London Calling for Young Indonesian Innovators

Jakarta Globe, Sylviana Hamdani, June 27, 2011

From left, UK Ambassador to Indonesia Martin Hatfull; Perdana Karta Yudha,
 national winner in the screen category (2010); Muhammad Lukman, international
 runner-up in the interactive category (2010); and the ambassador’s wife,
Phyllis Hatfull. (Photo courtesy of the British Council)

Sometimes, all you need to do is get two creative people together in the same room and magic will happen. That’s a big part of what the International Young Creative Entrepreneur Awards are all about.

Take, for example, Indonesian fashion designer Oscar Lawalata. In 2009, he won the fashion category at the IYCE Awards. That gave him the opportunity to present his fashion collections and business ideas to British designers in London.

It was there he met renowned textile designer Laura Miles. Laura and Oscar quickly became friends due to her interest in tenun ikat, a hand-woven textile with tie-dye motif from Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara, that Oscar brought to London for his visit. She loved the uniquely Indonesian textile so much that she collaborated with Oscar to make a line of clothing using tenun ikat, which was presented at Jakarta Fashion Week in 2010.

“Oscar’s win was quite phenomenal,” said Elsa Sasmita, a program officer for the British Council. “One thing leads to another. We’ve heard that this year, Oscar will also collaborate with famed British milliner [hat designer] Justin Smith, whom he also met during his visit to London.”

Oscar is one of many success stories to come out of the IYCE Awards. Since their inception in 2006, the IYCE Awards have helped highlight and connect more than 650 creative entrepreneurs from Indonesia with UK businesses and industry leaders. The awards have also given Indonesian entrepreneurs global exposure and helped them broaden their international networks.

“The IYCE Awards are designed to develop talented local entrepreneurs,” said Keith Davies, country director of the British Council in Indonesia. “We’ll help them grow their businesses through this program. In return, they’re expected to develop creative industries in Indonesia.”

The IYCE awards honor entrepreneurs from four creative industries — design, fashion, interactive media and film. The British Council has selected three judges for each category of the competition. They are professionals, academics and members of the media. They include Arief Suditomo, editor in chief of TV station RCTI, in the film category, and designer Edward Hutabarat in the fashion category.

This year, the British Council decided to broaden the awards’ age limit, which had required entrants to be between 25 and 35 years old, to between 21 and 40. “We’ve been seeing a lot of qualified applications from beyond those [previous] ages,’’ Elsa said. “That’s why this year we decided to give more opportunities to more people by broadening the age limit.’’

From the 153 applications received this year, the judges have selected 18 finalists. Among them are Affi Assegaf, owner of femaledaily.com, fashionesedaily.com and mommiesdaily.com, who is a finalist in the fashion and interactive media categories; Titis Sapto Raharjo, owner and editor of Movieholic Production, in the film category; and Mufti Alem, owner of Greeneration Indonesia, which produces environmentally friendly products, for the design category.

“I’m very impressed with all the candidates,’’ Arief said. “They’re all highly creative and have brilliant ideas.’’

“Their creativity and business minds are excellent,’’ Edward said. “Some of their products are lacking a sense of cultural identity. This is very important, as that is what gives Indonesian products their competitive edge.”

The finalists will go through one more judging phase from July 3 to 6, during which they will receive business coaching from experts and visit successful entrepreneurs and businesses.

On the final day, the finalists will give a presentation to the judges regarding their products and business concepts.

“They should highlight five key points — entrepreneurship, leadership, innovation, market awareness and international outlook — in their presentations to the judges,’’ Elsa said.

The names of the winners will be announced on July 6 at the IYCE Awards night, which will take place at the Pekan Produk Kreatif Indonesia (Indonesian Creative Product Week) at the Jakarta Convention Center. The winner in each category will get a seven-day, all-expenses-paid visit to the UK to inspire them with new ideas and introduce them to industry leaders and possible business partners.

“This is what Indonesian entrepreneurs need now,” Edward said. “We have to build on our international outlook. The UK is the place to do that because they have many international artists who can open doors for our local industries, allowing them to reach the global market.”

This year, the winner of the fashion category will attend London Fashion Week in September, while the winner of the design category will attend the London Design Festival, also in September. The winner of the film category will attend the London Film Festival in October, and the winner of the interactive media category will attend the Power to the Pixel workshop the same month.

“We’ve also designed specific programs as well as prearranged meetings and special events in which the winners will meet people in the creative industries in UK,” Elsa said. “They can present their ideas and products to these people and perhaps build the foundations for future collaborations.”

