UGM and Freiburg University Extend Research Cooperation

UGM and Freiburg University, Germany, have enhanced cooperation in academic matters to widen mutual research projects between cultures that was initially monodisciplinary becoming intradisciplinary. Formerly, tandem research was done only in the area of anthropology, involving students from both universities.

“Beginning 2011, cooperation was extended, involving International Relations from both universities,” said Judith Schlehe, Professor in Social and Cultural Anthropology at Freiburg University, who chairs the tandem research, after the presentation of a seminar on the results of the tandem research in Faculty of Cultural Sciences of UGM recently.
The cooperation that gained the financial support from DAAD since 2004 in the form of annual summer school orientates toward students. “In 2004, students from Freiburg came to Yogya, one year later UGM students came to Germany. Research went on in both countries for 4 weeks,” she said.

Judhit mentioned that the research was done in turn, aimed to show the various perspectives in research topics. It is expected to help students overcome the tendency to separate between the object and the subject of research.”The concrete thing was that not only Indonesia became the object of research, but also Germany,” she confirmed.
Judhit said that the research cooperation is innovative, based on cross-culture. Its implementation is recipocral to produce network of knowledge exchange from both parties. “Out of this project comes research reports which were done individually,” she said.  

Dr. Muhadi Sugiono, lecturer in International Relations, said that this year it raised the theme “Perception of Globalisation”. The focus of the program is the local dynamics that form and drive the global wave,” he said.
Muhadi further said that this year the research was done in Yogyakarta in September. In 2013 it will done in Freiburg by both Anthropology and International Relations students from Indonesia and Germany. “As many as 9 Freiburg students and 17 UGM students will participate in it,” he concluded.

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© Indonesia Government News 2012