“Natural” Disasters, Cultural Framings, and Resilience in Indonesia: Transdisciplinary Engagements in an Immersion Program

In this paper, we will discuss a two-week experiential learning trip to Indonesia, ranging from the design phase module course and in-country implementation with two institutional partners in country. The involved four faculty eight students disciplines Geology, Anthropology, Environmental Studies Chemistry Music. Comparison was at heart of project. Our team explored cultural functional responses 2004 tsunami Banda Aceh volcanic eruptions Mount Merapi Central Java. Contrasting views cause recovery proved especially enlightening. Acehnese were tightly woven immediate pre-tsunami political upheaval along Islamic framings disaster. comparison, found on Java quite different because community affected more multicultural. We pepper our account pedagogical experience personal outcomes, interactions, trip’s engagement moving beyond interdisciplinarity collaborative, transdisciplinary engagement.