“We hope to become a bridge between the UK and local Indonesian businesses,” Davies said. “We want to develop Indonesian creative businesses to grow in the international market.”

Edward was upbeat about the future. “All of these industries are fueled by our minds, a resource that will never deplete or run out.”

 

For more information on the IYCE Awards 2011, visit www.thebritishcouncil.org.

President SBY wins UN disaster management award

Antara News, Tue, May 10 2011

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Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will receive a UN award for his outstanding work in the field of disaster management and risk reduction, Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam said.

"I am pleased and proud that President Yudhoyono will receive a UN award `Global Champion on Disaster Risk Reduction` in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 10, 2011," Dipo said in a statement on Monday.

"The UN award is the first of its kind and President Yudhoyono is the first to receive the award in recognition of his leadership in implementing natural disaster mitigation programs," he said.

Dipo said the President had assigned the head of the Natural Disaster Mitigation Board (BNPB) to represent him in receiving the award as well as to convey his message to delegates of 160 countries to the Conference on Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction in Geneva. UN Secretary General Ban Kim-moon is slated to open the conference.

"The Indonesian government`s hard work in handling the impact of a tsunami in Aceh at the end of 2004 as well as natural disasters in the rest of Indonesia and its relief assistance to other countries showed the seriousness and awareness of President Yudhoyono as one of the world leaders who pay attention to the challenge and threat of natural disasters," he said.

"I say congratulation to President Yudhoyono. May his hard work encourage other developing countries to pay more attention to natural disaster risk management," he said.

Editor: B Kunto Wibisono

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Mayors share ideas on good governance

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 10/29/2010 11:05 AM

Anticorruption award-winning mayors shared ideas on key strategies to bring about good governance in their respective administrations throughout their ground-breaking tenure at the Bung Hatta Anticorruption Award 2010.

The awards were officially handed to Yogyakarta Mayor Herry Zudianto and Surakarta Mayor Joko Widodo on Thursday night in a ceremony attended by well-respected figures — including academics, activists and the media — concerned with corruption eradication.

The judges chose the two over 36 other candidates.

Herry, however, asked that his award to be bestowed to his administration, saying that the achievement would not have been possible without all the civil servants in his office.

“Good governance in Indonesia is like a rolling snowball: it can’t be stopped,” he said. “The paradigm shift can come from outside forces, or it can come from our willingness to change.”

Some of the novel systems that Herry has implemented in his administration include a one-stop licensing agency in which one office handles all administration procedures and the information and complaint service unit through which Yogyakarta residents voice their aspirations.

Herry added that he viewed leadership not as an avowal of social position, but as a sharing of responsibility with his colleagues.

“I consider myself more as the head of services in Yogyakarta rather than a mayor,” he said, adding that he nurtured his spirit of service during his previous profession as a batik entrepreneur.

Joko, who was a furniture entrepreneur before assuming office, said that he too implemented lessons learnt during his previous profession in his administration.

He stated that in his 21 years of dealing with foreign customers, he learnt the importance of quality, timeliness and finances, which he implemented by strengthening small-scale enterprises in Surakarta.

Joko is lauded for his success in the peaceful relocation of 5,817 street vendors and the establishment of 15 markets in his five years in office.

Clear-cut communication detailing the benefits of relocation overcame the vendors’ fears, he said.

“I apply the same method of communication with fellow politicians. I talk to them and provide them with detailed explanations of my concept,” he said.

Natalia Subagjo, one of the founders of the foundation giving out the award, which was established in 2003, said bureaucratic reforms were the focus of this year’s award.

“It was not easy to fund non-corrupt individuals in this country,” she said. “But it wasn’t impossible since there are still many individuals who hold onto their integrity and remain unaffected by the habits of those around them. Instead, they are the ones who influence their surroundings.” (gzl)

Indonesian Student Wins International Award for Laser Plasma Research

Jakarta Globe, Kinanti Pinta Karana | September 24, 2010

Jakarta. Ali Khumaeni, an Indonesian student currently studying at Fukui University in Japan, received the highest honor at an international conference on Sept. 17 for his breakthrough in the field of laser plasma spectroscopy.

Ali Khumaeni won an international award for his
breakthrough research in laser plasma technology.
(Photo courtesy Ali Khumaeni)

He accepted the award for the best paper at the 6th International Conference on Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy held in Memphis, Tennessee.

The conference is the biggest in the field of laser plasma spectroscopy, and is held every two years.

It attracts hundreds of postgraduate students, LIBS experts, professors and corporate representatives from the fields of optics, lasers and imaging.

