UNAIR NEWS – To monitor the sustainability of international-scale collaborative research, the Early Research Dissemination Forum INUcoST (Indonesian-Netherlands Partnership for Sustainable Futures) entered its second day of implementation on Tuesday, June 30, 2026. The event was held at the Majapahit Room, 5th Floor, ASEEC Tower, Dharmawangsa B Campus, ¶«¾©ÈÈ (UNAIR).
Running from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM WIB, the event focused on proposal presentations for the second-year plans. Each research team was given approximately 8 minutes to present their research plans, future directions, and proposed activities.
Administrative transparency and budget flexibility
Before the researchers presented their projects, a representative from the Ministry of Higher Education, Research, and Technology, Erlin Puspaputri, provided a briefing. She delivered an in-depth guidance session regarding the terms, conditions, and progress of the second-year funding. In her presentation, Puspaputri reminded the attendees of the vital importance of punctuality in uploading final reports. She revealed that each Principal Investigator (PI) operates under a different deadline.
“Every PI has a different deadline. You must keep this in mind because after the PIs complete their final reports, we will perform the plotting for the second-year funding evaluation,” Puspaputri stated.
Regarding field dynamics, Puspaputri emphasized that the government offers flexibility for researchers. This flexibility allows them to adjust their financial planning and research activities based on the evaluation outcomes of the first year.
Nevertheless, she cautioned researchers to remain careful regarding the three main components of the RISPRO budget (Direct Costs, Direct Personal Costs, and Non-Direct Costs) which have been directly locked by the Center for Data and Information (Pusdatin) of the Ministry of Finance, meaning that shifting funds between these components cannot be done arbitrarily. The total documentation required for researchers to upload in the final report encompasses seven primary documents, including the internal evaluation results from the LPPM of each respective partner university.
UNAIR’s mangrove research for sustainability
The session then proceeded with the research plan presentation by the host representative from UNAIR, Dr. Eko Prasetyo Kuncoro, S.T., D.E.A. He presented a multidisciplinary research project titled “Biodiversity of Mangrove for Human Prosperity,” which takes place at a research site in the Balikpapan region.
“I believe the objective of this study is to identify the potential of mangrove forest products from the mangrove ecosystem for sustainable utilization. Furthermore, it aims to develop management strategies that support the utilization of mangrove forests without compromising biodiversity and ecosystem functions,” Dr. Kuncoro explained when describing the direction of the research.
Furthermore, Dr. Kuncoro detailed the tactical plan to be executed in this second year. The research activities will focus on mangrove management for conservation. These efforts include biological surveys, ecological assessments, GIS or remote sensing analysis, as well as participatory approaches involving local stakeholders.
Regarding the targets to be achieved from this series of programs, Dr. Kuncoro outlined the final outcomes designed by the end of the research period. “And the expected outputs are articles, references, online sessions in the third year, as well as staff or student exchanges. These are the detailed activities,” Dr. Kuncoro noted at the conclusion of his presentation.
Through this innovation discussion forum, the INUcoST partnership involving UNAIR, Leiden University, and Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands will produce reputable scientific articles. Additionally, the collaboration will create real policy recommendations and staff or student exchange programs that have a wide impact for a sustainable future.
Writer: Fauziah Laili Romadhon
Editor: Ragil Kukuh Imanto
