Entering this new year while reminiscing about my important experiences in my academic journey and profession :)
2024 is the peak of my academic journey as I had the opportunity to learn at one of the best universities in the world, University College London (UCL), with a scholarship from the Indonesia Endowment Fund. One of my biggest dreams has always been to earn my master's degree at the Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment. I learned so much from the Social Development Practice program, where I had the chance to develop my interest in development studies and citizen participation in planning.
In January, I submitted three essays that I worked on during the winter holiday, and I was thrilled to receive an A grade for two of them. I had struggled with academic writing and was feeling hopeless about my very first essay in my master's program, especially as it was my first experience studying abroad. I’m glad that I put in the effort to go through piles of materials and readings. :D
In February, my dissertation proposal was accepted as part of the fellowship research participants from the YUP: Young Urban Participation program. My study focused on young people’s communities in Surakarta and Lebanon. During this time, I had the best opportunity to learn from both theory and practice in young citizen engagement in an urban context, with the help of Kota Kita, an NGO in Surakarta.
Between April and May, I traveled back to my home country, Indonesia, with my classmates, lecturers, and researchers from the SDP UCL program. Thirty-six of us conducted research through the Overseas Practice Engagement program, staying in the same location and performing interviews, focus group discussions, and presentations. It felt like a surreal experience for me. I am grateful to the host organizations, government offices, and all the young people’s communities that worked with us for about two weeks. I gained new perspectives on detailed research practices in real-world situations and on grassroots issues.
From June to September, I struggled with my dissertation as I delved deeper into young people's participation and critiqued the digital literacy movement policy in Indonesia. Writing specifically about policy was a new experience during my master’s degree. It was certainly challenging, as I was only allowed to conduct desk research. Fortunately, I had my organizational partner working with me to help ensure accuracy with documents and interview transcripts. I also worked with my wonderful supervisor, Julian Walker, as well as my course leader, who actively provided valuable suggestions. I am beyond grateful that I was able to submit it just before the official deadline.
At the end of September, I was accepted into a Summer School program with a scholarship for an incredibly interesting program titled "Governing with Climate Change Resilient Cities." Staying at one of the oldest universities in the world, the University of Pisa, I met practitioners and academics from all over the world, sharing insights on the issue of climate change. Each speaker was actively engaged in climate change-related work and came from different academic backgrounds. It was refreshing to gain new perspectives from an interdisciplinary approach, as we need to strengthen collaboration across sectors to minimize the impact of climate change.
From October to December, I participated in several activities related to my past practice, and it was wonderful reconnecting with familiar faces. I had the chance to meet with community leaders in Jakarta for a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) about community waste management as a facilitator for the Kota Tanpa Sampah program. I also traveled to Semarang and Bandung as part of a Greenpeace event. In mid-December, I was invited to speak at the Environment Department of Jakarta and also worked on research with a specific focus on fashion waste.
In the middle of December, I received my award letter from my university, officially confirming the completion of my master’s degree.
I have many plans for 2025, some of which involve new initiatives, and I anticipate them with hope and optimism.
Cheers to the new year! :)
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