Denpasar, Bali – Ngurah Rai University (UNR) has taken a major step toward global academic engagement by hosting the International Lecturer & Academic Exchange Session 2025 HUSS Global Summer Exploration on Friday, August 8, 2025.
The event marked the beginning of a collaborative initiative between UNR (Indonesia) and Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) in South Korea, carrying the theme “Sustainable Tourism and Regional Development in Response to Local Depopulation.”
Held in Meeting Room F.2.2 at the UNR campus, the program brought together UNR graduate students and SKKU undergraduate students for a dynamic academic exchange, focusing on strategies for sustainable tourism and regional development.
Seven graduate students from UNR and 30 undergraduate students from SKKU participated, accompanied by Professor Hyung Jun Park, Ph.D., along with five SKKU staff members.
According to Dr. Nyoman Diah Utari Dewi, A.Par., MAP, Director of the UNR Postgraduate Program and Lecturer in Public Administration, the event served as an important trust-building step ahead of a planned Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing.
“This connection began through the Indonesian Association of Public Administration (IAPA) and involved Brawijaya University,” she explained. “SKKU students will conduct research in Jimbaran, Canggu, Ubud, and Sanur to compare depopulation issues in urban and rural contexts in both Indonesia and Korea.”
Professor Park, who also serves as President of the Korea Association for Policy Studies (KAPS) and Director of the SKKU Institute of Governance and Policy Evaluation, emphasized the research’s significance.
“We are interested in exploring the contrast between Indonesia, which faces overpopulation, and Korea, which struggles with a declining population,” he said. “The findings will provide valuable benchmarks for tourism development strategies in both countries.”
Suhartono Winoto, S.A.P., M.A.P., a Public Administration lecturer at Brawijaya University and doctoral candidate at SKKU, noted that the event is part of the broader IAPA network.
“After Bali, the program will continue in Malang, where participants will present their research findings to panelists from both nations,” he said. The Bali segment runs through the weekend, followed by the Malang sessions scheduled for Monday to Wednesday.
This exchange is expected to lay the foundation for a long-term partnership, paving the way for lecturer exchanges, joint research projects, and annual academic programs modeled after established summer, winter, and fall exchange formats. BWN-03
