Hello to you all and hope you survive the heat well ka!
Yesterday, I gave a talk at Mahidol to about 200 graduate students, mainly from Indonesia. The talk went ok and I just couldn't keep what I saw for myself ka.
The conference was organized by the Overseas Indonesian Student Association in Thailand, calling for papers for presentations from Indonesian students back home. All the 4 conferences were held in a host university in Thailand and they plan to organize one at Khon Kaen University next year.
If it doesn't sound so unique, let me add more information ka.
This has been the efforts of Indonesian students studying in Thailand, in cooperation with their host universities and their Indonesian Embassy in Thailand. The Chair of this Association is a lady who's working for her doctorate at Mahidol university. She said the challenge to organize such a conference has been the communication to contact in the Thai language, not Bahasa Indonesia.
Well! the event turned out to be quite successful as they could draw a huge crowd of Indonesian students to fly all the way from their homeland. I met two from Ajeh while a few others who introduced themselves were from Surabaya, Kalimantan, etc.
After my talk, there were about 10 who raised their hands to ask questions. Several issues concerned how to hold on to their values amid the world changes.
What lessons have I learned?
1. This is another form of exchanges that contributes greatly to internationalize students and at the same time, for them to present their research papers.
2. The unique cooperation has been quite sustainable from the Indonesian Embassy to the Indonesian members who carry on this academic tradition for at least 4 years now.
3. While participants have to pay their own ways, they learn to take part in an academic platform and see more of the world, at least of one ASEAN country, even within a short time.
4. The organizers gained lots of life skills and confidence especially the cross-cultural set, managing it from another country....naturally, they must have gained respect from their host university observing the success of the event.
5. I feel so very sorry to see very few Thais there.....it would have been a greater interactive forum with more Thais involved so our kids would learn too, academically, professionally, and personally.
6. One question to our students in other countries too....would they be able to organize such an event and sustain the efforts?
In any case, have a great Friday the 13th, away from being haunted ka!
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