CAPI provides a platform for visiting scholars<\/p>\n
By Dewi Anggraeni<\/p>\n
VICTORIA, Canada (JP): Victoria, the pretty and neat capital
\nof British Columbia in Canada, is not a place one would expect to
\nsee a reunion of Indonesians. Yet it was there, last month, when
\nwell-known artist Semsaar Siahaan and author-journalist Seno
\nGumira Ajidarma were seen among the invitees.<\/p>\n
Behind this small reunion was the University of Victoria, a
\n36-year-old center of learning with 18,000 students, 12 faculties
\nand 13 centers. Mainly responsible for the occasional Indonesian
\npresence is the Center for Asia Pacific Initiatives (CAPI).<\/p>\n
Since its establishment in 1988, CAPI has been a proactive
\nbody, running conferences, training programs and workshops. It
\nacts as a nexus to the university with Asia Pacific, research
\ninstitutes, university colleges and government. \"The idea of a
\ncenter in the university is to get over inhibitions of
\ndisciplines. To get outside the normal structural framework of
\nthe university, which ties back into subjects they recognize,
\nsuch as anthropology, language, law and business,\" said CAPI
\ndirector Bill Neilson, an Asia-Pacific law professor.<\/p>\n
\"Over the years universities have been built on the idea that
\nyou are a collection of disciplines. Like in any other
\norganization, each discipline usually does its best to guard its
\nturf, making cross-disciplinary works difficult. A center bridges
\nthis distance, bringing together people of common interests, in a
\nwider sense, and have them work together. It also works directly
\nwith graduate students and deals with the general community,\"
\nNeilson continued.<\/p>\n
Neilson is one of the three professors working for the center.
\nThe other two, in the fields of China Economy and Japanese
\nOrganization respectively, like Neilson, also work half time at
\nthe center.<\/p>\n
While CAPI is not involved in teaching programs, it provides a
\nplatform for visiting scholars to the university. It arranges for
\nthem to give lectures. These are in the forms of formal evening
\nlectures or informal \"brownbags\" lectures (thus named because
\nattendants bring their own lunches in brown bags). Brownbag
\nlectures are indeed very popular. There are 20 each year, spread
\nout over eight months.<\/p>\n
The conferences run by CAPI are high profile and extremely
\ntopical. Last December's conference for instance, featured Mari
\nPangestu, executive director of Indonesia's Centre for Strategic
\nand International Studies, delivering a lecture titled, \"Asia's
\nRoad to Recovery: A Balancing Act.\" And in March this year, Tim
\nLindsey, a visiting associate professor from the University of
\nMelbourne's Asia Law Center, ran a major colloquium, \"Back to the
\nFuture? Prospects for Reform in Post-Soeharto Indonesia.\"<\/p>\n
While the University of Victoria itself was represented by
\nBill Neilson and Michael Bodden of the Department of Pacific and
\nAsian Studies, there were also speakers from other countries and
\nuniversities. For instance, from Indonesian Legal Aid Institute
\nwas Bambang Widjojanto, from Washington was Dan Lev and Saraswati
\nSunindyo.<\/p>\n
Pop culture conferences, run annually, are also very much de
\nrigueur among students and academics. The first one, three years
\nago, was on Japan, then on Asia-Pacific in general, and the
\nthird, this year, it is on South Asia.<\/p>\n
CAPI has at least one senior research fellow each year.
\nCurrently the fellowship is held by a geography professor working
\non an environmental project, nature conservancy, mainly in
\nThailand and Vietnam. It is a coveted position for which each
\nfaculty competes each year.<\/p>\n
\"The applicants will have to be very far along the major
\nresearch projects. CAPI will then buy their time from their
\nfaculty so they can finish their major works or projects. There
\nhave been linguists, geographers, fine art practitioners,\" Bill
\nNeilson explained.<\/p>\n
Academics of various fields also compete for CAPI research
\ngrants. \"We have a minimum of three per year,\" Neilson said,
\n\"This year there are recipients from seven different
\ndisciplines.\"<\/p>\n
With CAPI funding they have been able to do fieldwork, in
\nIndonesia, China, Thailand and other Asia-Pacific countries.<\/p>\n
Students who need funding for language study can also apply
\nfor CAPI grants. One such successful applicant is indeed studying
\nin Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Another important link to Indonesia, on the board of CAPI
\ndirectors is Astri Wright, whose enthusiasm in introducing
\nIndonesian artists to the community has put Indonesian art
\ndefinitely on the map, at least the map of the University of
\nVictoria.<\/p>\n
While it appears that CAPI has well endowed coffers, they have
\nnot been presented on a silver platter to the center. Apart from
\na kick-start funding from the government 12 years ago, CAPI has
\nhad to raise its own money. It has to go bidding for projects.
\nIts clients are usually foundations, such as Asian foundations,
\nJapanese foundations, Korea foundations, or aid agencies and
\ngovernment departments.<\/p>\n
CAPI also sponsors seminars, sometimes acting as a partner
\norganizer. Six years ago, Neilson joined forces with the
\nUniversity of Indonesia's School of Law, and they went to the
\nInternational Development Research Center's headquarters in
\nSingapore. They succeeded in obtaining the necessary funds to run
\nworkshops on modernizing the law curriculum for the Association
\nof Indonesian Law Schools. Neilson has since done similar works
\nin Thailand and Vietnam.<\/p>\n
This has been a trend in universities in North America: being
\nsimultaneously academic, organizer and entrepreneur. The concept
\nseems to be that if you cannot raise any more money for future
\nworks, it means that your present works have not been fully
\nappreciated. In this highly competitive environment, CAPI and
\nother university centers are reviewed externally every five
\nyears, where their achievements, priorities and future paths are
\nscrupulously evaluated.<\/p>\n
CAPI has been working very well for almost 12 years, and there
\ndoes not seem to be any reason for it to fail any reviews.
\nCertainly not now, when Neilson will be one of the major speakers
\nat the Conference on Reform of Bankruptcy Law in Indonesia, to
\ntake place on April 29 and April 30, at the Regent hotel in
\nJakarta. Asia Law Center's Tim Lindsey, the convener of the
\nconference, named the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank
\nand AusAID, as joint-sponsors.<\/p>",
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