Higher education institutions played a significant role in nurturing high-quality graduates, at the same time, educational foundations provided or facilitated learning resources that HEIs often cannot offer. With that in mind, a collaboration between the two could forge an everlasting mark on the development of the country’s socio-education spectrum. On March 12, 2025, that is what the University Al-Azhar Indonesia (UAI) and Nur Semesta Foundation attempted to do.
Laying The Groundwork
On that day, UAI visited the Nur Semesta Foundation in an effort to cultivate a sustainable collaboration that would enrich the student’s and faculty’s minds. The visit was led by the Head of the Office of International Affairs and Partnership of UAI, Dr. Mohamad Ghozali Moenawar, Lc., M.M., he was accompanied by the Head of International Cooperation Section, Muchammad Nasucha, S.S., M.Si, and the Secretary of Islamic Religious Education Study Program, Dr. Tata Septayuda Purnama, S.S., M.Si. They were warmly received by the Supervisory Board of Nur Semesta Foundation, Hasbi Sen M, Hum.
After the UAI delegations were received, they were led on a tour of the Nur Semesta premises and they saw a collection of awards and mostly books of Badiuzzaman Said Nursi, a Kurdish scholar of Islam in the mid-1900s who played a vital role in the revival of Islam in Turkey and now has a several million followers around the world, one of them is Nur Semesta Foundation. They are a non-formal educational foundation that focuses on preaching, social and Islamic fields by introducing, studying and practicing the noble values contained in the book Risale Nur by Badiuzzaman Said Nursi.
After the tour finished, both UAI delegations and Hasbi engaged in a long discussion pertaining to the prospect of collaborations they could venture on. Hasbi offered to conduct a joint symposium, and short course, join research, and UAI’s lecturers can teach and help in Nur Semesta programs. Hasbi also remarked that they have a dormitory specially reserved for international students and UAI will be able to use it after they sign an agreement. On the UAI side, they are open to countless possibilities Nur Semesta has offered and would like to review it further to ensure the modalities and execution are top notch.
Conclusion
As the discussion comes to an end, it’s concluded with an exchange award session, where Nur Semesta gave Said Nuri books and Turkish Delight and UAI gave its merchandise. The visit to Nur Semesta was as intriguing as Turkish Delight, it’s certainly delightful, the discussion was soft and sweet as both parties could not wait to bite into the action of the collaboration programs and enrich the UAI delegation’s knowledge of one of the Turkish brightest minds, Badiuzzaman Said Nuri. Hopefully, the respective parties managed to maximize the opportunities presented before their eyes before it passed its expiry date. Aamiin (BR)