Registration closed
Registration is now CLOSED for the second cohort of the program.
About the Program
Through the AI-SIP program, high-performing science managers from partner Indonesian Government agencies are supported to undertake a residential fellowship in Australia with mentoring from senior science management and innovation practitioners at CSIRO.
The program provides participants with hands-on experience in designing and implementing research and innovation programs, while strengthening capability and fostering long-term Australia–Indonesia collaboration. Fellows will be guided by CSIRO mentors to build science management skills within their originating agency, and to transfer their skills to colleagues both during their fellowship and through a post placement program.
The program aims to:
- Provide science management professionals from Indonesia with access to high-end professional development opportunities in Australia, advancing their knowledge and skills
- Provide technical skills training targeted at helping fellows to solve complex, high-value science management challenges
- Build technical skills within the fellows’ originating agencies through their participation in the program and ongoing engagement with established networks
- Develop long-term institutional links between Australian and Indonesian organisations
- Contribute to improved science management and innovation in Indonesia
Fellows are hosted at CSIRO locations in Canberra, Sydney, Perth, or Melbourne, with all travel, visa, insurance, and living expenses fully covered.
Priority Project Themes
In alignment with Indonesia’s national priorities and CSIRO capabilities, the program will prioritise project proposals that address one or more of the following six priority themes
- Innovation policy
- Economic analysis and impact measurement
- Strategic foresight
- Innovation program management
- Research funding for impact
- Education
What you’ll get out of the program
Participating in the AI-SIP Fellowships Program will provide you with:
- Npportunities to be mentored by experts in your fields
- Networking opportunities with Australian researchers and engineers, seeking and sharing advice and guidance
- The control to oversee the direction of your project in consultation with your agency supervisors
- Access to, and participation in, the Australia Awards Indonesia (AAI) alumni network
- Additional opportunities to benefit your career, increase your capability and confidence to tackle challenges with data, and to lead organisational change
The AI-SIP Program is managed by CSIRO and funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
Requirements to apply for the program
To participate in the program, you must:
- Be a civil servant from a targeted Government of Indonesia ministry or agency
- Have significant science management capability, preferably with leadership experience
- Have a clearly defined problem and a viable proposal for how to address the issue
- Have full support from their ministry/agency, both during the fellowship and for implementation of outcomes upon their return
- Be in the appropriate position to implement the project upon return from Australia
- Be eligible to travel and stay in Australia for up to three months
- Be able to participate within the fellowship timetable, including post-fellowship activity
- Be fluent in English*
English language competency
* The applicant’s English language competency is part of the selection process; however, there will be no official language test. The assessment of language competency is based on a phone interview and any additional evidence provided by the applicant (for example: proof of studies or living in an English-speaking country or working in an English-speaking environment; completion of studies in English, or language course or language tests).
Examples of past projects
To date, six fellows have successfully completed their fellowship programs in Indonesia and Australia.
2024 Fellows
Rizq Atika Maso - Directorate of Utilization of Research and Innovation by Government, Society, and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises
Rizq undertook a six-month internship at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, working closely with the IPPIN team across Southeast Asia to observe how CSIRO’s start-up management and support model, particularly through IPPIN, is designed and delivered. Throughout her internship, Rizq was supported by a mentor and buddy from CSIRO, who provided guidance and insights into the program’s approach to supporting start-ups and fostering innovation in Indonesia.
2025 Fellows
Veni Robiatal Adawiyah - Directorate of Research and Innovation Partnerships, BRIN, Indonesia
Veni spent six months at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, working closely with the IPPIN team to observe the program’s modules, training approaches, and overall implementation. Her internship focused on understanding how IPPIN supports start-ups, including engaging with venture capital partners and identifying and screening mentors for start-up training programs, with the aim of adapting relevant learnings and approaches to support the development of start-ups within BRIN and Indonesia.
