Thursday, January 30, 2020, Anna Firdhousi Nuzula, a student from the Faculty of Biology, left for Germany to participate in the Youth For Understanding (YFU) scholarship program. This program encourages cross-border collaboration, especially among young people who are pioneers in driving the development of Indonesia’s culture.

In this program, participants get a free tutoring program for one week to learn about Germany’s culture and business. YFU participants representing Indonesia consisted of 6 children from Sumatra and Jakarta. While in Germany, the group was joined by Indonesian students who had studied in Germany for a long time.

This program’s objective is to enable developing countries, including Indonesia, to improve their vocational training systems.

Comment:

I hope that participating in this program could promote global networks that bring together youth, companies, and innovative industries at the local level that develop Indonesian culture’s character.

The Faculty of Biology successfully obtained international accreditation from ASIIN Germany for the Undergraduate Program and AUN (Asian University Network) Accreditation for the Master’s Program. Hence, in the commitment of improving the quality of the learning environment for students, the Faculty of Biology organizes public lectures by speakers from distinguished universities in the world.

On July 23rd, the Faculty of Biology organized a public lecture by Dr. Farid Asif Shaheen from PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Pakistan, with the title of “Socioecology of Insects.” The public lecture was attended by lecturers, undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students. In his presentation, Dr. Farid Asif Shaheen revealed that social insects’ biomass, including various types of ants, termites, and bees, is greater than the entire biomass of mammals living on earth. “However, only 1% of social insects have been studied. Therefore, social insects’ topic should be considered one of the critical research fields. For example, leafcutter ants show herbivorous activity exceeding that of herbivorous mammals, “said Dr. Farid Asif Shaheen.

Also, at this event, the Dean proposed collaborations between the Faculty of Biology and PMAS Arid Agriculture University Pakistan in the fields of joint research, student exchange, and summer course programs.

The 2019 National Seminar on Tropical Biology was held in the Auditorium Room of the UGM Faculty of Biology, promoting a theme of “Development of Biotourism and Biospeleology for Conservation of Tropical Biodiversity.” The seminar was opened by the Dean, Prof. Dr. Budi Setiadi Daryono, M.Agr.Sc., Ph.D., followed by the signing of an MoU between the Faculty of Biology, the Borobudur Authority Agency, and Moyudan Animal Village.

The seminar also invited experts for the plenary session, including Dr. Cahyo Rahmadi (Head of Zoology, LIPI Research Center for Biology and President of the Indonesian Speleological Society) presented the urgency of conserving caves biota. In this seminar, Dr. Bambang Retnoaji, M.Sc. (Researcher for Animal Structure and Development, Faculty of Biology UGM), explained the importance of studying behavior and physiological aspects, structure, and development of animals that adapt to natural conditions in caves. Dr. Agus Rochiyardi (Director of Tourism Marketing at the Borobudur Authority Agency) also discusses the concept of bio tourism, emphasizing the harmony between human, cultural assets, and environmental aspects. The plenary session was closed by Ir. Ikram M.Sangadji, M.Si (Head of the Kupang National Marine Conservation Area), who shared his experience in the management of the Savu Sea and its potential for ecotourism.

The discussion presented by the four experts is expected to open new perspectives in ecosystem management in the conservation of tropical biodiversity.

The Higher Education National Olympiad of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (ONMIPA-PT) is a competition held by the Government to promote student competitiveness in the field of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. ONMIPA-PT was held in Makassar on April 26-29, 2019 this year. Around 256 students from all over Indonesia participated in the event, 64 of whom competed in biology. Three Biology Faculty students represent the UGM contingent for Biology: Yustika Sari (Biology 2017), Muhammad Malhan Amin (Biology 2016), and Ahmad Suyoko (Biology 2015).

The test was conducted centrally at the Indonesian Muslim University (UMI) for two days (27 and 28 April). The closing ceremony and announcement of the winners were held on Monday, April 29, 2019. Three Biology Faculty students managed to come out as champions, namely Yustika Sari (gold medal), Muhammad Malhan Amin (silver medal), and Ahmad Suyoko (silver medal).

Comment:

UGM students who will take part in ONMIPA-PT should prepare themselves as early and as possible, read more references, and get used to practicing working on questions, both past questions, and similar questions.

