Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati


Ubud Writers & Readers Festival is one of the major annual projects of the Mudra Swari Saraswati Foundation. Founded in 2004, the Foundation is an independent, non-profit, non-government organization. The members of the Foundation are committed to enriching the lives and livelihoods of Indonesians through the development of a range of community-building arts and cultural programs.

The primary goal of the Foundation is to give full expression to the creative needs of individuals and the community in order to better equip them to interact in our rapidly changing global society. Through its revenue from ticket sales to events and workshops, the Festival provides the Foundation with vital support to pursue its creative, educational and youth-focused missions.

The Festival helps to promote Ubud as an arts and cultural center, showcases Indonesian writers on an international stage and helps young Indonesians to reach their potential through educational programs and literature. Proceeds from ticket sales are also used to cover free public events, free workshops for local children and high school students and their teachers and to subsidize attendances of local residents who could not otherwise afford to attend.

Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati is also the founding body of Ubud Food Festival.

Foundation Members:

  • Dr. Ketut Suardana, MPhil – Founder (Pembina)
  • I Wayan Arnaya SH – Founder (Pembina)
  • Nyoman Suwitera – Supervisor (Pengawas)
  • A A Bagus Ari Brahmanta – Supervisor (Pengawas)
  • Ni Made Dwi Ermayanthi – Foundation Chairwoman (Ketua)
  • Ida Bagus Putra Wira Adnyana – Secretary (Sekretaris)
  • I Made Sukamerta – Secretary  (Sekretaris)
  • Ni Wayan Widiatmini – Treasurer (Bendahara)
  • Eka Septiarti – Treasurer (Bendahara)

Foundation Initiatives

Emerging Writers Program

Each year, the Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati puts a call out to emerging voices across the Indonesian archipelago: send us your stories. From hundreds of submissions, an independent curatorial board selects works that are then translated and published in the Ubud Writers & Reader Festival’s Emerging Writing Anthology Series. The winning writers are flown to Ubud to take part in the Festival, and launch the publication in front of international audiences.

For more information about the Emerging Writers Program, click here. For information about how you can support the Foundation, click here.

For more information on the Foundation, please contact info@ubudwritersfestival.com.