Jane Ahlstrand
Tell us about yourself!
I am a lecturer in Indonesian Studies at the University of New England in Armidale NSW. I moved here in 2018 just as I was completing my PhD at the University of Queensland. It was my first academic appointment and it has been a mix of challenges and opportunities. I am trained in Balinese dance and when I lived in Bali and Queensland, I did lots of performances, workshops, television appearances and media interviews, but in rural Armidale I am a dancer in hibernation.
Where does your interest in Indonesia stem from?
My family is from a small rural town in Queensland. My mum saved up for many years to take us overseas one day. When I was 16, we finally visited Bali in 1998 and I fell head over heels in love as if I had fallen for a person. Upon my return, I studied Indonesian furiously for the next year and then started uni majoring in Indonesian when I was 17. I’ll be 40 this year and my love for Indonesia will never die!
What is the nature of your engagement with Indonesia – are you an academic, a professional, an alumni…
I am an academic now, but used to work for Education Queensland International, helping to support students from Asia, including Indonesia continue their education in Queensland. Last year was a big year for me. I published my first book, Women, Media, and Power in Indonesia with Routledge and also worked as a cultural consultant on a Hollywood film. It’s called Ticket to Paradise and stars Julia Roberts and George Clooney. It was set in Bali but filmed in Queensland, and will be released in September.
Have you ever been to an Indonesia Council Open Conference and if so, what is your fondest memory?
In 2015, I travelled to Deakin in Geelong where I presented some of my very undeveloped research and also gave a Balinese dance performance that night as part of the conference. I was a very green PhD student at the time. It was exhilarating but exhausting. I remember not being able to sleep the night before. Everyone was very supportive, though, and I met some very impressive scholars who continue to impress me today.
What are some of the challenges and opportunities in the Indonesia-Australia relationship?
In Australia, we hear bad news about Indonesia all the time, and media organisations love to fan the flames of hatred. The latest report about a terrorist having his sentence reduced is just one example. It’s mostly rubbish clickbait headlines! Indonesians don’t know much about Australia, and we have some historical tensions that are yet to be resolved. At the grassroots level, Indonesians and Australians get along quite well, though. More scholarships for all ages would be great to facilitate learning and engagement.
Tell us about your favourite Indonesian food experience
Once upon a time, I set out on a motorbike trip along the west coast of Bali. It was gruelling, hot and downright dangerous. I arrived in Gilimanuk by lunchtime, hungry and sore. Gilimanuk is the heartland of the specialty dish, ayam betutu. I wandered into a random warung and ordered some. Maybe it was the hunger, or maybe it was the authentic recipe, but it will go down in history as the most delicious meal I’ve ever eaten!
What’s your favourite Indonesian music/song/writer?
I would have to say Laksmi Pamuntjak is my favourite contemporary writer. Her writing is very poetic, and it was a challenge for me to read at first, but after I developed a sense of your style, I was really able to enjoy the beauty and tragedy she portrays in her work.
What’s your favourite Indonesian idiom?
I like how prawns feature in idioms like otak udang or ada udang di balik batu. You’ll always encounter heaps of references to the sea (and not to mention the wind) in Indonesian literature. Probably two things that inspire both awe and fear in Indonesians!
[Last month’s PAY IT FORWARD question]:
Despite its size, Indonesia can often seem marginal in the published literature of academic disciplines. In your own work, what major insights does the Indonesian context offer that scholars working on other countries should know about? Why does Indonesia matter to your discipline or field of practice?
It is a shame we sometimes have to justify our work on Indonesia. I try not to think of my work as marginal as it can be a bit self-defeating. Just like Australia, Indonesia has dark issues of social inequality, a rural-urban divide, political treachery, nefarious media organisations, and a history of violence. Through critical discourse analysis, I shine a light on the role of language in the Indonesian online news media in perpetuating social inequality and ideological polarization.
PAY IT FORWARD: Finally, it’s YOUR turn to ask a question… Please suggest a question we can ask our next member!
What motivates you in your line of work? Does anyone inspire you?