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The Vice Regent of Sleman, Danang Maharsa, S.E., expressed his willingness to attend and give a keynote speech at the Stakeholders Gathering of Universitas ‘Aisyiyah (UNISA) Yogyakarta which will be held in the near future. This was conveyed in an audience between the ranks of UNISA Yogyakarta and the Sleman Regency Government at the Sleman Deputy Regent’s Office, Tuesday (8/7).

The audience was a space for discussion between UNISA Yogyakarta and the Sleman Regency Government in strengthening collaboration, especially related to the Sleman Pintar Plus-Plus program that has been running. The program aims to alleviate poverty through higher education with the target of “one family, one scholar” while providing skills and work competencies for scholarship recipients.

UNISA Yogyakarta’s Vice Rector IV for Cooperation and International Affairs, Dr. Ali Imron, M. Fis, emphasized during the meeting that UNISA Yogyakarta is very committed to implementing programs that are relevant and have a direct impact on the Sleman community. One of the realizations is by supporting the Sleman Pintar Plus-Plus program and integrating it into UNISA’s annual Stakeholder Gathering, which is planned to bring more than 100 partner institutions and agencies.

“Through this event, we want to bring together UNISA Yogyakarta’s partners with the Sleman Regency Government so that together they can absorb UNISA Yogyakarta graduates, especially Sleman Pintar scholarship recipients. We look forward to the presence of the Vice Regent to provide reinforcement through a keynote speech,” said Dr. Ali Imron.

The Deputy Regent of Sleman welcomed UNISA’s initiative and emphasized the importance of mentoring scholarship recipients, not only during college, but also after graduation.

“This program is not just about educating students, but it must also be able to create independence and open access to the world of work. We hope UNISA can help direct and find job opportunities for graduates, especially those from beneficiary families,” said Danang Maharsa.

In the audience, UNISA Yogyakarta also introduced the professional internship program and U- ACE (Unisa-Abroad Career Empowerment) which fosters students since the third semester to be ready to compete in the world of work, including job opportunities abroad. This unit is one of UNISA’s commitments in preparing highly competitive graduates.

UNISA hopes that this synergy will continue for the realization of a smart, independent and prosperous Sleman community through sustainable collaboration in the field of education.

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Students of the Professional Midwife Education Study Program at the Faculty of Health Sciences (FIKes) of Universitas ‘Aisyiyah (UNISA) Yogyakarta are not only on campus. Through the field work practice (PKL) of Community Midwifery Care Stages, Batch VII innovated to pioneer the first Youth Posyandu in Ngebel Hamlet, Tamantirto, Kasihan, Bantul. The inauguration of the Posyandu, named ‘Edelweis’, was held on Sunday, July 6, 2025, at the Ngebel Padukuhan Multipurpose Building.

This initiation is not without reason. Based on door-to-door assessment by students, out of 189 teenagers in Ngebel, many were detected to have reproductive health problems. Starting from disrupted menstrual cycles, dysmenorrhea, to adolescent nutrition problems. This data became the main trigger for UNISA midwife candidates to intervene.

This important activity was attended by UNISA midwifery students, Ngebel Village Head Heri Muryanto S.T., Head of Youth Organization, and two community supervisors who are experts in their fields, Dr. Ismarwati, S.K.M., S.ST., MPH. and Dr. Dhesi Ari Astuti, S.SiT., M.Kes.

The name “Edelweis” was chosen with deep meaning. As the edelweiss flower symbolizes eternity, love, resilience, and courage, the Guide Post is expected to continue to exist and shelter strong, resilient, and high fighting spirit teenagers in Ngebel.

Ngebel’s village head, Heri Muryanto S.T., gave his full support. He thanked UNISA Yogyakarta, especially the midwifery students, for this initiative. “Hopefully this Youth Posyandu can be sustainable and in line with our expectations,” he said, motivating the youth of Ngebel hamlet.

Similarly, Ismarwati, who represented the Head of the Midwifery Profession Program at UNISA, officially opened the event. She expressed her pride, hoping that the pioneering of the Edelweis Youth Posyandu would bring real benefits to the teenagers of Ngebel hamlet.

