Join the Indonesia Project at Australian National University for a talk by Hilman Palaon, Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute’s Indo-Pacific Development Centre, and Robert Walker, economist and Research Associate at the Lowy Institute.  They will discuss Indonesia’s recent industrial policy successes in downstreaming critical minerals and EV manufacturing, while also addressing the environmental and social challenges, and exploring strategies for broader economic development and sustainability.

Join NYSEAN for a talk by Taomo Zhou, Associate Professor of Chinese Studies at the National University of Singapore, on the life and legacy of Francisca Casparina Fanggidaej (1925–2013)—a left-wing Indonesian activist in the Afro-Asian movements, a mother of seven, and a woman who endured decades of forced separation from her family. Through Fanggidaej’s story, Taomo explores how Indonesia and China shaped notions of motherhood and how a transnational figure like Fanggidaej navigated her role within revolutionary anticolonialism in Indonesia, state socialism in China, and the global shift toward capitalist neoliberalism—ultimately displacing the Third World internationalist vision both nations once championed. The discussion will be moderated by Rianne Subijanto, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Baruch College, CUNY.

Join the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) for a panel discussion featuring Iman Pambagyo, former Chief Trade Negotiator for Indonesia; Jayant Menon, Senior Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute; Yasuyuki Todo, Professor of Economics at Waseda University; Wendy Cutler, ASPI Vice President. These experts from the Indo-Pacific and the U.S. will explore the impact of U.S. friendshoring policy, discussing its challenges, lessons learned, and how it can be enhanced to strengthen supply chains and boost economic prosperity.

Join the Crawford School of Public Policy at Australian National University for a talk by Rani Dwi Putri, M.Phil student in the Department of Anthropology, who will discuss the experience of young women within the Salafi community in Bima, Indonesia.

Join NYSEAN for a book talk by Merlyna Lim, Canada Research Chair in Digital Media and Global Network Society, Professor of Communication and Media Studies, and Director of the ALiGN Media Lab at Carleton University. Social Media and Politics in Southeast Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2025) highlights the dual role of social media in both fostering grassroots activism and enabling autocratic practices of algorithmic politics, notably in electoral politics.

Join the Indonesia Studies Programme at ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute for a talk by Maxwell Lane, Visiting Senior Fellow, who will examine the stagnation and challenges in Indonesia under the Prabowo government, focusing on the persistent under-industrialization of the economy, the dominance of New Order-era political and cultural structures, and the struggles of civil society and emerging political alternatives to drive meaningful reform.

Join the Indonesia Project at the Australian National University for a talk by Lili Yan Ing and Krisna Gupta, who will discuss the economics of Indonesia joining BRICS, an intergovernmental organization formed by Brazil, Russia, India, and China.

Join the Regional and Cultural Studies Programme at ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute for a seminar featuring Andar Nubowo, Muhammad Faiz bin Fadzil, and Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib. The panel will be about Islam and the construction of modern national identity in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Join NYSEAN and NYU’s Masters Program in International Affairs for a conversation with Dédé Oetomo, a campaigner for LGBT rights in Indonesia and a scholar on gender issues, and Gina Chua, a Singaporean journalist who is the Executive Editor of Semafor and one of the most senior transgender journalists in the U.S. 

Join the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois University for a talk by Muzakki Bashori, Southeast Asia Fellow at NIU and Lecturer in the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Semarang State University, who will explore the significance of Javanese folklore in language preservation and its relationship to environmental themes.

Join the Sigur Center for Asian Studies at the George Washington University for a conference on the Chinese Diaspora in Southeast Asia. This event brings together papers from scholars of maritime Southeast Asia who document and analyze the diverse but often precarious practices of everyday management of linguistic and cultural identities of diasporic Chinese in the Southeast Asian region.

Join the Council on Southeast Asia Studies at Yale University for a talk by Paul K. Gellert, Visiting Research Scholar at CUNY Graduate Center and Professor of Sociology at the University of Tennessee, who will discuss the ecologically unequal exchange of palm oil and dairy products in Indonesia and New Zealand.

Join Master Javanese gamelan musician Wakidi Dwidjomartono, the Cornell Gamelan Ensemble, and the Gamelan in Indonesian History and Cultures course for a program of traditional Javanese gendhing.

