SMART To Mingle In Multicultural Society

We cannot deny multiculture in our daily life. It is a fact and reality! Actually, context of multicultural life in Indonesia has begun since early of time. It is also one reason why this country has Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (unity in diversity) as its motto to unify hundreds of ethnic groups belong to it. The term of multiculture becomes popular recently depicting variety and diversity. Naturally, the differences are not problems in this society, however, when people migration happens more and more intensive,  the cultural friction starts to appear. Commonly, the friction tends to be a problem of identity of certain groups coming from certain regions. It happens so many in transmigration areas. Feeling of the same fate in foreign regions, psychologically pushes people to make their own colony or community.

Migration rate of students from many towns or regions to Yogyakarta having many universities and academies is quite significant annually and it cannnot be avoided that frictions among different culture happen in this town. This friction may give positive impact when it is assumed as supplement, however a contradiction may also happen when differences cannot be accepted and even unluckily it may triger conlicts among groups.

Multicultural training held on August 30 until September 1, 2013 by Stube HEMAT is very important since it gives a chance to participants to understand differences and to learn what culture friction is. Having a theme of “SMART to mingle in multicultural society”, this training gives participants a chance to learn the understanding of multiculture, to realize the multiculture in daily life, to minimize cultural friction leading to conflict, stigma, or culture shock.

The training was begun with the introduction of multiculture by Stube HEMAT team, continued on the follwing day by DR. Ir. Sri Suwartiningsih, M.Si, a sosiology lecturer of UKSW, Salatiga, delivering Indonesian Multiculture: causes, variety, and urgency. Culture Shock became an interesting thopic delivered in psychological perspective by Drs. Thomas Aquino Prapanca Hary, M.Si, a psychology lecturer of UST, Yogyakarta. The topic of multiculturalism as daily attitude was delivered by William E. Aipipidely, S.T., M.A, from Satu Nama Foundation.

During the training, all participants learned to reflect, to have an introspection, to analize and to map the place where they stay in or ethnic groups which they stay with, to think the habbit they meet and  cultures belong to other participants. When the participants had an exposure to Turgo, a village in the valley of Merapi mountain, they found many local wisdom of the dwellers, tolerancy, brotherhood, appreciation toward nature and  feeling of protect each other.

This training was ended by establishing a commitment through a follow-up activity made by participants, such as, sharing the knowledge and experience got from the multicultural training to friends or new students in each campus, developing writing skill with multicultural perspective, designing multicultural lesson matery for kids, and a challenging activity for students coming from out of Java, that is, learning  Javanese as the local language. Have a nice follow-up activity!