SDG 17: Partnerships for the goals | SDGs 17: Global partnership | SDG 16: Peace, justice and strong institution | SDGs 16: Conflict resolution | SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities | SDGs 11: Community

On Tuesday, February 13th 2024 at 1 until 3 pm, the UGM Japanese Language and Culture Study Program held a public lecture on the topic “Will Japan become a ‘normal country’?: Changes in the Defense Debate Before and After the Outbreak of The Ukraine War ” which was delivered by researchers and teaching staff at the Graduate School of International Cooperation Studies from Kobe University, (Ass. Prof.) Masato Nakahara. This Public Lecture was the opening for the 2023/2024 even semester lecture activities which were attended by lecturers and students of the Japanese Language and Culture Study Program, as well as students from outside the study program who were interested in Japanese issues.

In the first part, Nakahara-sensei explained the history of the formation of the Jieitai (Japanese Self-Defense Forces) after Japan’s defeat in World War II and changed in the position of the Jieitai during the Allied occupation as regulated in the Showa Constitution which was in effect to this day. The restrictions on Jieitai activities regulated in the Showa Constitution meant that Japan’s military activities were very limited, including when there was a war outside Japan, such as Russia’s war with Ukraine, which is still ongoing today. Japan’s position in relation to security and world peace is a dilemma because sending war troops abroad violates the mandate of the Shouwa Constitution, while on the other hand the international world wants Japan to play an active role in sending war troops. Especially in the current era where changes in the global political constellation after the Cold War are increasingly dynamic and real, Japan, which is required to always prioritize peace as mandated by the Shouwa Constitution (Heiwa Kenpou), needs to look for new interpretations so that it can become a ‘normal’ country, namely a country that on the one hand can maintain sovereignty, and on the other hand can play a role in world peace. After the presentation session by Nakahara-sensei, the public lecture continued with a discussion and question and answer session which was very dynamic and filled with various questions from the public lecture participants regarding Japan’s attitude and position in relation to international conflicts, geopolitical changes in East Asia and Indonesia.

Understanding the position of Japan in the context of global change is considered important for the study program’s academic community because apart from being a means of updating information related to current issues regarding the country of Japan, it is also a means of learning and inspiration for research themes concerning Japanese issues. More than that, through forums like this, cooperation between study programs and foreign institutions can be further enhanced and can become a means for study programs to facilitate their academic community to be able to move more globally, in accordance with one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), namely developing global partnerships for development.

SDGs 4: Quality Education | SDGs 17: Partnerships for the Goals

On Monday, February 2nd, 2024, the Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture Study Program received a visit from students of Reitsumeikan University, Japan. The event took place in Room 405 (gamelan room), Margono Building, 4th floor, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). The participants of this visit were 20 students accompanied by one supervisor and 14 UGM students from the UGM Buddy Club organization. 

During the visit, seven student representatives from the Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture Study Program gave a presentation about the Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture Study Program and the Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture Student Family Organization (HMJ Kamastawa). Furthermore, they introduced Karawitan musical instruments as part of Javanese culture. The introduction was carried out by explaining the musical instruments, demonstrating the instruments, and presenting a traditional Javanese song entitled “Suwe Ora Jamu.” After the presentation, Reitsumeikan University students were allowed to try various gamelan instruments guided by student representatives.

The visit was then closed with a documentation session and the souvenirs handover to Reitsumeikan University. With this visit, Reitsumeikan University students had the opportunity to have a deep and better understanding of Indonesian culture, especially Javanese culture. This activity can be an important tool to introduce the beauty of the archipelago’s culture to the international community. Attempts to introduce and explore the traditions and culture of the archipelago are in line with the fourth point in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) : Quality Education.

SDGS 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | SDGs 17: Partnership for the Goals

On Tuesday, February 13th, 2024, Universitas Gadjah Mada through the UGM Public Relations, News, and Protocol Office held a Technical Guidance with the theme “Management of Universitas Gadjah Mada Social Media” for public relations, protocol, and news staff in the UGM work unit environment which was held in the Auditorium of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, from 09.00 – 12.00 WIB. To strengthen the university’s public relations function, UGM presented several speakers from the UGM Public Relations, News, and Protocol Office to present the material themes. This aligns with providing information services to the public about events, events, and information around UGM.

The Technical Guidance session began with a speech from the Deputy Dean for Alumni, Cooperation, and Innovation, Dr. Fajar Adi Kusumo, S.Si., M.Sc., who stated that the publication of activities carried out in the UGM environment could be a source of inspiration for the wider community, therefore it is necessary to have qualified knowledge to manage information for the public, especially information that is shared through social media. In line with this, Mrs. Hestining Kurniastutim, S.S., M.B.A., Head of the UGM Public Relations, News, and Protocol Office, also stated the high urgency of social media, as well as the traffic of the existence of the official pages of each unit which affects the ups and downs of information accessibility caused by the increasingly rapid communication.

The Technical Guidance session was then continued with a presentation of material that mapped the segmentation of social media users from each social media platform, the objectives of building social media content, efforts to increase engagement from social media content, the characteristics of content for public information, and the stages of production of content for social media. The presentation of the material ended with the opening of a question and answer session from the faculty, department, and other UGM work units regarding the management of social media on several platforms, copywriting, content feedback management, engaging influencers or important UGM figures, and finding a balance in content creation.

SDGS 4: Quality Education | SDGS 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth | SDGS 17: Partnership for the Goals

Yogyakarta, 05 February 2024 – Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) opens opportunities for students to broaden their horizons and hone their skills outside the classroom. This was proven by the students of Arabic Literature at Gadjah Mada University who had participated in internships at various institutions, such as the DIY Regional Police, PT KAI Daop 6 Yogyakarta, and the Sleman Religious Court.

During the internship, students had the opportunity to develop various soft skills and hard skills, such as communication skills, creative thinking, writing, problem solving, and content creation. This experience helped them to be better prepared to enter the world of work and answer current industry needs.

At the DIY Regional Police, students had the opportunity to study in the PSDM section to learn on preparing quality and highly competitive human resources. At PT KAI Daop 6 Yogyakarta, students were placed in the public relations department who studied news writing, news reporting and social media content creation. Meanwhile, at the Sleman Religious Court, students were placed in the service section where they learned how to communicate with litigants and how to mediate to reach a peaceful solution.

Through the MBKM program, students had the opportunity to develop themselves and prepare themselves to face the world of work. Through internships at various institutions, they gained hands-on experience and learned about various fields. With this, it is hoped that students will become qualified and highly competitive graduates.

SDGs 4: Quality education | SDGs 8: Decent work and economic growth | SDGs 12: Responsible consumption and production | SDGs 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions | SDGs 17: Partnerships for the goals

27^th of January 2024 – The “Infinite Learning – Web Development” program was designed to facilitate access to the quality education by providing learning experiences that reflect the actual situation in the industry. By encouraging participants to form challenge groups, this program not only aimed to produce developers with technical skills, but also encouraged collaboration and active participation in various industrial projects. Through the application of design thinking and SCRUM project management concepts, this program implicitly promoted responsible consumption and production practices, while forming individuals with adaptative, collaborative and communicative skills.

Intensive mentoring by two types of mentors, individual mentors and group mentors, played an important role in creating an inclusive and sustainable learning environment. With a focus on building individual skills, individual mentors provided guidance on participants’ performance, skills, self-motivation, and learning strategies. Meanwhile, the group mentor focused on group performance, research guidance, challenge project management, and application development. These two types of mentors worked together to build a strong partnership between mentor and participant, creating an environment that supports participants in facing the complex challenges of the future in the web development industry.