Mataram, University of Mataram – The Kalimantan Institute of Technology (ITK) hosted the Coordination Meeting of the LPPM KPTN Forum for Eastern Indonesia (KTI) on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. This meeting served as a strategic step toward strengthening synergy and collaboration among Research and Community Service Institutes (LPPMs) of universities across Eastern Indonesia.

The event was attended by several prominent figures from various universities in Eastern Indonesia, including Prof. Dr. Muhammad Nasrum Massi (Hasanuddin University), Dr. Eng. Yunita Triana (Kalimantan Institute of Technology), Prof. Dr. I Gusti Lanang Agung Parwata (Ganesha University of Education), Prof. Rosye H.R. Tanjung (Cenderawasih University), Dr. Andi Chairil Ichsan (University of Mataram), Yakobus P. E. Saba Agu (University of Timor), and dozens of other participants from public and private universities.

The meeting was officially opened by ITK Rector, Prof. Dr.rer.nat. Agus Rubiyanto, who emphasized the importance of inter-institutional collaboration as a key driver for Indonesia’s progress particularly in Eastern regions, which still face challenges in equitable development and research access.

The discussion was moderated by Rijal Surya Rahmany, M.T., and opened with a presentation by Prof. Nasrum from Hasanuddin University (Unhas), who currently serves as Head of the LPPM KPTN-KTI Forum. In his presentation, he highlighted the disparity in research resources and access between Western and Eastern Indonesia. To bridge this gap, he encouraged private universities to join the KPTN consortium. Prof. Nasrum also outlined the collaborative research models implemented at Unhas, such as the Indonesian Collaborative Research (RKI) and Thematic Research Group (TRG), both designed to build focused, productive, and internationally impactful research teams.

Meanwhile, Dr. Eng. Yunita Triana from ITK presented the ongoing collaborative initiatives between ITK and three other public universities. She also emphasized the importance of expanding partnerships with the private sector and local government agencies (OPD) through programs like SEPAKAT and the SPECTA Exhibition.

The intensive discussion involved representatives from various universities, including Unram, Uncen, Unpati, Unimor, and others. Dr. Andi Chairil from the University of Mataram proposed optimizing the Unram Scholar platform, establishing a Rp50 million per proposal funding scheme, and restructuring existing research groups. Meanwhile, Prof. Rosye from Cenderawasih University (Uncen) encouraged a University-to-University (U2U) collaboration model to accelerate research partnerships. Additionally, region-specific issues in Eastern Indonesia such as indigenous communities and natural resource conflicts were proposed as key themes for future research.

Several strategic agreements were reached during the meeting, including:

1. The establishment of a cross-university task force to develop and manage priority research proposals.

2. Encouragement of scientific publication collaboration in reputable journals and the organization of international conferences.

3. Implementation of regular online seminars from July to December 2025, with rotating hosts among member universities such as Unhas, Unram, Unsrat, Uncen, Untad, and Unimor.

4. Scheduling of three annual researcher meetings: December 2025 (pre-meeting), March 5, 2026 (Papua – Uncen), August 6, 2026 (online – Unsrat), and November 5, 2026 (Bali – Undiksha).

5. Researchers are also encouraged to meet minimum qualifications such as at least a Lektor rank, Master’s degree (S2), H-Index ≥ 3, and a minimum SINTA score of 100 over the last three years.

6. Collaboration with academic diaspora and participation in international research programs such as KONEKSI (Australia), and partnerships with France, Japan, and Turkey also emerged as key priorities.

As the meeting concluded, the Head of the LPPM KPTN-KTI Forum emphasized the importance of concrete follow-up actions to strengthen the position of Eastern Indonesia’s research institutions as active contributors within both national and international scientific ecosystems. This coordination meeting is expected to serve as a foundation for building more strategic, sustainable, and competitive research partnerships in the future.