Partnership agreement with Indonesian Universitas Gadjah Mada ratified during visit
From student exchanges and a joint laboratory to heritage research and a knowledge consortium, the Indonesian Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) is in various respects an important partner for Leiden University.
A delegation of staff from the Indonesian university visited Leiden University on 30 October 2023. They were welcomed by the faculties of Science, Law and Humanities. These three faculties maintain close partnerships with UGM. For example, the law faculties of both universities were involved in developing a new law curriculum for universities in eastern Indonesia. There are also regular student and staff exchanges between the two universities.
The humanities faculties in Leiden and Indonesia have been working together for years as well. This includes training Indonesian historians to gain access to Dutch historical sources. Last May, during a visit by a Leiden delegation to UGM, a new partnership was established for the Critical Heritage Studies Dual Degree programme. This already involved a number of universities in Korea and Taiwan, and there had long been a desire to include an Indonesian university as well. UGM proved to be a very suitable partner for this.
The Indonesian university is also working with Leiden’s Faculty of Science on a joint laboratory for biological and pharmaceutical research. This will be used to research TB and type 2 diabetes. Dean Jasper Knoester signed the agreement making this Joint Research & Expertise Center possible during the visit.
The visit concluded with a meeting between UGM Rector Ova Emilia and President of the Executive Board Annetje Ottow. Ottow emphasised that Leiden University is pleased with the collaboration and the many new initiatives: ‘We are pleased to work together with UGM which, like us, is committed to academic freedom, investing in future generations and working on great ideas’.
In addition to ongoing collaborations with the various faculties, UGM will play an important role in the Indonesia-Netherlands Universities Consortium on Sustainable FuTures (INUCoST) that Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Universities (LDE) is starting with five Indonesian universities. The consortium focuses on broad collaboration in education, research and community empowerment.