Ali, 27, told the Jakarta Globe in a telephone interview that it had taken two years of research before he was able to finish the winning paper.

“My professor in Fukui suggested that I do a powder analysis.

"We progressed gradually and finally we found the technique on how to use a laser to analyze powder plasma, the first known technique in the world,” Ali said.

He added that many industries had difficulties using laser plasma technology for powder analysis.

“Once powder is exposed to a laser, the material will be ruined, hence the atom cannot be analyzed, but my research has found a way to use the laser properly without ruining the atomic material,” Ali said.

“Now we can analyze, for example, the calcium content in powdered milk or the tiniest particle in face powder.”

Born in Kendal, Central Java, Ali said that he never imagined he would have the opportunity to study in Japan.

“I am a village boy, always have been. My village, Kendal, is a remote area in Central Java. I lived there until I graduated from senior high school because I had to help my parents work. We're not a rich family,” he said.

He first left home to study at state-owned Diponegoro University in Semarang, Central Java's capital.

“I studied physics and I was blessed to have been taught by amazing professors who inspired me to pursue a higher education here [in Japan],” he said.

In 2007, he received a scholarship from the Japanese government to study at Fukui University.

Ali said he would stay in Japan for another three to four years until he received his PhD in physics.

“As soon as I finish my PhD program, I will come back home to Indonesia and see my parents again in the village before deciding what to do next,” he said.

Jakarta Globe Wins Major Asian Award for Journalism

Jakarta Globe | August 05, 2010

Jakarta. The Jakarta Globe on Wednesday night won another award for journalistic excellence, this one for a special supplement highlighting the many water problems facing the capital.

“Water Worries,” published in July 2009, picked up a bronze award for best news coverage (newspaper special section) at the Asia Media Awards, held in Kuala Lumpur. The awards are run by prestigious industry group the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).

The special supplement — containing stories written by Dewi Kurniawati, Globe contributing editor Joe Cochrane, investigative writers Hera Diani and Kafil Yamin and news reporter Putri Prameshwari — outlined Jakarta’s troubles in dealing with water-related issues, including ensuring steady supply, dealing with sewage and garbage cast into rivers and canals, and flooding caused by rainfall and coastal tides.

The award is the latest of more than a dozen reporting, photography and design accolades for the paper this year. At the Society of Publishers in Asia Awards for Editorial Excellence in June, “Water Worries” received another award for excellence in special coverage.

“All these recognitions serve to inspire the entire news organization to work harder at providing our readers with first-rate journalism, the kind of reporting that we hope makes a difference,” Globe deputy chief editor Bhimanto Suwastoyo said.

The gold in the Asian Media Awards special section category went to the United Arab Emirates newspaper Gulf News for coverage of boxer Manny Pacquiao.

WAN-IFRA is a worldwide organization that supports newspapers in pushing for the defence of press freedoms, high standards of journalism and best practices in publishing technology. The Asia Media Awards also recognize the region’s best newspaper and magazine front cover designs, photography and printing quality.

“Water Worries” is one in a series of four special reports on Jakarta’s social and infrastructure challenges that the Globe has published. The others cover preserving Kota Tua in North Jakarta, traffic woes and environmental sustainability. You can download them HERE.

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Winners of Robot Contest Obtain Scholarships

Tempo Interactive, Thursday, 29 April, 2010 | 23:33 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The Indonesian robot team who won the International robot contest arrived in Soekarno-Hatta airport yesterday.

They were greeted by the Rector of the Indonesia Computer University (Unikom) Eddy Soeryanto Soegoto and dozens of students.

“They won the international robot contest in San Fransisco, U.S.A, “Eddy told reporters.

On 25 April, the robot team from a University in Bandung obtained a gold medal for the Robogames contest in the wheeled senior category.

The Indonesian robot team consists of two people, Yusrila Kerlooza and Rodi Hartono.

In the competition, in which there were 181 teams from 17 countries, the Indonesian robot succeeded in finding a fire source hidden in a labyrinth and then extinguished it.

“This was a trial time competition. Our robot succeeded in extinguishing the fire faster than the U.S team, which was ranked second,” said Yusrila.

Indonesian robot capability has been proven.

Last year, the robot called DU-114 won the Indonesian Robot Competition (KR).

“We need one year to prepare the robot, since winning in KRI,” said Eddy.

The key to winning, said Edy, was hard work.

Research has been carried out since five years ago.

In the meantime, the robot’s ability has been adjusted so it can always compete in the yearly competition.

“Every year, improvements were always needed so the robot’s capability was not behind those of other countries,” said Yusrila.

