The visit of Leiden University to Universitas Airlangga is an appreciative action toward collaboration between the two universities. The visit was held at Amerta Hall, Management Building of UNAIR MERR-C Campus, on Monday, May 8, 2023. Representatives from Leiden University, 23 delegates from the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS), and the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) attended the event.
Prof. Dr. Mohammad Nasih, SE MT Ak, UNAIR Rector, gave his welcoming speech at the beginning of the event. It was a follow-up meeting after UNAIR leadership visited Leiden University.
“This is not the first time. We have done many collaborations in research before,” he said.
In his speech, Prof. Nasih promoted UNAIR’s facilities and breakthroughs. “As we know, UNAIR has made many contributions in various multidisciplinary fields, and the medical field is the most notable one,” he said.
“UNAIR is an institution with the best capacity in tropical diseases and is known for its stem cell development institute. The last time, UNAIR successfully contributed to the development of the Red and White Vaccine,” Prof. Nasih added.
Besides, UNAIR also provides various medical facilities for the community, like Universitas Airlangga Hospital, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Academic Dental Hospital, and the Ksatria Airlangga Floating Hospital (RSTKA).
Strengthening collaboration
Prof. Annetje Ottow, the President of Leiden University, also introduced the background of Leiden University and shared her enthusiasm upon reconnecting with UNAIR post the pandemic.
“Being innovative and connected are the core values of Leiden University. By reconnecting with UNAIR, Leiden University hopes to strengthen cooperation in international education. Therefore, this also requires multidisciplinary collaboration to face various global challenges,” she said.
Five fields of studies
The speeches were followed by a signing session of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This collaboration involves five multidisciplinary fields of study: the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP), the Faculty of Humanities (FIB), the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), the Faculty of Medicine (FK), and the Faculty of Science and Technology (FST). The collaboration covers various areas such as student inbound and outbound programs, staff inbound and outbound programs, joint research, joint publications, joint conferences, and joint projects.
The visit was continued with the introduction of the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS) by Dr. Philippe Peycam as the director of IIAS and the Airlangga Institute for Indian Ocean Crossroads (AIIOC) by Lina Puryanti, Ph.D. as the director of AIIOC.
Dr. Phillipe stated that the IIAS is one of the collaborative programs with UNAIR on urban studies to promote education, network development, and knowledge dissemination in urban layout and city construction in Asia. One of the collaboration outcomes between the two institutions is the International Convention for Asian Scholars (ICAS), which takes place every two years. The conference will be held in Surabaya in July 2024.
On the other hand, Lina said that the AIIOC is a product of a collaboration that involves various multidisciplinary fields, which aims to inspire UNAIR’s academic community to make innovations.
“Post COVID-29 era is a new momentum for us to rise. Educational institutions should focus on competing and collaborating to achieve a common vision. Therefore, the AIIOC was established as a form of collaboration between various faculties to work on projects,” she said.