Shiddiq Sugiono - Directorate of Measurement and Indicators for Research, Technology, and Innovation, BRIN, Indonesia
Working closely with CSIRO’s Data61, particularly the Natural Language Processing team in Sydney, Shiddiq focused on Integrating Big Text Data into Innovation Indicators: Developing A Natural Language Processing Approach for BRIN.
- Mentor: Sarvnaz Karimi – Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO
- Buddy: Jiyuu Chen – Research Fellow, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Marsfield Site, Sydney, Australia
Saskia Dwimayani - Directorate of Talent Management, BRIN, Indonesia
Working with the Education and Outreach, and Humans and Machines teams. Her work has focused on Elevating Rural Youth Interest in Science through Indigenous Potential.
- Mentor: Susan Burchill – Program Delivery Manager, CSIRO Education and Outreach
- Buddy: Claire Mason – Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Dutton Park, Brisbane, Australia
2026 Fellows
Rolando Gultom - Directorate of Research and Innovation Funding, BRIN, Indonesia
Rolando (Ando) from the Directorate of Research and Innovation Funding at BRIN leveraged the program to explore ways to reform research funding through BRIN's RIIM competition scheme, with the aim of enhancing equity and participation in research and innovation funding and supporting more inclusive opportunities for researchers.
- Mentor: Andrea Sosa Pintos, Program Director, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Marsfield Site, Sydney, Australia
Nisrina Qatrunnada - Bureau for Planning and Finance, BRIN, Indonesia
Nisrina (Nada) from the Bureau for Planning and Finance at BRIN leveraged the program to explore how BRIN can strengthen its approach to research commercialisation, working with Tennille Eyre, Director of the ON Innovation Program, to develop a starter commercialisation playbook that can help translate research outcomes into greater impact.
- Mentor: Tennille Eyre, Program Director, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Dutton Park, Brisbane, Australia
Questions
Questions about the program or the selection process can be sent to ASEAN@csiro.au; cc: eztha.yaniar@csiro.au
Registration closed
Registration is now CLOSED for the second cohort of the program.
About the Program
Through the AI-SIP program, high-performing science managers from partner Indonesian Government agencies are supported to undertake a residential fellowship in Australia with mentoring from senior science management and innovation practitioners at CSIRO.
The program provides participants with hands-on experience in designing and implementing research and innovation programs, while strengthening capability and fostering long-term Australia–Indonesia collaboration. Fellows will be guided by CSIRO mentors to build science management skills within their originating agency, and to transfer their skills to colleagues both during their fellowship and through a post placement program.
The program aims to:
- Provide science management professionals from Indonesia with access to high-end professional development opportunities in Australia, advancing their knowledge and skills
- Provide technical skills training targeted at helping fellows to solve complex, high-value science management challenges
- Build technical skills within the fellows’ originating agencies through their participation in the program and ongoing engagement with established networks
- Develop long-term institutional links between Australian and Indonesian organisations
- Contribute to improved science management and innovation in Indonesia
Fellows are hosted at CSIRO locations in Canberra, Sydney, Perth, or Melbourne, with all travel, visa, insurance, and living expenses fully covered.
Priority Project Themes
In alignment with Indonesia’s national priorities and CSIRO capabilities, the program will prioritise project proposals that address one or more of the following six priority themes
- Innovation policy
- Economic analysis and impact measurement
- Strategic foresight
- Innovation program management
- Research funding for impact
- Education
What you’ll get out of the program
Participating in the AI-SIP Fellowships Program will provide you with:
- Npportunities to be mentored by experts in your fields
- Networking opportunities with Australian researchers and engineers, seeking and sharing advice and guidance
- The control to oversee the direction of your project in consultation with your agency supervisors
- Access to, and participation in, the Australia Awards Indonesia (AAI) alumni network
- Additional opportunities to benefit your career, increase your capability and confidence to tackle challenges with data, and to lead organisational change
The AI-SIP Program is managed by CSIRO and funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
Requirements to apply for the program
To participate in the program, you must:
- Be a civil servant from a targeted Government of Indonesia ministry or agency
- Have significant science management capability, preferably with leadership experience
- Have a clearly defined problem and a viable proposal for how to address the issue
- Have full support from their ministry/agency, both during the fellowship and for implementation of outcomes upon their return
- Be in the appropriate position to implement the project upon return from Australia
- Be eligible to travel and stay in Australia for up to three months
- Be able to participate within the fellowship timetable, including post-fellowship activity
- Be fluent in English*
English language competency
* The applicant’s English language competency is part of the selection process; however, there will be no official language test. The assessment of language competency is based on a phone interview and any additional evidence provided by the applicant (for example: proof of studies or living in an English-speaking country or working in an English-speaking environment; completion of studies in English, or language course or language tests).