Join the Indonesia Institute at the Australian National University for a panel discussing media freedom in commemoration of International Human Rights Day. Adisti Sukma Sawitri, Ika Ningtyas, and Revolusi ‘Revo’ Riza Zulverdi will discuss the challenges of reporting during Indonesia's democratic decline, and the shifting nature of professional journalism in an era of social media influencers, disinformation, and AI.

Join the Southeast Asia Program and the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies at Cornell University for a talk by Dr. Kathryn “Kitsie” Emerson from EKALAYA Arts Center, who will discuss the social critique in Javanese wayang and how the role of the dhalang as a revered advisor works in current-day wayang performance practice.

Join the Council on Southeast Asia Studies at Yale University for a workshop on environmental humanities and Southeast Asia Studies. The workshop will feature research that analyzes the entanglements of class and human relationships with the natural environment in tropical, insular Southeast Asia.

Join NYSEAN and the CUNY / SUNY Southeast Asia Consortium for a book talk by Guo-Quan Seng, Assistant Professor of History National University of Singapore, who will discuss the gendered history of the Chinese settler community in Indonesia.

Join NYSEAN for a talk by Bedjo Untung, human rights activist and chairman for Yayasan Penelitian Korban Pembunuhan 1965. This talk will discuss the importance of mapping in preserving memories and the continued efforts of survivors to bring truth to light and justice to the victims of the 1965 Indonesian Genocide. Margaret Scott, NYSEAN co-founder, will moderate the discussion.

Join NYSEAN for a discussion of recent elections and political change in Southeast Asia with Sheila Coronel, Amy Freedman, John Gershman, Allen Hicken, Sidney Jones, J.M. Lanuza, Kanokrat Lertchoosakul, Ann Marie Murphy, Nava Nuraniyah, Jonathan Corpus Ong, Margaret Scott, and Meredith Weiss.

Who will succeed Joko Widodo, Indonesia's President, when he leaves office after ten years, and what will be their approach to the economy and the role of foreign companies?  Hosted by the American Indonesian Chamber of Commerce, a panel of experts will examine national polling organizations, family and party dynamics, the role of "kingmakers", parties vs "success teams", and the role of religion. 

Hosted by ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute, Yanuar Nugroho, Driyarkara School of Philosophy Jakarta, Indriaswati Dyah Saptaningrum, Atma Jaya Catholic University, and Muhammad Fajar, Atma Jaya Catholic University, will discuss the current state of Indonesian government institutions, legal systems, and social movements.

Hosted by the CSIS Southeast Asia Program, Mari Pangestu, former Indonesian Minister of Trade, will provide her perspective on economic headwinds facing the region, including the climate crisis and food and energy security.

Sponsored by the Harvard University Asia Center and the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Tom Lembong, Indonesia’s Trade and Investment Minister, will discuss Indonesia’s growing importance in the global economy.

Sponsored by the Weatherhead East Asian Institute and NYSEAN, Yayan Ganda Hayat Mulyana, a Career Diplomat at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and NYSEAN co-founder Ann Marie Murphy will discuss the Indo-Pacific and Indonesia's foreign policy.

Hosted by the Asia Society, Samita Sinha, Qian Yi, and Peni Candra Rini, will perform songs conveying their different interpretations of life and love, joy and sadness, and death and danger, including inspiration from Javanese myth. 

Hosted by the Council on Southeast Asia Studies at Yale University, Max Lane, Senior Visiting Fellow from the ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute, will discuss the origin and progression of Indonesia’s democratic national consciousness.

Hosted at The People’s Forum, Max Lane will discuss his new book Indonesia Out of Exile: How Pramoedya’s Buru Quartet Killed a Dictatorship, which follows the life of Pramoedya Ananta Toer in and out of prison during Indonesian national awakening.

Organized by USINDO and the Stimson Center Southeast Asia Forum, Bambang Susantono, Chairman of the Nusantara National Capital Authority, Kathleen Bartram, International Development Group, and Deden Rukmana, Alabama A&M University, will discuss Indonesia’s plan to build a new capital city.

Hosted by The Forum at Columbia University, a short film and program from the Dutch Government’s Water as Leverage in Asia will tackle urban water-related challenges in the cities of Chennai (India), Khulna (Bangladesh), and Semarang (Indonesia).