For Diah Fitria Widhiningsih, better known as Fitri, advancing her education goes hand in hand with improving literacy among young people in her hometown of Sleman, Yogyakarta Special Region (DIY).
In 2018, the same year she began her career as a lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Socio-economics at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), she established a community library called Bercak Pustaka.
Fitri’s passion for education was inspired by her father and grandfather, who used any extra income they had to help children from financially struggling families to attend school.
Her parents advised her to step outside her comfort zone and try new things to improve her skills. In one of these challenges, a young Fitri was encouraged to call several hotel receptionists to improve her English.
This year, she has taken on the highest challenge in education, embarking on a PhD at the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia, through the Australia Awards Scholarships (AAS). Fitri said it took four attempts to win the scholarship.
“One of the reasons I was so determined to apply for the AAS is because of the extraordinary network of alumni,” said Fitri, naming alumni I Made Andi Arsana, a lecturer and researcher at the Department of Geodetic Engineering at UGM, as one of her inspirations.
She has been able to hit the ground running at UQ, thanks to the Introductory Academic Program (IAP) for AAS recipients.
"During one session in IAP, each individual was given a personal mentor who provided guidance in creating the introduction for their research proposal. This preparation has been immensely beneficial for my PhD studies," Fitri said.
"I hope that through my studies, I can contribute to strengthening research collaboration between UGM and Australia."
Learning Entrepreneurship while Chasing a PhD
Fitri’s connection with UQ actually dates back to 2021, when she collaborated on research into strategies to minimise banana diseases, funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).
Since 2019, she has been developing innovations in processed banana waste as part of a community service program run by UGM with locals in the Gunungkidul area of Yogyakarta Special Region (DIY).
Her PhD research will also examine banana growers, but she doesn’t want her time in Australia to be solely focused on research.
One new interest she has discovered is UQ Ventures, an initiative that aims to help the UQ academic community maximise their potential in entrepreneurship through networking, mentoring, workshops, and funding competitions.
It began when she met Mayumi Komukai, the Ventures Program Officer, and then David Widjaja, the founder of DWC International Pty Ltd and Vice Chairman of the Australia Indonesia Business Council.
"Discussions with Mr David sparked my ambition to export processed banana waste products developed by the local community in DIY. He gave us an idea of what we need to prepare if we want to export food to Australia," said Fitri.
Along with three Masters students from the Agribusiness and Data Science programs at UQ, Fitri formed a team called Bananza, which aims to develop innovative products from banana waste, including chips made from banana trunks and roots and ice cream made from banana peels.
"Bananza also collaborates with the PKP UGM program to provide training on processing banana waste into food for women's groups in Gunungkidul," Fitri explained.
In May 2024, the Bananza team, led by Fitri, won a grant of $AU1,000 after receiving the award for 'The Most Creative and Changemaking Idea' at the Sustainability Pitching Event held by UQ Ventures.
Read the full article on Australia Awards