After the opening remarks, the event continued with health checks and health counseling for teenagers. This preventive promotive step is expected to be a good start for Posyandu Remaja Padukuhan Ngebel to continue to be structured and better in the future, for optimal adolescent reproductive health.

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The advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been very rapid and influential in almost all aspects of human life. This is in line with the use of the internet as a medium of communication and in line with the emergence of smartphones with various sophisticated features that are upgraded every day. As if by holding a smartphone all the needs of daily life can be fulfilled easily through online transactions. This has resulted in many young people who cannot be separated from their smartphones and some have even experienced nomophobia (fear if the smartphone is away from their grasp).

Based on a survey conducted by the Indonesian Internet Service Providers Association (APJII), the penetration rate of internet usage in Indonesia has reached 79.5% of the total population in Indonesia of more than 278 thousand people. Where the users are dominated by millennials at 30.62% and Gen Z at 34.40%. Digital platforms that are often widely used are social media, such as: Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and Tiktok. Meanwhile, based on a survey conducted by GWI in early 2024, it was found that the average Indonesian uses the internet for 7 hours 38 minutes a day and scrolling social media for 3 hours 11 minutes. The use of screen time that is almost half of the day has brought positive impacts, namely AI making daily life easy. However, the adverse impact is far greater, namely the emergence of the Brain Rot phenomenon.

Brain Rot

Brain rot literally means “brain rot”, but in modern psychology and popular neuroscience, the term is used to describe the decline in cognitive function, attention, and emotions due to the consumption of superficial and excessive digital content, especially from social media and short videos such as TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Reels (Newport, 2019). Doomscrolling can lead to neuroplastic atrophy, which is a decrease in neural connectivity and adaptive capacity of the brain due to lack of meaningful stimulation (Turner, 2023).

This also has an impact on the mental health of excessive social media users, namely: decreased focus and concentration, impaired emotion regulation, digital and dopamine addiction, decreased critical thinking skills, and risk of anxiety and depression. The effects are not only short-term, but also long-term. Biologically, overexposure to screens at night is known to disrupt sleep quality, and this sleep disruption is a mediating factor that exacerbates symptoms of anxiety and depression in adolescents (Lee et al., 2024). In addition, shallow and repetitive content consumption can activate the autonomic nervous system in a non-adaptive manner, trapping individuals in fight/flight or freeze mode, which can lead to mental fatigue and impaired emotion regulation (Porges, 2007).

Preventive Measures

Yousef et al (2025) in their research presented strategies that can be implemented to prevent Brain Rot. First, managing screen time, i.e. setting limits such as reducing daily screen time and removing distracting or useless apps. Second, curating media feeds, i.e. selectively choosing sources of information as it will be useful to protect their mental space to stay healthy and positive. Third, engaging in non-digital activities, such as: playing music, writing, adventuring outside the neighborhood, or doing other hobbies will provide a much-needed break from screens and also serve as stress relief for the mind and emotions. Finally, foster social support and engage in community activities, as engaging in positive social networks will help reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Referring to the idea of AI first put forward by John McCarthy (1956), AI should have been created by humans to help humans to become fully functional persons, not to weaken human existence. Proper and wise use of AI will bring humans to digital prosperity.

By: Dr. Komarudin, M.Psi, Psychologist

Lecturer of Psychology Study Program. Psychology, Universitas ‘Aisyiyah Yogyakarta

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The issue of household waste has become a serious concern, especially since the overflowing of the Piyungan Integrated Waste Disposal Site (TPST). Not only causing environmental problems, waste that is not managed properly can become a source of disease, such as diarrhea, dengue fever, skin infections, and respiratory tract. In this context, Clean and Healthy Living Behavior (PHBS) is an important approach to encourage changes in community behavior, especially in household waste management.

