Korean wave has became a current booming popular culture; reaching all continents of the world. This phenomenon is the result of cooperation from various actors, namely state and non-state actors. This paper aims to determine the role of the South Korean government in the accomplishments achieved by the Korean wave to date, by studying the literature that focuses on the Korean wave success. This paper concludes that the South Korean government acts as a stimulator, regulator and facility provider for the cultural industry to develop. While the success of the Korean wave in penetrating the world market is the result of the formulation of strategies and promotions conducted by non-state actors involved in the process of producing the Korean wave.

Several academic studies have given birth to the notion that natural disasters and conflicts have a close relationship. Under certain conditions, the disaster functions to bring peace in conflict areas. However, it has not explained how the peace process can affect the dynamics of conflict. This paper aims to analyze the factors that cause conflict in a disaster area to transform into peace or vice versa. The prolonged social conflicts in the Indonesian provinces of Aceh (1976–2005) and Sri Lanka (1983–2009) are examples of cases where the tsunami disaster in December 2004 led to a peace agreement in Aceh, which was not long in the future while failing to bring peace to Sri Lanka. The research conduct with descriptive qualitative methods and internet-based literature study techniques. This paper finds that disaster is a catalyst for the peace process, not determining peace. The transformation of conflict into peace influence by four factors: poverty, state capacity, negotiations, and internationalization of conflicts. These factors that can create peace also depend much on pre-disaster and post-disaster peace efforts.

The Minangkabau ethnic group is still the largest matrilineal society in the world. Past research on this ethnicity are mainly centralized on the concept of merantau (migration), on its adaptation after the enter of Islam, and on the gender role and position in Minangkabau society. This research aims to highlight the contribution of the Minangkabau matrilineal system to the local development of West Sumatra, specifically the gender equality goal of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); and to what extent if it were present. This research employed qualitative method, and data were collected through literature study and interview with national and local NGOs working in the field of women and development. This research discovered that theoretically, the Minangkabau matrilineal values can and should stimulate the gender equality SDGs achievement in West Sumatra. However, in reality, gender inequality still exists in West Sumatra with several SGD targets having wider gaps compared to other patrilineal societies in Indonesia. This research argues that by not wholly implementing the matrilineal values, the West Sumatran Minangkabau people has indirectly restrained themselves from achieving gender equality in the region, specifically related to violence and discrimination against women, also active participation of women in the economy and politics.

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The majority of studies which associates conflict and natural disasters reveals that there is a strong correlation between natural disasters and conflict. Natural disasters are believed to be a catalyst for peacemaking, although they are not the only determining factors that influence conflict and peace. On one hand, disasters can reduce conflict escalation and bringpeace, while on the other hand, they tend to escalate and exacerbate conflict conflicts from previous conditions. This can be seen in the case of Aceh in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, regions that are both experiencing intra-state conflicts, which have different experiences after the disaster. This article attempts to provide a conceptual framework to explain the conditions of conflict escalation and de-escalation after natural disasters. Through a study of various literatures, this paper discovered that there are at least four variables, namely natural resource variables, poverty rates, state regulations, and negotiations that affect conflict tendencies in disaster areas.