It is almost three weeks, I have participated in the International Summer School. I have wonderful days with wonderful people from four difference countries, Indonesia, Uganda, the Netherlands and India. We share some experience and knowledge. In addition, we have classes with various topics such as pluralism, religious diversity, identity, ecology, democracy, development and others. These really give advantages for me. Classes with various topics and teaching methods encourage us to rethink of many things, such as rethinking of our identity, understanding of others, rethinking of religious diversity, ecology and so forth. Watching documentary movies and Hollywood movies is one of the class sessions. This activity gives us chance to know the emerging problems in the societies, for instance movies entitled “Menikahi Agama” shows how difficult Indonesian people who want to get marriage with person from difference religion. In Indonesia, Interfaith marriage is not a simple matter since...

As I was growing up and up to now I have been told that in early 1960’s my country’s (Uganda) economic development was at the same level with the economies of East Asia (i.e. Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand). Nearly after 4-decades now Asia is seen as newly found leaders of the global economy while Uganda is still relegated to underdeveloped economies! From this, I started believing the IMF assertion that Asia is becoming leaders of the global economy. I could not miss the opportunity to see a typical village of Indonesia when my summer school course Coordinator informed us about a visit to one of the mountainous rural areas in Indonesia especially for comparison purposes with my village in Uganda. A 3-hours’ drive from Yogyakarta (province) we set off to Wonosobo district in central Java province. In my imagination of a rural area, I expected to find along the way potholed, un-tarmac, dusty roads, un-temporary housing structures, limited access to safe water, electric...

Written by Enik, Yogyakarta, Indonesia Congratulation ……… the summer school is like a beautiful little globe. we can meet many friends from some different countries. So I knows John and friends India. Jacklien and friends Uganda, Ramaya and Friends the Nederland. It really give me the first experience to talk, learn, go for walk, joke with foreigner each other. It is fantastic and unforgettable memories, he he..he wou … mmmoooiiiii The program does not only force me to read a lot of theories on pluralism and development, but it also incites me to rethink my identity. Caroline asked us to think about; Who am I? how and why did I become who I am?. and imagine a new life if I am given the opportunity to be re born in which have freedom to choice is up to me. Certain, I gave an answer in contrast to my condition of identity at this time, because many thing I have not gotten what I want. I chose to be a man, heterosexual, have no extreme skin colors, live in developed country that no ha...

The International Summer School 2010 at Yogyakarta, Indonesia is indeed a new and exciting and sometimes challenging opportunity for me. The notions that I had for many things before the school were in the need of orientation for a new course(s). I have, at the same time, multiple questions about almost all the things around me - including about the issues associated with what is broadly termed as culture by which I think different people think in different ways and with, of course, different connotations. The share degree of diversity that I encounter in my talks/discussions with other participants from the Netherlands, Indonesia, Uganda and from India has made me think once again, indeed again and again, that it is of crucial importance to understand and engage or manage the diversity that we have in our world – a world which is increasingly interconnected and “global” has become local and in some cases vice versa. Understanding the “other” is not an easy task. It takes patience t...

Hakuna matata is a Swahili phrase that is literally translated as "there are no worries". This phrase has been used as the soundtrack title of The Lion King movie. When I was at elementary school, The Lion King became my favorite movie. Innocently, I amazed by animation technologies, such a fairy tale story, cheerfully animal characters live in their world. I can remember, my teareyes dropped when I was seeing Simba’s crying for his father death. More than ten years later, I just knew that the movie, and all of the animation movies that I have seen, was not as innocent as I saw. Unconsciously, our childhood has been contaminated by a few dominant values that existed in our social life. That movies has reproduced these values through the characters, and the stories as well. For example, the value of patriarchy, that appeares in mostly movies, including TheLion King. This value will be disseminated through Cinderella or Snow White story. The Princess illustrated by a beautif...