merely to remain at the discursive level, but to deliver tangible empowerment for both scholarly communities and society at large.
The event also served as a space for knowledge exchange, network development, and academic collaboration on various Asian and Global South issues, such as migration, education, gender, governance, climate change, public health, and cultural heritage. These issues are closely linked to the sustainable development agenda, including guaranteed equal access to education and equal opportunities for all.
In particular, gender issues were a central concern of the forum, in line with the spirit of women’s empowerment in the academic ecosystem. Women scholars from Asia and the Global South are seen as needing greater space to lead research, publish their work, and contribute to international scholarly networks.
UGM’s participation in the forum further strengthened international cooperation and opened up opportunities for cross-country research collaboration. The networks established are expected to broaden access for young researchers and under-represented scholars to academic resources, research funding, and global publication outlets.
As a follow-up, UGM will host an international workshop in Yogyakarta on 19–23 October 2026. This workshop continues UGM’s commitment to leading Indonesia’s HUB and strengthening Indonesia’s role in the landscape of humanities and social science research across Asia.
In addition, the CHSS event coincided with a pre-workshop consisting of two panels. The first panel discussed the issue of migration, while the second addressed gender issues in relation to the theory of disjointness. Both panels served as important forums for understanding the complex social dynamics of Asia and the Global South.
With this achievement, UGM hopes to continue promoting a more open and equitable academic governance, ensuring that the humanities and social sciences make real contributions to sustainable education, equal access, and community empowerment at both the local and global levels.
Contributors: Nada & Jusma, 2026