For the win, Eddy confirmed that team members obtain a scholarship until doctorate from the Ministry of National Education.

“Like the minister said, I hope they can go to school abroad so they can develop further,” he said.

Yusrizal looked tired after the long flight from the United States.

“I want to have a rest and then I will go to school again.”

Unikom plan to increase the abilities of the DU-114 robot after the win.

According to Yusrizal, his university will participate in KRI which will be held in Bandung soon.

Besides that, Unikom is trying to prepare the next generation so the robot research could still be conducted.

ANTON WILLIAM

Arifin Panigoro receives honorary doctorate

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 01/23/2010 9:44 PM

Businessman Arifin Panigoro on Saturday received an honorary doctorate from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), where he studied electric engineering in 1970s.

He got the honorary doctorate for his initiative in the development of oil and gas in the country and the business ethics he had excelled.

Arifin was the seventh people to receive honorary doctorate since ITB was established in 1920. Other recipients include founding president Soekarno, toll road architect Sedyatmo, J. Rooseno, Soetarjo Sigit, Ir Hartarto astrosonarto and Emil Salim.

In his speech, Arifin emphasized the need for this nation to develop entrepreneurship so that the nation can benefit from the new economic development. The entrepreneurs must be able to make uses of science and technology, he said.

“To excel in the world of new economy, the entrepreneurs must have ability to create added value and competitiveness,” he added. – JP

Purwakarta, Yogyakarta best regions to invest this year

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 12/09/2009 7:38 PM

Purwakarta regency in West Java and Yogyakarta city in the special province of Yogyakarta were named the best regions Wednesday in terms of efforts to attract investment in 2009.

Purwakarta regency won the award in the regency category, after beating Sidoarjo in East Java which finished second, Sragen in Central Java in third place, Jembrana in Bali, Kudus in Central Java and Bangka in Bangka Belitung.

Tourist destination Yogyakarta managed to take the city category after edging out West Java’s Cimahi which came second, third place West Java’s capital of Bandung, West Java’s Banjar, Bali capital of Denpasar, and North Sulawesi’s Bitung.

The awards were presented during the 2009 Investment Awards held by the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), in collaboration with the Regional Autonomy Watch (KPPOD) and business daily Bisnis Indonesia.

“The winners have convinced us that they have successfully created a friendly atmosphere for investors,” KPPOD executive director Agung Pambudi said, adding that he hoped the awards would inspire other regions to enhance their bureaucracy and streamline other investment-related procedures in order to attract more investors. (bbs)

Australia launches leadership awards for Indonesian scholars

The Jakarta Post | Fri, 03/20/2009 5:06 PM

Indonesia's future leaders can start to apply to study in Australia in 2010 under the prestigious Australian Leadership Awards scholarships, Australian Embassy said in a media release published on Friday.

The Australian Leadership Awards constitute a regionally-competitive scholarship program that offers 150 awards annually for masters and doctoral study in Australia to future leaders from across Asia and the Pacific.

Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Bill Farmer, said Indonesia had received the highest number of awards in the last two years. He is confident that Indonesians will continue to show their leadership potential in this year's round of applications.

"In both 2008 and 2009, Indonesia received the highest number of awards of any one country - testament to the leadership talent here. I hope they will not only contribute to the economic, social and community development of Indonesia but also strengthen the ties that bind our two countries," Farmer said.

In addition to studying for postgraduate qualifications, awardees also discuss and debate emerging leadership issues with their regional neighbors through a tailored leadership development program.

The priority themes for 2010 are highly relevant to development in Indonesia and the region. They include disability, economic growth, education, environment, food security, gender, governance, health, human rights, infrastructure, regional stability, rural development and water and sanitation.

Applications for 2010 open on 19 March 2009 and close on 30 June 2009.

Further information is available on the Australian scholarships website www.australianscholarships.gov.au

'Post' wins two awards from Foreign Ministry

Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 01/06/2009 4:11 PM  

The Jakarta Post has won the Foreign Ministry's 2008 Adam Malik Award in two categories for its coverage of foreign news in 2008. The Post won the Best Newspaper/Magazine category. 

It's foreign desk reporter, Tony Hotland, also won in the "Best Journalist" category. 

In the Online Media category, the Kompas.com site team won the award, while in the Electronic Media category the Voice of Indonesia (Radio Republik Indonesia's external service) won the annual award. 

Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda presented awards to the Post's chief editor, Endy M. Bayuni, and to Tony, as well as to other winners at a simple ceremony at the Foreign Ministry on Tuesday. 

This year's winners were selected on the basis of three criteria, Hassan said. 

"The first criterion was an accurate presentation of facts. The second was creating balanced and objective public opinion and the third was educating the public in foreign policy," Hassan said while announcing the winners. 

It is not the first time the Post has won the Adam Malik Award, which takes its name from a former journalist and foreign minister, taking home the honors in 2004, 2005 and 2007. In 2006, the Post's reporter Abdul Khalik also won the award in the Best Journalist category. 

The ministry first presented the awards to national media in 2002.  

The 'Post' wins award for best business reporting

Mon, 11/03/2008 10:26 AM  |  Business 

The Jakarta Post daily newspaper has won an award from The University of Indonesia's School of Economics for the quality of its business reporting and news impact. 

The award was presented by the school's dean Bambang Brodjonegoro to the Post's managing editor Riyadi Suparno in a ceremony at the university's main campus in Depok on Saturday. 

"The Jakarta Post has been chosen for its quality and its high news impact. The stories are concise, exact and explicatory," said one of the judges, Mirza Adityaswara of Credit Suisse, who is also a faculty alumnus. 

Besides the Post, other media outlets awarded for best business reporting include Tempo in the general magazine category, Neraca in the business newspaper category and Investor in the business magazine category. 

The faculty also awarded its alumni for outstanding achievements. The most prestigious award, the Wirakarya Adhitama, was awarded to Widjojo Nitisastro for a lifetime of dedication and extraordinary achievements. 

During the birth of the New Order in the sixties, Widjojo was one of a group of young economists, later dubbed the Berkely Mafia, assigned by then president Soeharto to come up with economic policy recommendations. 

The faculty also awarded its alumni, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, for her achievements as an economic policy maker. Mulyani currently chairs as both acting coordinating minister for the economy and finance minister. 

Recently, Mulyani won the Bung Hatta Anti-Corruption Award for her efforts in laying the ground work for bureaucratic reform within the Finance Ministry, especially in the tax and customs offices. 

The award for the alumni with extraordinary achievement as a businessman was given to Sofyan Wanandi. Sofyan currently manages his business conglomeration, the Gemala Group, and also chairs the Indonesian Employers Association. 

Other faculty alumni that received awards were Arwin Rasyid of Bank CIMB Niaga for the economic professional category, Dhoho Ali Sastro for his social activism and Andrea Hirata for his contribution in arts and culture. Andrea is the author of Laskar Pelangi, a novel recently adapted into a block buster movie with the same title. -- JP

Indonesian boy wins award at international event for inventors

Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

Wira Dibya Ratno Pama of Surabaya's Al-Hikmah high school was named favorite inventor Friday at the 4th International Exhibition for Young Inventors (IEYI).

Wira won the medal after his invention -- a remote control device capable of operating at large distances -- received the most attention from visitors during the three-day exhibition at Yogyakarta science center Taman Pintar.

His invention enables users to turn on and off electronic devices using either a fixed home telephone or a cellular phone.

"I am very proud, of course, as this is an international event with many inventors from other countries participating. I hope this will further motivate me to create other useful inventions in the future," Wira told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Jointly organized by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) and the Yogyakarta provincial administration, the exhibition featured 78 inventions of more than 100 young inventors from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

Host Indonesia presented 17 inventions, including mosquito repellent soap, an electric canting (batik painting device), an earthquake detector, an automatic egg cleaner and a volcanic earthquake detector.

The earthquake detector, invented by Azhar Wicaksana, a SMPN 15 Yogyakarta junior high school student, was also selected as one of the 10 best inventions by the International Forum for Intellectual Property.

"We selected the 10 best inventions based on the inventors' motivation and creativity as well as the uniqueness, applicability and patent potentiality of the inventions," said Neni Sintawardani of LIPI.

Of the 10 best inventions, eight came from the top invention presented by each participating country. The other two, from Taiwan and Thailand, were selected by the exhibition's team of jurors.

A special award was also presented by the Japan Institute for Invention and Innovation to the exhibition's youngest participant, Lin Yan Han, from Taiwan, who invented a multifunction safety compass.

LIPI senior secretary Rochadi Abdulhadi said the exhibition was aimed at encouraging young inventors to keep their spirits high so they would be able to develop better, environmentally friendlier inventions in the future.

"We also call on all stakeholders, including the private sector, to nurture young inventors and support their activities," Rochadi said.

IEYI was held in Japan in 2004, in Malaysia in 2005 and in India in 2007. The next IEYI will be in Taiwan in 2008, followed by Nigeria (2009), Vietnam (2010) and Thailand (2011).