IFAR

About the Conference

The Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR) at Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII) is pleased to host the inaugural IFAR Consortium Annual Conference, taking place from August 12 to 14, 2026, at our green campus in Depok, West Java. This conference invites a critical examination of the complex relationships between state-building, economic development, and inequality in Southeast Asia.

Since the last decade, inequality has re-emerged as a critical public issue, shaping policy debates across many parts of the world, including Southeast Asia. While the region is often characterized as having a moderate level of income inequality lower than in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, the two regions with the highest levels it still recorded higher inequality than Europe and Central Asia in 2020. Moreover, inequality levels vary significantly across Southeast Asian countries. According to Credit Suisse’s Global Wealth Report 2016, Thailand and Indonesia ranked as the third- and fourth-most unequal countries in the world, respectively, following Russia and India. This diversity makes Southeast Asia a compelling site for inquiry among political scientists, economists, political economists, sociologists, anthropologists, and other scholars interested in examining the complexity and dynamics of inequality under late-capitalist development.

Themes of the Conference

The IFAR conference aims to provide an open and critical platform for scholars to debate the causes, consequences, and complexities of inequality in Southeast Asia. Read More...

Submission Guidelines

Submissions to the conference are accepted in two formats: panel and individual paper proposals. The submission portal will open September 25, 2025 and closes on December 31, 2025. Read More...

Organizing Committee

The 2026 IFAR Consortium Annual Conference is organized by the Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR) at Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII). Read More...

Conference Programme

Three days of inspiring talks, networking, and knowledge exchange

09:00 – 09:05Opening Session

09:05 – 09:50Conference Convener

09:50 – 10:30Rector, Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia

09:00 – 09:05Chair, Sirojuddin Arif, Department of Political Science and Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR), Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia

09:06 – 09:50What is Industrial Policy? Vivek Chibber, Department of Sociology, New York University

09:51 – 10:30Question and Answer Session

10:36 – 10:55Rizki Nauli Siregar, Department of Economics, Universitas Indonesia

10:56 – 11:15Inter- and Intra-Group Inequality in Eastern Indonesia: Structural Drivers and the Reproduction of Disadvantage – Umbu Reku Raya, Department of Business Administration, Universitas Nusa Cendana

11:16 – 11:35Indonesia: Increasing wealth inequality 1990-2025 – Pierre van der Eng, Research School of Management, Australian National University

11:36 – 12:00Question and Answer Session

13:31 – 13:35Chair, Febi R. Ramadhan, Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR), Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia

13:36 – 13:50Cross-sectoral policy coordination across education, child protection, and social welfare sectors -- Woro Sulistyaningrum, Deputy for the Coordination of Improving the Quality of Children, Women, and Youth, Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs (Kemenko PMK)

13:51 – 14:05Inclusive education, violence prevention, and child safeguarding mechanisms at the school level -- Vivi Andriani, S.T., M. Sc, Kepala Biro Perencanaan, Kementerian Pendidikan Dasar dan Menengah (Kemendikdasmen)

14:06 – 14:20Separation of children from their families – Gregorius Hadiyanto Nitihardo, SOS Children's Village Indonesia

14:21 – 14:35Independent Researcher (To be confirmed)

14:36 – 14:50Discussant, Tati Lathifatud Durriyah, Faculty of Education and Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR), Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia

14:51 – 15:15Question and Answer Session

13:31 – 13:35Chair, A'an Suryana, Department of Political Science, Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII)

13:36 – 13:50How Does Political Regime Change Affect Economic Performance: Evidence from Comparative Cases in Southeast Asia – Faishal Aminuddin, Department of Political Science, Brawijaya University

13:51 – 14:05From Mobilization to Marginalization: Islamism and Inequality – Luthfi Makhasin, Department of Political Science, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman

14:06 – 14:20Inequality, Marginalization, and the Idea of Development in Riau – Wahyu Prasetyawan, Department of Dakwah Management, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta

14:21 – 14:35Gender and Coastal Marginality: Socio-Economic Impacts of Coastal Environmental Change on Women in Central Java – Laila Alfirdaus, Department of Government, Universitas Diponegoro

