Hefner Speaks on Indonesian Democracy and Islamic Ethics
On October 5, 2024, Robert Hefner, Professor of Anthropology and of International Relations at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and Director of the School’s Center for the Study of Asia, delivered the keynote address at the 16th annual “Indonesian Focus Conference on Culture, Politics, and Educational Exchange” hosted by the Indonesian Embassy. His presentation, titled “How Indonesia Created the Most Effective Democracy in the Muslim World,” explored Indonesia’s unique status among the 49 Muslim-majority countries in the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) as the sole nation to have successfully consolidated an effective electoral democracy.
Following this, on October 7, 2024, Professor Hefner gave an invited presentation at the Alwaleed Bin Talal Seminar in Islamic Studies at Harvard University. His talk, “Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia: Nahdlatul Ulama and the Quest for an Inclusive Islamic Ethics,” examined the relationship between Islam and civic participation in the Indonesian context, with a focus on Nahdlatul Ulama’s efforts to develop an inclusive Islamic ethical framework.
These presentations highlight the Pardee School’s commitment to engaging with diverse perspectives and fostering dialogue on important issues related to religion, democracy, and ethics in the context of Muslim-majority societies.
Robert Hefner has directed 19 research projects and organized 18 international conferences, and authored or edited nineteen books. He is the former president of the Association for Asian Studies. At CURA, he directed the program on Islam and civil society since 1991; coordinated interdisciplinary research and public policy programs on religion, pluralism, and world affairs; and is currently involved in two research projects: “The New Western Plurality and Civic Coexistence: Muslims, Catholics, and Secularists in North America and Western Europe”; and “Sharia Transitions: Islamic Law and Ethical Plurality in the Contemporary World.” Read more about Professor Hefner on his faculty profile.