2025 AIFIS-MSU Conference on Indonesian Studies June 17-21, 2025 (Virtual) 2025.06.17

The American Institute for Indonesian Studies (AIFIS) in collaboration with Michigan State University (MSU) Asian Studies Center present the 5th annual AIFIS-MSU Conference on Indonesian Studies from June 17 - 21, 2025. Celebrating the growing and evolving academic study of Indonesia, the conference aims to expand research dissemination and collaboration by connecting Indonesian scholars with international colleagues in a bilingual and virtual format.

This year’s conference invites scholars across disciplines to examine the intersections of precarity, resilience, and transformation in Indonesia and beyond. Building from last year’s focus on Indonesia’s global ascendance, our theme this year "Indonesia in Motion: Aspirations and Apprehensions," highlights uncertainties prompted by emerging trends in all aspects of life in Indonesia, past, present, and future. The conference considers the shared hopes and anxieties shaping the experiences of Indonesian and global communities.

Central to this year’s theme is the duality of volatility and potential for change. We highlight national and local, formal and informal institutional initiatives aimed at fostering resilience and ensuring the wellbeing of Indonesia and the Indonesian people. Through interdisciplinary conversations, the conference seeks to illuminate pathways forward, emphasizing collective action and shared resources to navigate an era of uncertainty. Join us as we reflect on the tensions and possibilities of a world in motion and envision futures shaped by both aspiration and apprehension in the field of Indonesian studies.

 

 

 

 

Highlights include:

  • Tuesday, June 17, 2024, 9:10 - 11:20 pm EDT - Opening dance performance by artists from the Surakarta Institute of Art (ISI Solo) and Keynote presentation by Professor Budy Resosudarmo (Australian National University) speaking on “Bridging the Divide: What’s Missing in Indonesia’s Long-Term Regional Development?”
  • Wednesday, June 18, 2024, 9:40 - 11:10 am EDT - Keynote presentation by Professor Anna Tsing (UC Santa Cruz). In “Mud Manifesto” Dr. Tsing will speak about a history of maritime Southeast Asia from the perspective of mud: a medium for ethnographically and historically rich storytelling that informs a forthcoming and collectively written book on the subject.
  • Thursday, June 19, 9:40 – 11:10 pm EDT - Balinese Wayang Listrik Performance and Discussion of “The Last King of Bali,” directed by Kirstin Pauka and I Made Moja, presented by the Department of Theater and Dance, University of Hawaii at Manoa.
  • Saturday, June 22, 2024, 9:40 - 11:30 am EDT - Closing session and Musical Event presented by Frankie Raden, contemporary Indonesian composer, ethnomusicologist, and founder of the Indonesian National Orchestra.

We invite you to join us in conversation and exchange about these and other research topics presented over the 4-day virtual event, including 150+ paper presentations by a diverse representation of scholars, students, practitioners, and professionals conducting research in/on/from Indonesia.

Visit the MSU Asian Studies Center or AIFIS website for more information. If you have any questions, you may contact the organizing committee directly at conference@aifis.org or asiansc@msu.edu. We strive to welcome all to the virtual conference. Please contact us if you experience any financial barriers to accessing the event.

 

Sampai ketemu! See you then!

Co-Sponsored by the Center for Asian Studies at CU Boulder