This is not a new thing for Maesur Zaky, a CRCS 2002 alumnus, to struggle with marginalized community for their rights. He works as program manager of Persatuan Keluarga Berencana Indonesia (PKBI) for youth center. He is well-known throughout the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender communities in Yogyakarta and in other places including in HIV/AIDS communities. These all started from his struggle with them.

His work at PKBI now is prioritized to be done in the communities. “The process in PKBI is to strengthen the communities, for them who are marginalized such as transgender/transsexual, sex workers, young people without home and job, and for them who do marginalization like the mainstream youths. So, both are intervened. For them who are marginalized, they would be strengthened to be able to advocate for themselves, and for the people who marginalize those people would be able to reduce the stigmas and discrimination to the marginalized people.”

Bukan hal yang baru bagi seorang Zaky, alumni CRCS angkatan 2002, berjuang bersama komunitas yang dimarginalkan untuk hak-hak kemanusiaan yang sudah seharusnya mereka dapatkan. Laki-laki yang menjabat sebagai program manager untuk youth center pada Persatuan Keluarga Berencana Indonesia (PKBI) ini telah dikenal baik oleh rekan-rekan komunitas Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) di yogyakarta maupun di daerah lain, termasuk pada beberapa komunitas HIV/AIDS. Ini semua karena perjuangannya bersama mereka tersebut.

For Izak Y.M. Lattu, CRCS 2000 alumnus, CRCS has significantly contributed to his work now. “An open minded paradigm; CRCS does not give all knowledge, CRCS gives paradigm on how to stride.” That was his answer when asked what contribution CRCS has given to his life. This man, known as “Chaken” to many, is a lecturer at the Faculty of Theology where he heads one of its programs at Satya Wacana Christian University in Salatiga

When he studied at CRCS, Izak experienced many things that benefited his life personally and also for other students. For him, the gaps of religions became fluid when he studied Religions together with other CRCS students, and it helped them learn other religions easily. The skill improvement in English is one of the benefits that he never forgets, including the national and international networking that he built.

“Paradigma yang open-minded. Mungkin CRCS tidak memberikan semua ilmu, tapi CRCS memberikan paradigma tentang ke mana harus melangkah.” Demikian jawaban dari Izak Y. M. Lattu, alumni CRCS angkatan 2000, ketika ditanyakan mengenai kontribusi CRCS terhadap pekerjaannya saat ini. Laki-laki yang kerap disapa dengan nama “Chaken” ini bekerja sebagai staf pengajar di Fakultas Teologi Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana, Salatiga, serta menjabat sebagai Ketua Program Studi (Kaprogdi).

Ram is an Indian scholar who hails from the southern part of India. He lives in a city called Bangalore, and is part of the Centre for Study Culture & Society (CSCS). He came to Yogyakarta to teach graduate students at Gadjah Mada University for three months for the International Summer School. In this interview, Ram describes the relationship of majority of Hindus and Muslim minority and the Christian which becomes an important issue in relationship among adherents in India since the 1980s. Besides the problem of radicalism Hindus, India also faces problems of the border with Pakistan and the emergence of several separatist movements, therefore Ram emphasizes that the real problems in India is similar to those problem faced by the Indonesian government.

The speaker during the Wednesday forum on October 14, 2009 was Ms. Melanie Nyhof, a doctoral candidate from Pittsburgh University, and the moderator was Roy Alan Brango Tolentino, an ICRS-Yogya student. Ms. Nyhof presented her paper entitled ?Allah?s shape is like the sky: Children?s Understanding of God)

In the discussion, she examined the foundation of religious and supernatural concepts which should not be taken for granted; it must be organized in cognition. The focus of Ms. Nyhof?s research was on Indonesian children?s development in examining the concept of God; children with Moslem and Catholic background. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, she accounted and narrated the concept of God according to Indonesian children based on age, psychology, culture and religion. Ms. Nyhof stated that most researches related to children?s development on the concept of God are based on Christianity.