Examples of past projects
To date, six fellows have successfully completed their fellowship programs in Indonesia and Australia.
2024 Fellows
Rizq Atika Maso - Directorate of Utilization of Research and Innovation by Government, Society, and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises
Rizq undertook a six-month internship at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, working closely with the IPPIN team across Southeast Asia to observe how CSIRO’s start-up management and support model, particularly through IPPIN, is designed and delivered. Throughout her internship, Rizq was supported by a mentor and buddy from CSIRO, who provided guidance and insights into the program’s approach to supporting start-ups and fostering innovation in Indonesia.
2025 Fellows
Veni Robiatal Adawiyah - Directorate of Research and Innovation Partnerships, BRIN, Indonesia
Veni spent six months at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta, working closely with the IPPIN team to observe the program’s modules, training approaches, and overall implementation. Her internship focused on understanding how IPPIN supports start-ups, including engaging with venture capital partners and identifying and screening mentors for start-up training programs, with the aim of adapting relevant learnings and approaches to support the development of start-ups within BRIN and Indonesia.
Shiddiq Sugiono - Directorate of Measurement and Indicators for Research, Technology, and Innovation, BRIN, Indonesia
Working closely with CSIRO’s Data61, particularly the Natural Language Processing team in Sydney, Shiddiq focused on Integrating Big Text Data into Innovation Indicators: Developing A Natural Language Processing Approach for BRIN.
- Mentor: Sarvnaz Karimi – Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO
- Buddy: Jiyuu Chen – Research Fellow, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Marsfield Site, Sydney, Australia
Saskia Dwimayani - Directorate of Talent Management, BRIN, Indonesia
Working with the Education and Outreach, and Humans and Machines teams. Her work has focused on Elevating Rural Youth Interest in Science through Indigenous Potential.
- Mentor: Susan Burchill – Program Delivery Manager, CSIRO Education and Outreach
- Buddy: Claire Mason – Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Dutton Park, Brisbane, Australia
2026 Fellows
Rolando Gultom - Directorate of Research and Innovation Funding, BRIN, Indonesia
Rolando (Ando) from the Directorate of Research and Innovation Funding at BRIN leveraged the program to explore ways to reform research funding through BRIN's RIIM competition scheme, with the aim of enhancing equity and participation in research and innovation funding and supporting more inclusive opportunities for researchers.
- Mentor: Andrea Sosa Pintos, Program Director, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Marsfield Site, Sydney, Australia
Nisrina Qatrunnada - Bureau for Planning and Finance, BRIN, Indonesia
Nisrina (Nada) from the Bureau for Planning and Finance at BRIN leveraged the program to explore how BRIN can strengthen its approach to research commercialisation, working with Tennille Eyre, Director of the ON Innovation Program, to develop a starter commercialisation playbook that can help translate research outcomes into greater impact.
- Mentor: Tennille Eyre, Program Director, CSIRO
- Placement: 2 Months at CSIRO Dutton Park, Brisbane, Australia
Questions
Questions about the program or the selection process can be sent to ASEAN@csiro.au; cc: eztha.yaniar@csiro.au
Our Collaborators