As a form of real contribution, the community service team of Universitas ‘Aisyiyah (UNISA) Yogyakarta in collaboration with Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY), and in collaboration with Balecatur Sub-district, and Aisyiyah Ranting Leaders (PRA) organized a workshop themed “Achieving PHBS through Proper Waste Management”. This activity was held at the Balecatur Village Hall, Gamping District, Sleman, on Sunday, June 15, 2025, and was attended by 60 female cadres from the PRA and the Balecatur PKK Team.

“Tujuannya adalah meningkatkan pengetahuan dan keterampilan kader dalam mengelola sampah rumah tangga serta memahami hubungan langsung antara sampah dan ancaman kesehatan keluarga,” ujar Dosen Fakultas Ilmu Kesehatan (FIKes) Unisa Yogyakarta, Indriani, S.KM., M.Sc, Rabu (2/7/2025).

The workshop was divided into three sessions, namely the opening session delivered by the head of PKK Balecatur, Nor Faizah Kaeni, S.S., M.A and the head of PRA Balecatur, Hj. Suprihatin. The second session was the delivery of workshop materials and the third session was the practice of waste management. In the first material session, Indriani conveyed the importance of implementing PHBS in the household setting, especially in waste management. Based on PHBS principles, a clean and healthy home environment is an important determinant in preventing the emergence of various environment-based diseases. “Household waste that is not managed properly can become a breeding ground for disease vectors such as flies, mosquitoes, and rats, which contribute to the increased risk of diarrhea, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF), skin infections, and respiratory disorders,” said Indriani.

Furthermore, Indriani emphasized that behavior change in waste management, especially through sorting organic and inorganic waste from the source, is an integral part of promotive and preventive strategies in public health efforts. “Through the PHBS approach, the community is expected to not only understand the importance of maintaining the cleanliness of the home environment, but also have the awareness and willingness to implement healthy practices as part of their daily life culture,” she said.

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Communication Science students of Universitas ‘Aisyiyah (Unisa) Yogyakarta called for resistance to the rise of online gambling (judol), with a campaign on the road of the Unisa Communication Science Student Creativity Event (Antariksa) 2025, at Yogyakarta’s Zero Kilometer Point, Wednesday (2/7/2025). Judol still needs to be a serious concern, because there are no progressive steps to eradicate it.

“The issue of online gambling has grabbed our attention several years ago, but to this day we have not seen more progressive steps (to eradicate), from who should regulate this, who are the perpetrators, and so on,” said Vice Rector IV of Unisa Yogyakarta, Ali Imron.

Imron encouraged the government not to be lax in eradicating judol. As an educational institution, Imron also said Unisa Yogyakarta was trying to take a role in eradicating judol and preventing the younger generation from being shackled by judol.

“As an educational community, we are well aware that one of the main targets who become victims in the end is the younger generation, the age of our students. I think it needs to be addressed, because really when students are trapped in judol, the entire academic process will experience destruction,” said Imron.

Imron reminded us that it is very easy for people to get caught up in judol with the advancement of technology. Those who are trapped in judol, sometimes due to ignorance and inadvertence. Therefore, it is important to provide literacy to the younger generation.

“We also educate them (students) on the importance of being careful in ‘clicking’ when surfing the internet. We raise awareness so that their fingers are careful,” said Imron.

Chairman of Antariksa 2025, Reza Al-Khifari, said that the campaign on the road was the culmination of three series of Antariksa 2025 activities, after the previous successes of Antariksa Goes to School and Antariksa Sapa Warga. This agenda is to remind the public about the dangers of judol.

“With the theme Every Click Can Take Your Life, this activity aims to increase public awareness of the dangers of online gambling, and invite the public to participate in the rejection movement through signing a petition of support,” said Reza.

In this action, in addition to speeches from the Vice Rector IV of Unisa Yogyakarta, there were also symbolic sessions of signing petitions, distributing sweet cards, street theatrical performances, and closed with a red light flashmob as a symbolic form that the danger of online gambling is now a serious threat that must be stopped together.

This campaign is also part of the 34th anniversary of Unisa Yogyakarta. This campaign received support from various parties, including the Yogyakarta Special Region Financial Services Authority (OJK DIY), Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI), and R.A. Yashinta Sekarwangi Mega, as a Member of Committee IV DPD RI.