n Saturday, February 6, 2010, the “Seminar of Indonesia” RCAPS* Seminar was held under the theme “Observing Today’s Indonesia, a Projection into The Future”. Organized primarily by APU students, this seminar invited prominent scholars of Indonesian studies to engage in a panel discussion on the future of Indonesia including Professor at the Waseda University Faculty of International Liberal Studies, Director of the Clinical Education and Science Research Institute, Dr. Ken Kawan Soetanto.

This seminar was organized by the APU Indonesian Society (APU Ina) in collaboration with the Indonesian Student Association in Japan (PPIJ) and RCAPS.

Former APU president, Professor Monte CASSIM opened the proceedings as he shared his experiences of working in Indonesia with the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD).

Following the opening address, holder of four PhDs from prominent Japanese universities Dr. Soetanto then inspired the audience with a passionate keynote speech under the title “Because Of You The World is Difference” which focused on the importance of education in Indonesia’s future development. Dr. Soetanto then gave the audience a few words of advice, “Never forget to set yourself goals and remember that our combined efforts can change Indonesia for the better”.

The seminar then continued with a panel discussion by Associate Professor at the Kyoto University Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Masaaki OKAMOTO and Kyushu International University Associate Professor Satomi OGATA. The lively discussion looked at a range of issues such as the balance of power in Indonesian politics and the empowerment of females in Islamic Indonesia.

Looking back on the event, seminar organisation team representative Iqra Anugrah (APS3, Indonesia) said,”We were glad to see so many students, faculty members and other elements of the APU community from Indonesia and around the world actively participate in this seminar. We hope that this kind of event serves as a stepping stone toward further student-initiated academic activities at APU.”

*The Ritsumeikan Center for Asia Pacific Studies (RCAPS) was established in July 1996 with a mission to promote and foster research into the multifaceted developments and challenges that face the Asia Pacific region in the 21st Century. RCAPS seminars are held regularly at which lecturers from both on and off-campus are invited to share research findings in the field of Asia Pacific Studies.