Posted on

Serving as a Panelist for the Presidential Candidate Debate

I started the year of 2024 with a big step, at least for me. I was appointed by the Indonesian General Election Commision (KPU) as a panelist for the 2024 Presidential Candidate Debate. It was the third round with a topic around defence, security, international relations, geopolitics, diplomacy. It seems that my focus of research on maritime boundaries has been the reason of me being picked.

I saw, the assignment as a panellist is an accumulation of my two-decade study on geospatial aspects of the law of the sea, particularly maritime boundary issues. In May 2003, I was involved in a project of border demarcation between Indonesia and Timor Leste. The project brought me to Atambua in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia to conduct Global Positioning System (GPS) campaign. It was an eye-opening experience, where I started to understand the boundary making process and how it really is a multi-disciplinary issue.

I never saw that the small step I took twenty years ago would bring me to the national stage as a presidential candidate debate panelist. To be frank, I am so grateful and also proud. To be able to introduce geospatial issues in a presidential debate, for me personally, is an achievement. I really hope that the moment serve as a starting point of more positive roles in the future.

Posted on

Teaching at UNY from the Airport

On 17 April 2023,  I was invited by my colleague at the State University fo Yogyakarta (UNY) to speak at a seminar/workshop. It was about international collaboration. The content is something that I have been familiar with for the last couple of years. I said yes even though it was not easy. I arrived from Singapore and I was still at the airport by the time I was scheduled to speak.

My flight was delayed for more than 30 minutes and it was too late for my session. The organiser was nice enough to move my session to a later schedule with a hope that I would be able to make it. I did, in fact, but it was not from a proper place. I could not reach a more representative spot at the airport until my schedule was on, so I sat down on the floor and performed.

It was an important session, attended by leaders and management of UNY. I show the room and it was a seminar with big audiences. I better be good. I started by showing the audience a picture of me sitting down on the floor while giving a lecture. I think it worked for an intermezzo. The lecture went well.

Posted on

Giving a Lecture on Maritime Boundaries in Southeast Asia at UNDIP

I started April 2023 with an exciting journey to Semarang, Central Java. I was invited to give a lecture at the Department of International Relation of Universitas Diponegoro. Why would a surveyor/engineer like me be invited to lecture future political scientists? Because maritime boundary is an important issue that those future diplomats, students of the International Relation of UNDIP, need to understand and I happen to focus my research and studies on the issue.

The lecture went well. I started the lecture in a fancy theatre hall. Everyone was excited until an accident took place. There was an electricity outage  and we have to wait a couple of minutes until we moved to another room. It was so exciting that the students enjoyed my class during even the waiting period. The theatre was dark  but it did not prevent them from asking quality questions. I really enjoyed the conversation.

In the new room, we also had fun and students were active in asking good questions. It was unfortunate that we run out of time so I need to stop. I had to return to Jogja for I would have a gathering with some students

Posted on

Student Community Services in Talaud

Conducting community services or engagement is compulsory for every single student of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) especially those in the undergraduate and Diploma 4 programs. Every year, UGM send around 7,000 students to remote areas all over Indonesia, covering 34 provinces and hundreds of regencies/cities.The students have to live with the community, literally living in their houses and live the life as how they live their everyday life. For most of the students, this can be a life-changing experience.

This year, I am assigned as a supervisor of a group of students conducting community services in Talaud, the northernmost regency of Indonesia’s. The island is close to Miangas, one of the most famous islands when it comes to sovereignty issue. From Jogjakarta, Talaud can be reached by three flights in around 15 hours. What a long journey.

I had an opportunity to visit the students on 23-37 June 2017. It was a very interesting experience since they were there during the Ramadhan. Yes, most of them were fasting and the village where they lived is a 100% christian village. No Moslem at all and that became a very rewarding experience for everybody. My notes in Bahasa Indonesia has been published at http://ugm.id/KKNTalaud

Posted on

A Guest Lecture at UIB in Batam

Having an opportunity to share ideas with new people is always a rewarding experience. This also applies to a guest lecture that I gave at the Batam International University or UIB in Batam on 21 April 2016. It was a fist-time experience giving a lecture at UIB and it was a great one. The students, which mainly come from law faculty, were highly enthusiastic and attentive. Maritime boundary is apparently an attractive issue for them who residing around border areas between Indonesia and Singapore.

uib (1)

The guest lecture that I gave was part of a research fieldwork under the coordination of the Indonesian Marine Council (Dekin). I have been involved in a research funded by the institution covering a topic of maritime diplomacy in the context of global maritime fulcrum. This research is part of strategy of Dekin in conducting studies in order to prepare input and suggestion for the Indonesian government with regard to the implementation of the global maritime fulcrum doctrine.