Budi Arie Setiadi was born in Jakarta, April 20, 1969. After completing high school at Canisius College Jakarta in 1988, Budi chose to study at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences of Universitas Indonesia. Since then, he has been intensely active in the world of campus organizations and student movements.
In 1994 he was given the trust to serve as Chairman of the faculty’s Student Representative Body (BPM). At the same time, he was a Presidium for the UI Student Senate for the 1994-1995 period. His concern for the rights and protections of fellow students also led Budi to join the UI Student Defenders Group (KMP).
Budi also dived into the world of student journalism as the Managing Editor of the UI’s Suara Mahasiswa Magazine during 1993-1994. For two years, from 1994 to 1996, he was also involved in managing the print media of Media Indonesia.
He also founded the Bergerak! daily newsletter. The newsletter, which was published every day except for Saturdays and Sundays, became one of the media that served information to the students of Universitas Indonesia. It was first launched on March 9, 1998, and was one of the independent media outlets that safeguarded the early days of Indonesia’s Reformation era. After the fall of the Soeharto’s New Order regime, Bergerak! was still published until 2002.
Before being appointed Deputy Minister of Disadvantaged Villages and Transmigration on October 25th, 2019, he was also elected the second time as leader of the Pro Jokowi (Projo) Volunteers.
