SDG 4: Quality education | SDGs 4: Education for sustainability | SDGs 4: Equal access | SDGs 4: Cultural diversity | SDG 5: Gender equality | SDG 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions | SDGs 16: Education | SDG 17: Partnerships for goals | SDGs 17: Capacity building

Special Lecture and Workshop on “Gender and Sexuality in Indonesia,” a collaboration between the Department of Behavioral Sciences, College of Arts And Sciences, University of Michigan-Flint, USA, and the Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, was held on May 8, 2024. That special lecture and workshop were part of a series of activities in the full summer short course, which will be held fromMay 8, 2024, until May 10, 2024. The theme of this event, “Gender and Sexuality in Indonesia,” was a short course that provides an opportunity to learn from local experts about these topics at Universitas Gadjah Mada, combined with a series of field visits. 

The aim of this short course is to help participants better understand the complexity and diversity of gender and sexuality aspects that intersect with Indonesian society as a whole. This is also an opportunity for students, both from the United States and Indonesia, to gain international perspectives and experiences. This short course is attended by 16 students from the University of Michigan-Flint, USA, under the guidance of Dr. Daniel Birchok. A series of activities has been planned since the beginning of this year, with 8 student committees from the Anthropology Department of Universitas Gadjah Mada under the guidance of Dr. Sita Hidayah and the Department of Anthropology of Universitas Gadjah Mada, led by Prof. Dr. Pujo Semedi.

The event began by listening to the opening speech by Dr. Daniel Birchok. Dr. Birchok is an anthropologist of religion interested in religion and public life, especially Islam in Indonesia. His research focuses on everyday engagements with religious concepts, and he is especially interested in genealogical authority, religious temporalities, and ritual. He is writing about a group of Sufis (Islamic mystics) who reside on the west coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province, with special attention to how their changing forms of genealogical authority and evolving notions of orthodoxy reflect the place of religion in the Indonesian state. Next was the opening speech from (Dean/Vice Dean/Head of the Anthropology Department/Representative. 

Before they proceed with next agenda, there were some information regarding the activities of that short course. fisrt, they were conducted a special lecture and workshop featuring 3 remarkable speakers who are lecturers at Universitas Gadjah Mada. Next, there will be a special session conducted by Samsara. Following that, specifically for the 16 students from the University of Michigan-Flint, the committee, and accompanying lecturers, there will be a field trip to Aisyiyah. After that, our activities will continue with field trips to Sanggar Tari Didik Nini Thowok and Pondok Pesantren Waria Al-Fatah. On the final day, the day after tomorrow, activities will proceed with a field trip to Yashanti at Pasar Bringharjo and Rifka Annisa. 

SDGs 4: Quality Education | SDGs 4: Access to education | SDGs 4: Enrolment | SDGs 4: Education | SDG 5: Gender equality | SDGs 5: Empower girls | SDGs 5: Empowerment | SDGs 5: Empowerment of women / empower women / women’s empowerment | SDGs 17: Partnerships for the Goals | SDGs 17: Global partnership

Ewha Womans University revisited UGM’s Korean Language and Culture Program to strengthen their collaboration with UGM’s Faculty of Cultural Sciences. This event took place on Monday, April 29, 2024, in the Multimedia Room of the Margono Building.

The event began with a presentation by Ewha Womans University on opportunities for pursuing a master’s degree there. The presentation covered the offered programs and the available scholarships to support tuition fees. After the 30-minute presentation, Ewha Womans University conducted a quiz for the participants. Those who could answer the quiz questions received special Ewha Womans University merchandise, specifically cat-shaped keychains.

Ewha Womans University is renowned for its unique and cute merchandise, which they distributed freely to the participants. The merchandise included folders, stickers, and luggage tags, all characteristic of Ewha Womans University.

This event served as a valuable information source for students interested in continuing their studies in South Korea, particularly at Ewha Womans University. Additionally, it helped maintain the cooperative relationship between UGM’s Korean Language and Culture Program and Ewha Womans University.

Author: Fathiannisa

SDG 2: Zero Hunger | SDGs 2: End hunger | SDG 5: Gender equality | SDGs 5: Equality | SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation | SDGs 6: Clean water | SDG 10: Reduced inequalities | SDGs 10: Children | SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities | SDGs 11: Community | SDG 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions | SDGs 16: Conflicts | SDG 17: Partnerships for goals | SDGs 17: Global partnership

In the midst of the raging conflict, the Palestinian people continue to struggle tirelessly to survive. To find out more about their condition and struggle, students of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada attended a TALK SHOW entitled “The Struggle of Palestinian Women and Children Amidst the Israeli Onslaught” with FATMA ALGHUSAIN as the guest speaker. She is the Executive Director of Amna Care Fund, an organization that helps the Palestinian people, especially women and children. “I have experienced four wars while living in Palestine. But this one is not a war. This is genocide!” She said. Mrs Fatma Alghusain also explained the current situation in Palestine.

This activity will be held on Tuesday, 26 March 2024 at 11.00 – 13.00 WIB at Soegondo Building 709 for participants who can attend offline, and via the zoom link for participants who can only follow the event remotely or online. As a form of solidarity for the freedom of the Palestinian people, talk show participants can also prepare their best infaq. In addition to students, the event was also attended by the Head of Arabic Literature Study Programme UGM, Dr Zulfa Purnamawati, S. S., M.Hum. and Mr Imam Hidayat, S.Pd.I., M.Pd. as a representative of Dompet Dhuafa Yogyakarta. After the Q&A session ended, the Head of Arabic Literature UGM handed over souvenirs to the speakers. With this cooperation between the Arabic literature programme and the Dompet Dhuafa, it is hoped that it can make people aware of the current conditions in Palestine.

