SOCA-UNPAD 2024: Memorial trip to Bandung, Indonesia

By, Noor Azlan Mohd Noor

My last visit to Bandung, Indonesia, was in 1983. I was in my final year at the University of Malaya then, as a student-cum-deputy president for Persatuan Antropologi dan Sosiologi Universiti Malaya (PASUM, translated as Anthropology and Sociology Association, University of Malaya). As Deputy President for PASUM, I was entrusted to organise an educational trip for students in Bandung, representing the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We managed to hold site visits around Bandung, such as Tangkuban Perahu, Lembang and educational trips to several educational institutions, including Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). 

After almost 40 years down the lane, on 12 September 2024, I had another great opportunity to visit Bandung. This time around, not as the deputy president of a student’s association but as an academic staff-cum-person-in-charge in preparing and executing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Department of Sociology and Anthropology (SOCA), AbdulHamid AbuSulayman Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences (AHAS KIRKHS), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) and Fakultas Ilmu Sosial dan Ilmu Politik (FISIP) Universitas Padjadjaran(UNPAD), Bandung, Indonesia. 

This strategic collaborative effort took into effect from the day we travelled to Bandung from 12 September 2024 (Thursday) till 19 September 2024 (Thursday). This eight-day mission was meant to translate potential possibilities in the MoU initiative into practice. The MoU initiative’s mission was to strengthen a bilateral relationship and enforce potential mutual benefits, especially in teaching, consultancy, research, innovation, and publications (TCRIP) between the SOCA department and FISIP UNPAD, particularly the Department of Anthropology and Sociology. For this, eight (8) SOCA academic staff agreed to accomplish this Curriculum Beyond Border (CBB) mission via MoU initiative, namely:

1. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Noor Azlan Mohd Noor (Program Manager, specialising in Medical Anthropology),

2. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rohaiza Rokis (Head of Department, specialising in Sociology of Work),

3. Prof. Dr. Hazizan Md. Noon (Specialising in Religion and Culture),

4. Dr. Norasikin Basir (Specialising in Criminology),

5. Dr. Nor Asiah Areff (Specialising in Social Gerontology),

6. Dr. Nor Azlin Tajuddin (Specialising in Environmental Anthropology),

7. Dr. Szariannie Sulaiman (Specialising in Medical Sociology), and,

8. Dr. Sharifah Fatimah Alzahrah Syed Hussein (Specialising in Sociology of Marriage and Family).

Whilst in UNPAD Jatinangor, a series of meetings, roundtable discussions, exchanges and presentations of ideas via workshops from both parties were conducted and took place at FISIP UNPAD. The guiding principle for discussions was based on the scope agreed upon in the MoU, namely:

1. Research collaboration in the areas of mutual interest to both parties;

2. exchange of staff and students; and,

3. any other areas of cooperation to be mutually agreed upon by the parties.

The meeting began with a Ta’aruf session, i.e., getting to know each other by both participants, introducing our areas of specialisation and interests, followed by both department representatives delivering various issues on undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum structures. It was a lengthy and fruitful discussion throughout the day, covering issues related to staff exchange, student mobility, joint teaching, supervision and research, credit transfer, mode of participation including hybrid approach, internship programme, logistics, final year projects and financial implications, to list down a few.

On the third day of the visit, i.e., 14 September 2024, we were brought to two (2) peasant Sundanese villages, Desa Cileles and Desa Rancakalong, for a community engagement exercise. These villages were among several peasant Sundanese villages selected and adopted by UNPAD as a social laboratory. Such an approach is significant for community engagement exercises and ensures efficient, practical, continuous assessment and commitment from the UNPAD authority to improve the livelihood of peasant communities. This social laboratory provided a substantial learning curve for students to learn about fieldwork exercises, methods employed and field teaching training settings. Several projects in various dimensions were initiated, encompassing education, politics, religion, cultural beliefs, economy, leadership, and social-cultural issues, to list a few. This outdoor class teaching and activity contributed enormously to students in terms of harmonising theory and practice, particularly on experiential and problem-based learning approaches to real-life events. 

In the meantime, SOCA team members had a great time and opportunity to meet the villages’ Sundanese people to learn about their indigenous knowledge, religious and cultural issues, and their traditional farming activities and methods. Briefing about these two villages by the UNPAD authority and headman of the villages took place in the field settings. 

In addition, our SOCA team members were also fortunate to receive a letter of invitation from Fakultas Ilmu Sosial dan Ilmu Politik, Universitas Nasional (UNAS) Jakarta, Indonesia, to participate in Sutan Takdir Alisjahbana Summer Course from 16-28 September 2024 entitled “The People and The City”. Nineteen (19) participants representing nine countries, namely Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Kenya, Gambia, Malawi, Tanzania, Pakistan and Bangladesh, had agreed to participate. We were proud to have two (2) SOCA students, Nur Dhaniyah Hider and Nurul Syazliyana Mohd Azlan, selected for this significant sociocultural academic programme. 

The winding-up session of the MoU visit took the form of organising workshops. IIUM SOCA team members and UNPAD agreed to organise workshops that involved discussions, exchanging and presentation of ideas as below:

1. International Conference on SIDIC 2025 strategic planning

2. Research Collaboration or Joint Research Activities

3. Gombak Integrated School of Thought in Social Sciences (GISTS) 

4. Unit of Social Issues and Development, Advocacy and Research (USIDAR)

5. Women Progress and Research Unit (WPRU) 

6. Indigenous and Traditional Co-Learning Initiative: MyFAN School (Flagship Project)

7. Workshops on potential collaborative strategies in teaching, research and consultancy by UNPAD

Alhamdulillah, the MoU initiative and visit have provided a great impetus for future collaborative efforts between the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, AHAS KIRKHS and FISIP UNPAD. Indeed, the SOCA Department must be the game-changer for the promising future. We fervently hope, through our continuous prayers, indefatigable efforts and unwavering support by IIUM authority, AHAS KIRKHS in particular, the SOCA Department will continue upholding its vision and Triple IIICE mission to do its very best for future SOCA CBB programmes. As a famous proverb used to say, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”***

(Dr. Noor Azlan Mohd Noor is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at AHAS KIRKHS of the IIUM.)