14:36 – 15:15Question and Answer Session

13:31 – 13:35Chair, Aulia Nastiti, Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR), Monash University, Indonesia

13:36 – 13:50Digital Financialization and the Reproduction of Social Inequality: A Study of Paylater, Algorithmic Scoring, and Platform Governance in Indonesia – Achmad Boys Awaluddin Rifai, Independent Researcher

13:51 – 14:05Generative AI and Educational Inequality: Postcolonial Patterns in Indonesia's Labor Market – Andreas Harnindito, Human Computer Interaction, Umeå University

14:06 – 14:20Examining Transit Equity in Emerging Megacities: Evidence from the World's Largest BRT Network – Alyas Widita, Urban Design Program, Monash University, Indonesia; Deden Rukmana, Urban and Regional Planning, University of Texas at Arlington; and Guntur Pamungkas, Universitas Terbuka

14:21 – 14:35Glitching the State: Sapphic Resistance, Algospeak, and the Xenofeminist Politics of Technology in Indonesia -- Tuhfatul Assalamah, Universitas Airlangga

14:36 – 15:15Question and Answer Session

13:31 – 13:35Chair, Atmaezer H. Simanjuntak, Institut for Advanced Research (IFAR), Universitas Katolik Indonesia Atma Jaya, Jakarta

13:36 – 13:50Producing Inequality Beyond Borders: Indonesia's Trade Diplomacy and the Politics of South-South Economic Integration from Southeast Asia -- Rachmasari Nur Al-Husin, Department of International Relations, Universitas Indonesia

13:51 – 14:05Beyond Growth: How State Economic Policies Reproduce Gendered Financial Inequality -- Vianida Hardiningsih, The Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, The Ministry of Industry of the Republic of Indonesia

14:06 – 14:20Handloom Carbon Credits? An assessment of Healthy Halo Markets in India and Indonesia -- Apurva Bandodcar, Goa Business School, Goa University

14:21 – 14:35The Political Economy of the Carbon Market in Indonesia -- Rizal Shidiq, Leiden Institute for Area Studies, Leiden University

14:36 – 15:15Question and Answer Session

13:31 – 13:35Chair, Perdana Putri Roswaldy, Institute for Advanced Research (IFAR), Monash University, Indonesia

13:36 – 13:50Mainstreaming Climate Objective into Developmental Planning: Policy Lessons from Sumatra's Land-Use Governance -- Esa Bayu Rianto, Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia, and Kusdarmawan Nur Ilham, Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia

13:51 – 14:05When Floods Are Not Natural: Social Media Anger and the Politically Produced Disaster in Sumatra -- Fuat Edi Kurniawan, Dialogue Empathy Ecology Peace EnGender

14:06 – 14:20Climate Crisis, Human Safety, and Livelihood Inequality: Stories from People with Disabilities in Facing Climate Crisis Effects in Indonesia -- Sekarini Wukirasih, Department of International Relations, Universitas Gadjah Mada

14:21 – 14:35Disaster Governance and the Political Economy of Climate Inequality: Evidence from the Special Region of Yogyakarta -- Rayhan Fasya Firdausi, Jemput Suara

14:36 – 15:15Question and Answer Session

15:45 – 15:50Chair, Muhammad Ridha, Institut for Advanced Research (IFAR) – LPEM, Universitas Indonesia

15:51 – 16:05Fiscal Decentralisation or Political Centralisation? Re-evaluating the "Solo Model" -- Ofita Purwani, Universitas Sebelas Maret

16:06 – 16:20From Court Rituals to Plebeian Theatre Politics: Ritualized Power in Yoon, Suharto, and Marcos -- Hojai Jung, Dongguk University

16:21 – 16:35Regeneration or Privatization? A Preliminary Critical Agrarian Study of Indonesia's Brigade Pangan Program -- Ahmad Fajar Maulana, Universitas Gadjah Mada

16:36 – 16:50The Political Sociology of State Formation and Inequality: Elite Capture, Post-Colonial Institutionalism, and The Political Economy of Privilege -- Shaza Khalid, Faculty of Social Sciences, Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia