On April 28–29, 2025, KBM UGM organized a DAAD alumni gathering at the Phoenix Hotel Yogyakarta. This two-day event carried the theme “Digital Indonesia: Towards Inclusion and Empowerment in Indonesia’s Digital Era.”
The gathering featured two main agendas: a seminar and a World Café Forum. The seminar, held on the first day, was officially opened with the national anthem and a welcoming speech by the Head of the Organizing Committee, Ratna Noviani, S.I.P., M.Si., Ph.D., who expressed her appreciation to the participants and guests. The next speech was delivered by Dr. Guido Schnieders, Director of the DAAD Jakarta Office, who highlighted DAAD’s 100-year global journey and its 35 years of existence in Indonesia. He also introduced the DAAD Indonesia Alumni e-book, now available online. The event was officially opened by the Dean of the UGM Graduate School, Prof. Ir. Siti Malkhamah, M.Sc., Ph.D., IPU., ASEAN.Eng., who emphasized the importance of critical awareness in facing efficiency discourse in the post-truth era.
The event continued with the launch of the book Digital Indonesia: Inclusion and Equality in Gender, Sexuality, Religion, Ecology and Disability, edited by Ratna Noviani and Dewi Candraningrum. In her remarks, Dewi Candraningrum stressed the urgency of publishing this book as a response to the complexity of social inequality in the digital era.
The keynote speech session featured two main speakers: Prof. Dr. Wening Udasmoro, S.S., M.Hum., DEA. (UGM), who discussed flexing culture and the institutionalization of a luxurious lifestyle in Indonesia, and Prof. Dr. Hong Ching Goh (University of Malaya), who highlighted the challenges of digitalization in coastal communities of Sabah, Malaysia. This session was moderated by Dr. Anggoro Cahyo Sukartiko, a UGM lecturer and DAAD alumnus.
After the keynote session, participants were divided into two discussion panels. The first panel was led by Dr. Onny Setyawati, a DAAD alumna and lecturer from Brawijaya University. There were three speakers in this panel: Prof. Dr. Hermin Indah Wahyuni, Dr. Phil. Dewi Candraningrum, and Dr. M. Ali Imron. Prof. Dr. Hermin Indah Wahyuni delivered a presentation titled Ecological Communication in the Complexity of Modern Society, which explained the originators of the theory and the projects she conducted in relation to Autopoiesis communication theory. She concluded with a reflective question: can modern society adapt to ecological threats? The concept of ecological communication might offer an answer to this question.
Dr. Phil. Dewi Candraningrum, as the second presenter, gave a talk titled Planet, Pollution, and Sarmini’s Leadership: Study of Digital Activism of Nguter Sukoharjo Residents against PT. RUM. Her presentation told the story of digital activism carried out by women in Sukoharjo using mobile phones. Their activism was simple—spreading information about pollution caused by PT. RUM. Beyond this, she also holistically addressed deeper issues, such as the ongoing gender inequality in digital activism and the devaluation of women.
The panel concluded with a presentation by Dr. M. Ali Imron on climate risk and the life of Indigenous communities in Papua. In his presentation titled Living with the Tides: Climate Risks and Indigenous Life Along the Papua Coast, he conveyed that traditional communities are already familiar with climate concepts and know how to live and adapt when facing certain climatic phenomena. His main point was that through the lived experiences and daily resilience of Indigenous Papuans, climate change should not be seen as a threat but as a reality occurring normally in their everyday lives. One effort we can take is to strengthen community resilience in facing this reality. Not only the community, but the government must also take part in preparing for and confronting future disasters.
The second panel, themed Mediating Minorities and Activism in Digital Space, was held in parallel, discussing the role of digital media in advocating for minority rights and creating spaces for advocacy.
This event not only strengthened the DAAD alumni network in Indonesia but also served as a reflective space to respond to global challenges through the lens of digital inclusion and social justice.
Contributor: Rizky Indra Dewangga
Documentation: Leonardo Y. Borneva
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