Berita

In spring 2018, two AGKN-members – the Institute of Maritime Logistics at TU Hamburg from Germany and the Muhammadiyah University (UMY) from Indonesia – have launched a six-months stay of the German PhD candidate, Mr. Tobias Domnik, in Yogyakarta on the central Java island in Indonesia. Mr. Domnik worked on his dissertation project about global biomass supply paths under supervision of Dr. Noor Mahmudah, the lecturer at UMY and the expert in the field of palm oil production and transportation. During the research stay a case study on the Indonesian palm oil supply chain based on secondary data and expert’s estimates was successfully performed.

The guest researcher of UMY was introduced to various fellow researchers working in the same area and involved in the meeting of the national transportation forum in Pontianak (Borneo island). The on-site visit in Indonesia helped to figure out the complexity of the Indonesian palm oil industry with its tensions between economic dependencies and environmental impacts, the importance for infrastructure development and employment. It also enabled the PhD candidate to understand the different points of views existing especially between the European Union and the Southeast Asian countries. Another result of the stay is the joint publication to address some of these issues.

Mr. Domnik experienced the Islamic Muhammadiyah University and its staff as very liberal and open-minded and is thankful beside Dr. Noor Mahmudah to the professors and lectures of Teknik Sipil of UMY and especially Bayu for the overwhelming friendliness and support shown to him in the academic, organizational and as well the social part of his stay in Indonesia. One of the cultural highlights of the stay was the joint Fast-Breaking meals around UMY area during the month of Ramadan.