Seoul, June 26, 2025 — As the urgency of the climate crisis continues to intensify, the global community faces a growing obstacle: the spread of misinformation and disinformation that hampers public understanding and concrete climate action. At the prestigious 9th Climate Energy Summit held in Seoul, South Korea, Dr. Novi Kurnia, a lecturer in the Department of Communication Science at FISIPOL UGM and lead researcher at the Centre for Digital Society (CfDS) UGM, delivered a keynote address offering a critical perspective from the Global South on the rampant spread of climate-related falsehoods.
SDGs 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
Yogyakarta, May 23th 2025─The Socio-Economic Empowerment Program for Village Communities Around Special Purpose Forest Areas (KHDTK) through a circular economy approach was officially closed in a ceremony at Pitu Village Hall, Getas District, Ngawi Regency, on Friday (23/5). The program, which ran from January to May 2025, is the result of collaboration between Pertamina Foundation, FISIPOL UGM, and Universitas Gadjah Mada.
During the five months of implementation, this program has provided skills training, local business assistance, household waste management into value-added products, and the formation of community business groups based on local potential and sustainability principles.
Blora, May 23, 2025—UGM’s Faculty of Social and Political Science (Fisipol) has successfully organized a closing ceremonial event for the socio–economic empowerment program for village communities around forest areas with special-purpose (KHDTK). It is done through the lens of circular economy at the second location, Mendenrenjo Village, Blora Regency on Friday (23/5). This event also marks the official end of the program that has been ongoing for five months since January 2025.
Arie Sujito, as Vice Rector for Student Affairs, Community Service, and Alumni of UGM, attended the ceremony and mentioned that,”The activities carried out all this time are aimed at increasing the quality of life of communities together. It is hoped that this cooperation between villages and groups is important in reducing the rate of poverty by empowering communities.”
Yogyakarta, 21 May 2025–The Faculty of Social and Political Sciences UGM continues to strengthen international cooperation through a strategic meeting with a delegation from Gaziantep University, Turkey. In a warm atmosphere and with a collaborative spirit, the deans of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, UGM, and the Faculty of Agriculture, UGM, hosted a dinner with delegates from Gaziantep University at Sasanti Restaurant in Yogyakarta.
This meeting served as a forum to discuss the continuation of academic cooperation between the two institutions, which had previously been established through the Erasmus+ program. One of the potential topics discussed in depth was the plan for collaborative research and project development related to co-operatives in a comparative perspective between Indonesia and Turkey. The Dean of FISIPOL, Dr. Wawan Mas’udi, and the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Jaka Widada, highlighted the importance of strengthening the people’s economy through the cooperative model as an inclusive and sustainable development strategy in both countries.
Yogyakarta, 18 May 2025–GAMAPI FISIPOL UGM held an Environmental Action (Aksi Lingkungan/ Angklung) work program at Pandansari Beach, Bantul Regency, Yogyakarta. This activity was designed by the Social Society division (Sosmas) of GAMAPI as a means of realizing positive contributions and responsibilities towards the environment.
“As students, we want to invite and provide a forum for other students and non-students to have a real impact on the environment as an effort to care for and increase awareness of our shared environment,” said Farrel.
Regarding the issue of inclusivity, there are a lot of issues and problems that are not yet accommodated and given a concrete solution. Starting from the physical aspect, in regards to infrastructure, there are many cases of misuse, like the sidewalk for example. With that in mind, this makes sidewalks in Yogyakarta less pedestrian-friendly, especially for people with disabilities . Furthermore, indigenous faith groups have not been fully involved in the process of development.
Next, regarding the issue of employment, there are still many vulnerable workers that do not prosper in Yogyakarta. While it is stated that Yogyakarta has the second highest level of Human Development Index (HDI) nationally, it is clear that the wages here are still low and there are many workers from the informal sector who do not receive proper safety nets from the government. People with disabilities have also not been given proper opportunities to engage in the labor sector as a whole
It doesn’t end there, as some residents have also stated their aspirations regarding the environmental crisis and the issue of proper housing. It starts from improper waste management, which does not focus on intervening on the upstream level, especially for industries and corporations that produce the most waste. Next, the access to housing which has gotten even more costly has made it even harder for residents to own a house. Not only that, there are still many slums in Yogyakarta facing sanitation problems.
“In front of us, work conditions that are claimed as flexible, do not occur because there is a form of control or discipline, one of which is done through Artificial Intelligence,” Arif claimed.
Legally speaking, labor laws and regulations are seen as not adaptive enough in responding to the challenges of the gig economy in the digital transformation era, which causes the precariatization of gig workers. “Indonesian labor laws are considered to be oldies and traditional, which can be explained by the fact that it was created in the era in which gig workers are not as apparent as they are now. This is why the definition of employment relationship in Indonesia is strict,” Nabiyla explained.
Yogyakarta, May 2nd 2025─The Department of Social Development and Welfare (PSdK) of FISIPOL UGM held the May edition of Social Development Talks entitled “The Future of Children’s Online Interaction: Protection and Freedom in PP Tunas” on Friday (2/5). Held online through the Zoom platform and attended by more than 100 participants, the May edition of Social Development Talks presented two speakers who have expertise in child protection issues, namely Tata Sudrajat (Save the Children Indonesia and PSdK Doctoral Program Student) and Chairani, S.Psi., M.Dist.St (Associate Expert Social Counselor, Policy and Institutional Working Group Coordinator, Directorate of Child Social Rehabilitation, Ministry of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia).
“Countries which are reliant on the coal industry have more difficulties in reaching the decarbonization target,” Indri mentioned in a public lecture titled “Unlocking the Climate Future: What Keeps Us from Climate Action” on Monday (28/4) at the Fisipol UGM Auditorium. This public lecture was organized by UGM’s Department of Public Policy and Management in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
Yogyakarta, 21 March 2025–The FISIPIT Charity Fun Ride is a sharing program by the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol) cycling community, Universitas Gadjah Mada. This time, FISIPIT held various actions with the disability group “Paguyuban Bangkit Bersama” on Friday (21/3). The event was held through a gathering and breakfasting with several education staff and lecturers at Resto Numani, Parangtritis, Yogyakarta.
Paguyuban Bangkit Bersama is a Yogyakarta disability group whose members are mostly earthquake victims. When it was initiated in 2012, the first 30 members joined to raise the spirit and empowerment as a disability. Paguyuban representatives expressed gratitude to the FISIPIT Charity Run for providing meaningful support for the association’s sustainability.