National Seminary and RAKERNAS ADJASI 2023

Padang, September 25, 2023 | The Department of Social Anthropology at the University organized the National Seminar on Indonesian Anthropology and the National Working Meeting of the Association of Anthropology Departments in Indonesia (ADJASI) on Monday-Tuesday, September 25-26, 2023, held at The ZHM Premiere Hotel in Padang.

The event carries the theme "Culture and the Digital World," with subthemes including Modernization and Cultural Identity, Materialism, Lifestyle, and Social Media, Gender and Cultural Social Dynamics, Culture, Development, and Mass Media, Modernization and Cultural Identity, as well as Globalization and Cultural Globality.

The event commenced with the Grantara dance and opening remarks by the Rector of Andalas University, Yuliandri, and Rina Hermawati, the Chair of the Association of Anthropology Departments in Indonesia (ADJASI). It was attended by approximately 40 presenters from various universities in Indonesia and over 200 participants. The program then proceeded to the delivery of presentations by keynote speakers, including Hilmar Farid (Director General of Culture at the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia), Irwan Abdullah (Gajah Mada University), Tasrifin Tahara (Hasanudin University), and Nursyirwan Effendi (Andalas University).

Rektor of Andalas University, Yuliandri, emphasized that culture packaged with information technology can serve as a guide and contribution that informs society that the presence of technology does not erode cultural character and identity, particularly for indigenous communities.

"I heard and also listened to one of our speakers earlier mentioning that there are various options and themes related to culture that can be packaged with digital information, and that is important. So, all the empirical conditions within society can be nurtured. This can serve as a guideline for us and can also be a contribution to show that the existing dynamics can be observed and controlled. Thus, society can see that with today's technological advancements, it does not erode the cultural characteristics and identities held by the community, especially indigenous communities."

The Chair of ADJASI, Rina Hermawati, mentioned that the National Working Meeting was first organized at Padjadjaran University in 2022. In contrast to the previous meeting at Unpad, this year, the Association of Anthropology Departments in Indonesia (ADJASI) held two agendas simultaneously, namely the National Seminar on Indonesian Anthropology and the National Working Meeting. The central theme addressed was the intersection of culture and the digital world.

"This event was previously held at Unpad (Padjadjaran University) in 2022. When it was at Unpad, it was only the national working meeting, and there was no national seminar. Now, we were given the opportunity this year to organize a national seminar, which is different from the actual working meeting. The theme of this event is 'culture and the digital world' because this issue is a crucial pillar in implementing the study of culture and technology in Indonesian society," said Rina.

Rina Hermawati went on to mention that it is expected that cultural researchers and observers in this event will help steer knowledge within the presented themes. Additionally, she noted that the event was attended by various Anthropology Departments from all over Indonesia, spanning from Merauke to Papua.

"This event is expected to guide knowledge within the themes offered by the committee for researchers and observers. The event was attended by nearly dozens of Anthropology departments from all over Indonesia, ranging from Merauke to Malikul Saleh, and all the way to Papua," she said.

Throughout the event, the proceedings took place in a relaxed and solemn manner, with all four keynote speakers delivering their presentations. Following this, the event continued with parallel sessions, divided into 6 panel rooms over 2 sessions. Each presenter enthusiastically shared their research with the audience. The national seminar concluded at 19:00 WIB after the second paper presentation session in three panel rooms, where various cultural and digitalization themes were discussed in-depth.