The General Lecture was delivered by Dr. rer. silv. Ulrich Pietzarka from the Tharandt Botanic Garden and Arboretum of the Dresden University of Technology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences. Discussing the topic of: “Quality Management in Botanic Gardens in Germany”, the lecture took place in the Faculty of Biology UGM and was attended by lecturers and graduate students of the Faculty of Biology UGM. Dresden University is currently managing a botanical garden, named the Tharandt Botanic Garden, under the Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Dr. rer. silv. Ulrich Pietzarka as the head manager.

The lecture discussed that the management of a botanical garden requires a cooperative network between the university and its partners.

“Developing interconnected participation of each stakeholder (guests/visitors, funders, members, partners, lobby groups, government, university, and faculty) is essential. Social media and press are also the key players in maintaining public relationships,” said Dr. rer. silv. Ulrich Pietzarka.

Faculty of Biology UGM in collaboration with Museum Zoologicum Bogoriense (MZB), Research Center for Biology – Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), Amphibian and Reptile Diversity Research Center (ARDRC), the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), IPB, UB, and ITB successfully identified a new frog species native to Indonesia. The frog, named Microhyla gadjahmadai, is identified by a master student of the Faculty of Biology, Vestidhia Y. Atmaja.

The new species are the 407th frog found to be native to Indonesia. The distribution of this frog including Bengkulu, Jambi, Lampung, and South Sumatra at an altitude of 700 to 1600, with habitats covering river basins, rice fields, and community plantations. The application of molecular genetic identification using 12s and 16s sequence fragments of mitochondrial RNA and bioinformatics helped determine that Microhyla gadjahmadai belongs to a new species.

This discovery proves the richness of Indonesia’s biodiversity and should motivate more researchers to discover new species.

Dr. Budi Setiadi Daryono M.Agr.Sc (Dean of the Faculty of Biology UGM) and Indah Juanita (President Director of the Borobudur Authority Agency) signed an MoU between the Faculty of Biology UGM and the Borobudur Authority Agency, witnessed by Arief Yahya (Indonesian Minister of Tourism).

Comment by Dr. Budi Setiadi Daryono M.Agr.Sc a Dean of the Faculty of Biology UGM:

The community as a whole should support the development of the tourism sector in Indonesia. Thanks to Indonesian biodiversity and its uniqueness, Indonesia’s tourism sector has the potential to be the best in the world. I hope that the Faculty of Biology can contribute more to the field of Biotourism in Indonesia in the future.

The graduation ceremony for undergraduate students of the Faculty of Biology, Gadjah Mada University, was held on Thursday, November 22, 2018. The graduation ceremony was conducted by Dr. Budi Setiadi Daryono M.Agr.Sc., Dr. Eko Agus Suyono, M.App.Sc., Dr. Slamet Widianto, S.Si., M.Sc., and Dr.rer.nat. Andhika Puspito Nugroho, S.Si., M.Si.

In the ceremony, 31 graduates from the 2011 to 2014 class have graduated. In total, there are currently 5048 alumni of the Faculty of Biology, Gadjah Mada University.

Geographic Information System (GIS) is a tool commonly used for mapping activities and geographic data management.

“Students should use free and open source geospatial software. Since research funds for students are limited, free software is beneficial and easy to use, ” said Dr. Sarah Hobgen, a researcher at the Research Institute for Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Wednesday (4/7) at the Auditorium of the Faculty of Biology. While delivering a guest lecture entitled “Free and Open Source Mapping for Environmental Science” in front of students and lecturers, Dr. Hobgen also introduced free GIS software, like SAGA and Quantum GIS.

Closing the lecture, Dean of the Faculty of Biology, Dr. Budi S. Daryono, hoped this program might become a place to share information and knowledge, especially regarding the use of GIS in natural science research. He also mentioned that the guest lecture was part of the Central Java Field Intensive (CFFI) program between the Faculty of Biology and Charles Darwin University.

On June 9, 2018, a team of students from the Faculty of Biology won third place in the poster category in the 2018 National Food Technology Competition (NFTC) at Widya Mandala Catholic University, Surabaya.

In this competition, a team consisting of Faridatul Hidzroh, Nurina Tahta Afwi Maulina, and Chalvia Zuyyina presented a research poster with the title “Melon Hikanet, a superior fruit innovation from fruit diversification. Local.”

Comments:

Research on melon hikanet has been conducted since January 2017 by the Gama Melon Team under Dr. Budi Setiadi Daryono, M.Agr.Sc. The hikanet melon presented in the poster is a hybrid melon produced from a cross between Hikapel and Tacapa silver melons. In the future, Hikanet melon is expected to become one of the new superior melon cultivars which can compete with imported variants.