Yogyakarta, October 28th 2023—Coinciding with Youth Pledge Day, the Diskusi Komunikasi Magister UGM (Diskoma) held a webinar entitled “Youth Political Participation and Communication Ahead of the 2024 Election”. Discussions regarding the 2024 Election cannot be separated from the existence of young people as the largest voter group as well as a group that is active in criticizing local and national political dynamics. This was confirmed by Dr. Rahayu, M.Si, M.A., Chair of the Communication Science Master’s Study Program in UGM. “Young people need to be highlighted [because] they determine the future direction of Indonesian politics,” said Rahayu in his speech on Saturday (28/10).
Yogyakarta, October 27th 2023─The Department of Politics and Government (DPP) FISIPOL UGM held a public lecture for the Political Communication Strategy course at BRI Works FISIPOL UGM on Friday (27/10). In this session, DPP UGM invited Ira Koesno, who is a well-known public relations and news anchor, to deliver material entitled “Leadership and Crisis Communication”.
In a crisis situation, communication strategies related to the choice of diction are very important to influence the perspective of the listener or reader. “For a news anchor, producer and research are very important bases for building communication to the public,” explained Ira. As a practitioner, Ira conveyed more comprehensively regarding strategies for building verbal and visual communication in a crisis situation.
Yogyakarta, October 27th 2023—Students also experience difficulties in accessing education. In this digital era, electronic devices are the main access to learning. Unfortunately, not all students have the same opportunity to own devices, such as laptops in optimal condition. This obstacle is the background for the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol) UGM to provide assistance to students in the Laptop Lend Movement.
“We initially created this program during the pandemic. At that time, all learning was done online, and complaints came to us from students whose laptops were damaged, so they couldn’t write their thesis. By that issue, we provided 20 laptops at that time,” said Ika Wulandari Widyaningrum, M.B.A, as Head of Academic and Student Affairs. At that time, the laptops provided were donations from alumni and staff. The laptop loan program is specifically for students who are undertaking their final assignments but are hampered by the lack of adequate laptops. This program was launched when Fisipol celebrated its 65th Anniversary during the pandemic.
Yogyakarta, October 26th 2023─The Department of Politics and Government (DPP), Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in collaboration with national and international partners opened the “6th Conference on Human Rights: Indigeneity and Human Rights in Asia and the Pacific Towards a Just Society”. The event runs for two days, October 25-26, 2023.
The conference, which was attended by more than 150 participants from various countries, aimed to serve as a platform for stakeholders from different backgrounds, including academics, policy makers, and activists, to engage in meaningful dialogue.
Yogyakarta, October 26th 2023—Indonesia as a multicultural country has abundant natural and cultural wealth. Aspects of traditional communities or inland tribes are the roots of the nation’s foundation. Unfortunately, this community is still untouched by aspects of human rights, politics and even legality. For this reason, the Department of Politics and Government, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences UGM together with the National Human Rights Commission (KOMNAS HAM) held an Asia-Pacific conference with the theme “Indigeneity and Human Rights in Asia and the Pacific Towards a Just Society: Challenges and Opportunities” on October 25-26 2023.
Yogyakarta, October 25th 2023—Work styles in this era have experienced significant changes. Since the pandemic, 22% of people prefer to work from home, and 32% prefer digital work. This indicates a change in work trends which are starting to be dominated by the digital space. The Social Research Center (SORES) Fisipol UGM raised this issue in a seminar entitled “Future Work: Challenges and Vulnerabilities of Indonesia’s Future” on Wednesday (25/10).
Three things trigger changes in work models now and might in the future. These three are disruption, technological adaptation, and work transformation. “Technology, climate change and the pandemic are among the big change makers. This changes the way people live, starting from the way they work, move and interact. Actually, before that, there had been technological adaptations to the emergence of AI. But with the pandemic, this completes the existing disruption. “This also raises issues related to differences in technology mastery among certain age groups, or generations,” said Odan Asdi Artosa, Researcher at SOREC Fisipol UGM.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) are interconnected regions with significant potential for trade, infrastructure development, and economic growth. China introduced the BRI in 2013 to link Asia with Europe and Africa through infrastructure projects, trade routes, and cultural exchanges. Its implementation sparked discussion, prompting the need for a nuanced assessment of BRI’s impact on the global stage.
To generate a broader measure on this issue. On October 2023, 10-11, NACT China which is represented by the China Foreign Affairs University and NACT Indonesia which ASEAN Studies Center Universitas Gadjah Mada represents, held a Network of ASEAN-China Think Tanks (NACT) Country Coordinators Meeting and Annual Conference 2023 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. This year’s NACT has the theme “High-Quality BRI Cooperation and the AOIP”.
Yogyakarta, October 23rd 2023─Creating an inclusive and disability-friendly environment is a manifestation of the mandate contained in Law No. 8/2016 on Persons with Disabilities. However, more than that, the importance of inclusiveness also refers to the appreciation of the values of diversity and humanity more broadly. This was conveyed by Budi Irawanto, Lecturer at Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of UGM, when interviewed about inclusive campus on Thursday (19/10).
According to Budi, the journey towards an inclusive campus must start from the admission stage. “The campus must allow anyone with any condition to become a prospective student. All have access to register,” said Budi. Not only for students, campuses also need to open opportunities for lecturers and educators with disabilities to expand participation in the workforce. In addition, assistance is needed for students with disabilities. This assistance not only includes the provision of infrastructure, but also support in the learning process.
Yogyakarta, October 23rd 2023─Nowadays, the discourse on the rights of persons with disabilities is growing in society. This shows the importance of disability rights to be a concern in various aspects of life, including in the campus environment. As an educational institution, the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of UGM understands the urgency of creating a campus that is inclusive and friendly to people with disabilities. Dr. Nurhadi Susanto, Vice Dean for Finance, Assets, and Human Resources, stated firmly that currently, FISIPOL is ready to be at the forefront of efforts to adapt the concept of an inclusive campus.
Yogyakarta, 20 October 2023─Gadjah Mada University collaborates with PT ExxonMobil Cepu Limited in the fields of education, research and community service. The signing of the collaboration was carried out at the Mandiri Auditorium, 4th floor, Fisipol UGM, as well as a Public Lecture with “The Role of the Oil and Gas Industry in the Energy Transition” as the theme (20/10). Apart from that, there was also a handover of academic support facilities from PT ExxonMobil Cepu Limited to Gadjah Mada University, represented by the Secretary of the UGM Directorate of Student Affairs, Dr. Hempri Suyatna, S.Sos., M.Sc.