The Indonesian student team earned three silver medals and five bronze medals at the 17th International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO) in Beijing, China. According to a press release from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology on August 19, 2024, Sanny Onggiesty Dassaniya from Darma Yudha Private High School and Thomas Chrisant Denen from Immanuel Christian Private High School won silver medals in the individual competition.
Meanwhile, Ammara Shifa Andini from Malang 2 Public Madrasah Aliyah secured a bronze medal. "The achievement of the students is a proud moment, coinciding with the 79th Indonesia's Independence Day anniversary", said head of the ministry's National Achievement Center, Maria Veronica Irene Herdjiono.
Dassaniya also earned a bronze medal in the International Team Field Investigation (ITFI). In the Earth System Project (ESP) competition, Mujib Ahmad Kurniawan from Kudus 1 Public High School secured a silver medal, while Dassaniya, Andini, and Denen took home bronze medals. Herdjiono mentioned that the students representing Indonesia at this year's IESO were winners of the National Science Olympiad in Earth Science in 2023.
The students underwent three-phase coaching with support from the National Achievement Center. They were accompanied at the event by Ichsan Ibrahim from Indonesia Mandiri College of Informatics and Computer Management (STMIK) as the lead mentor, Yan Restu from Gadjah Mada University (UGM) as a mentor, and Ergy Amar Rifqi from the National Achievement Center as an observer.
Ibrahim affirmed that the students did their best to bag medals. "The end of this competition does not mean they stop learning about earth science. They are expected to become future earth science scientists who can collaborate internationally," he remarked. The 17th IESO was hosted by Peking University with the theme "Big Data for Our Earth." The competition involved 34 participating countries and 1 observer country.
