Program on European Studies – Institute of International Studies, Universitas Gadjah Mada (IIS UGM) organized an international benchmarking activity to Hanoi and Singapore from 18-21 August 2015. The objectives of this activity is to enlarge our network of European Studies in South East Asia region.
This benchmarking trip has bring many fruitful discussion to develop program of European Studies. There were two researchers that participated in this program; (1) Drs. Muhadi Sugiono, MA as head of European Studies in UGM and (2) Suci Lestari Yuana, MIA as researcher in European Studies UGM.
We have visited 4 institutions in Hanoi and Singapore. Our first meeting was at Institute for European Studies – Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences in Hanoi and met the Director Mr. Do Ta Kanh, in this institute we initiate collaborative program on European Studies in South East Asia started with special business meeting among South East Asian scholars in the next Convention of European Studies in 2016. Second meeting was at Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) in which we pursue to strengthen our capacity as European Studies in Indonesia with program on education in ASEF. Third meeting was at European Union Centre in Singapore to meet the Director of EU Centre, Dr. Yeo Lay Hwee. In this meeting we discussed further the idea of having business meeting with South East Asian scholars as well as possibility to enlarge outreach program of EU Centre in Indonesia and other countries in South East Asia. Our last meeting was with Prof. Brian P. Farrell, Head of Department of History in National University of Singapore (NUS). We discussed the main challenges on promoting European Studies to South East Asian students, both in academic and extracurricular.
Through all meetings that has been conducted during our benchmarking program we have many program and project to follow up. We hope it can be not only strengthening our European Studies in Indonesia but as well as in broader context in South East Asia. After this program, Miss Suci Lestari Yuana return to Yogyakarta and Mrs. Muhadi Sugiono to Surabaya to attend a conference.