Athena Hastomo-a student of the Master’s Program, Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering (FT), Universitas Indonesia (UI)-was one of 44 graduates of the UI Postgraduate Program who earned the Summa Cumlaude degree with a perfect Grade Point Average (GPA) of 4. The achievement was announced at the UI Graduation Ceremony for Professional, Master, Specialist, and Doctoral Programs which took place on Saturday (23/9), at Balairung UI Depok Campus.
Athena earned her Master’s degree at the age of 22 thanks to her courage and perseverance in her studies. “In my 6th semester, I decided to join the fast track program with some friends. From there, I managed to complete my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in just 5 years. FTUI Fast Track Program is a program that integrates undergraduate and master’s education with dominant research content,” said Athena on the sidelines of the graduation ceremony.
Studying at UI was an invaluable opportunity for Athena as she gained many opportunities and experiences to develop herself. During her studies at UI, she was trained to design and hone her engineering sense and was supported to get involved in student activities and internship programs. “Luckily, I met lecturers who are very passionate about their fields of expertise, as well as friends who are diverse and very supportive,” Athena said.
According to Athena, the key to a successful study is to make the most of opportunities. She believes that knowledge can be gained anytime and from anywhere, including in determining impactful research ideas. Starting from her practical work at Kalibaru Container Terminal, Athena realized the importance of water resources management in Jakarta’s coastal areas – considering that the area is a complex location in terms of flood control. She was moved to conduct an evaluation study on the performance of coastal embankments and river embankments as a flood control effort in the Cengkareng Drain Estuary.
The construction of coastal embankments and river embankments along the Jakarta coastline is part of the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) master plan developed by the government to overcome Jakarta’s flooding. Athena believes that the construction of the levees needs to consider a combination of hazards simultaneously to measure the magnitude of extreme events that could arise.
By considering the compound hazards that occur due to land subsidence, sea level rise, tides, waves, and rain, she found that the coastal and river embankment plans are good, although the land subsidence and sea level rise factors can exacerbate flooding in coastal areas. Therefore, investment and cost-benefit analysis of supporting infrastructure is needed to reduce the impact of flooding.
From these findings, he then provided several technical recommendations that could be applied in the area to improve flood management. Some of these include adding new pump locations and increasing the capacity of existing pumps to reduce inundation by 43.16% in the current condition and 10.13% to 53.16% in the 2050 projection. Second, dredging to maintain channel capacity. Finally, controlling local land subsidence by implementing regulations and increasing public awareness.
Athena hopes that her research findings and recommendations can contribute to the government’s efforts to deal with flooding in coastal Jakarta. “Of course, this research would not have been successful without the support of many parties. I am very grateful to all parties for their support, enthusiasm, and presence in helping me pursue my education at FTUI. Especially for my supervisor, Dr. Evi Anggraheni, S.T., M.T., who opened many opportunities and involved me in many things during my education at UI. Hopefully, the knowledge I have gained can continue to be improved and provide benefits to the wider community,” Athena said.
On a separate occasion, the Dean of FTUI, Prof. Dr. Heri Hermansyah, S.T., M.Eng., IPU, said, “Athena Hastomo is a clear example of an outstanding student at FTUI. She not only pursues academic achievements but also commits to contributing to addressing serious environmental challenges. Her success in completing the fast track program and earning a Summa Cumlaude degree is the result of her tireless hard work. We are proud of her achievements and are confident that Athena will be an influential future leader in the field of civil and environmental engineering.”
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Public Communication Bureau
Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Indonesia