SDGs 4: Quality Education | SDGs 5: Gender Equality | SDGs 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities | SDGs 17: Partnerships for the Goals

Being a college student is certainly one of the most valuable moments in an individual’s life. Their moment is utilized and strived to create significant impacts on the community environment. This act of virtue is realized by Maulita Shinta Maharani, a final year student of the English Department, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, who has taken part in social contributions during her college years. Uli, her nickname, actively participates in several student and external activities, especially those around community relations and social service. She is experienced in cultural immersion and interaction with international students which adds to her insight and knowledge of inclusivity and diversity of cross-cultural backgrounds.

Uli’s journey to be an active student begins with her motivation when she entered college in her first year. Before that, she had not found a suitable student organization or activity for her, but that changed when she entered one of the most prestigious universities in Indonesia, Universitas Gadjah Mada. Uli had the opportunity to join many student organizations and activities that supported her development and growth in the environment she was interested in. Her organizational experiences include an internship at the UGM Office of International Affairs, Head of HRD at UGM Buddy Club, Research Assistant at the English Literature UGM, Academic and Development Staff at Women Beyond Indonesia, Founder of Amnesty Amawa Wikreti under Amnesty International Indonesia, Learning and Development Staff at HopeHelps Network, and currently active as Public Relations Staff at Faculty of Cultural Sciences ,UGM. Uli’s organizational activities led her to take one step further by applying for the Erasmus student exchange program and having the opportunity to become an Erasmus Awardee at Budapest Business University, Hungary.

Not only active in organizations and student activities, Uli has participated in student activities in the scope of culture, namely the Cultural Exchange to the National University of Singapore (NUS) held in October 2023 which aimed to explore multiculturalism in Singapore. At the same time, she also became a research assistant for NUS students who were conducting a research on local communities in Yogyakarta. The result of this activity was a book entitled “Harmony in Diversity: A Journey from Jogja to Singapore, and Back” which tells about the multiculturalism aspects in Singapore and Yogyakarta in particular.

In addition, her passion for writing has made her actively contribute to pouring his thoughts into articles published in several platforms. Some of the articles she has written are as follows:

• “Should Gender be Equal?”: Gender Inequality in Family Form
• “Who is more likely to benefit from child marriage? Children or parents?”: Child Marriage in Temanggung, Central Java
• Nyadran and the Interpretation of Ubarampe: An Annual Tradition to Welcome Ramadan in Temanggung, Central Java, Indonesia
• Fairy Tales vs Feminism
• Women Beyond Bias: Learning from A Figure, An Eye-opening Discussion with Prof. Wening Udasmoro on Multiple Subordination in the Workplace

Her focus on gender studies, diversity, and inclusivity, also made her take the initiative to serve socially by establishing an organization called Amnesty Amawa Wikreti, a human rights organization led by women affiliated with Amnesty International Indonesia. In 2023, she also participated in the Student Community Service-Community Empowerment Learning (KKN-PPM UGM), as part of the final activity for UGM students. Through this program, she participated in community service in Ofu Village, Timor Tengah Selatan, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, which made her become more interested in social service in remote areas and contributing to the service of educational development during the continuation of the program she was involved in.

“I really want to experience life, I want to spend my youth doing a lot of positive activities and building as many relationships as possible,” said Uli, reflecting on the positive experiences and activities she has gone through during her almost four years as a student.

Uli emphasizes the role of a supportive environment as the main source of her successful achievements and experiences to grow and develop. “My parents also gave me the freedom to participate in anything and choose my own path in life. Support from lecturers and the closest ones; Nanda Yulfi Chairunnisa and Steven Glenn Ravanelli Waromi also serves as an important point to grow.”

It feels different when we step into things beyond our abilities, it feels different when literature students take part in hackathon competitions, and it is still different when women enter business and even lead. This was what actually wanted to be achieved in the 2023 UNESCO-UNITWIN Advanced Workshop & Hackathon program at Sookmyung Women’s University (SMU), Seoul, South Korea in November-December 2023. Bulan Churniati, an English Literature student at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Gadjah Mada University, had never expected that this program would enable her to compete on the international stage and at the same time experience traveling abroad for the first time.

This was not a trivial journey, this program required us to first be selected from hundreds of internal university students, then took part in training and whoever was the best would represent Gadjah Mada University at the international level later. It was truly an honor that Bulan must be proud of to have had this extraordinary experience, even though it might be a bit of a burden to show her best as a representative of the best university in Indonesia. The reason was, there were many creative ideas from competing countries, such as Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia—from ideas for making audiobooks, applications to reduce fast fashion, health, and many more. However, the student topic given required the participants to hold their heads high by discussing MSME issues which certainly produced results.

Before taking part in this training, Bulan admitted that she was still too afraid to start her own business and only focused on the theoretical enthusiasm she initiated – PKM-K about entrepreneurship, business case and business plan competitions, and creating content for other people’s MSMEs. Until APWINC came along and gave her lots of ideas, relationships and the courage to start and develop her own online shop, yes, a small step but the most meaningful in 2023. “Thank you for the support of PIKA UGM as a companion and provider of all information, FIB UGM as a beloved faculty, and UNESCO for its extraordinary program, as well as all parties involved. The word ‘finished’ will not stop my passion, but will make me thirstier to learn—wait for me here to share more stories.” said Bulan Churniati.