Realizing Internationalization, the Faculty of Economics and Business of Udayana University Holds a Company Visit and International Community Service with the University of Rhode Island

The Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University (Unud) has implemented an International Collaboration Program Company Visit and International Community Service with the University of Rhode Island (URI) - United States which was held for two consecutive days, namely on Thursday (25/05) and Friday (26/05). The International Collaboration Program Company Visit and International Community Service is a new program and will continue with URI in 2024. Apart from that, this year there will also be several other international partners who will be invited to work together in the field of Higher Education's Tri Dharma.

This activity was facilitated by I Gede Nandya Oktora P., S.E., M.B.A., CRA., CRP. as the Coordinator of International Affairs of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University as well as the Coordinator of the Global Engagement Program (GEP) international class program which involves student representatives from the Global Engagement Program (GEP), student functionaries of the Udayana University Student Executive Board (BEM), as well as student representatives and Associates Professor from the University of Rhode Island. The purpose of this activity is to realize the faculty internationalization program designed by the Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University and to initiate a collaboration between the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University and the University of Rhode Island.

On the first day, this activity began with visiting the Kuta Traditional Market and then continued visiting Krisna Souvenir Bali, which is the largest and most comprehensive center for Balinese souvenirs in Southeast Asia. The purpose of this activity is to make observations in order to provide practical experience about the condition of MSMEs and businesses supporting the tourism industry in Bali. After that, the company visit was carried out by visiting the Jimbaran Bay Beach Hotel. In this activity, the group was welcomed by the owner and general manager of the Jimbaran Bay Beach Hotel. During the event, students were invited to have discussions regarding the development of the Jimbaran Bay Beach strategy in dealing with the dynamics of the tourism industry before Covid-19 and after Covid-19, so as to provide new insights and train students' abilities to find solutions to problems and strategies for developing a tourism business.

The second day of the series began with conducting international service by visiting Sanur Beach through beach cleaning and education about coral reef preservation. This activity was carried out in collaboration with the Intaran-Sanur Traditional Village and the Sungai Bahari Intaran Community. This is also in line with the University of Rhode Island's Summer Vacation theme, namely "Bali URI - Udayana Marketing & The Blue Economy Summer 2023".

The second day's activities continued with visiting an international NGO called Prevented Ocean Plastic which is engaged in plastic waste management. The group was accepted by the NGO management to jointly learn about sustainable management of plastic waste to support the tourism industry in Bali.

Changes that continue to move towards progress are supported by collaborating through education throughout the implementation of the Company Visit, making this program able to provide new insights and experiences for participants. In line with this statement, Mr. Brook Wiliam Ross as the Director of Business & Education Partnership for Asia from the University of Rhode Island expressed his gratitude for the cooperation and assistance of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University for facilitating this international collaboration activity. This activity ran successfully and of course was very beneficial for both parties and became the start of a good collaboration between the Faculty of Economics and Business, Udayana University and the University of Rhode Island - USA.