DNA Building, Denpasar - Bali

Visit DNA, Australian Ambassador Nyurat Aksara Bali in Lontar Leaf

The Australian Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia, Penny Williams PSM, appreciated the steps taken by the Denpasar City Government in preserving Balinese cultural traditions by encouraging young people to make modern-style packaging. According to him, the move is a good way to show local advantages over other regions in the world.

This was said by Williams in between his seriousness in scribbling pengrupak (special knife) on palm leaves to write his name in the Balinese script. Located in co-working space 5 Dharma Negara Alaya (DNA) Art & Creative Hub Building, Lumintang, Denpasar, Thursday (18/11/2021). 

“I think this needs to be maintained and will be unique to this city,” he said.

William’s presence in the building was part of his visit to Denpasar City to establish an opening communication regarding the discussion of cooperation agreements in various strategic fields such as education, the creative economy sector, and digital in the economic recovery period after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The arrival of the Australian Ambassador was welcomed by the Mayor of Denpasar, I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara accompanied by the Secretary of the Denpasar City, IB Alit Wiradana, Head of the Denpasar City Tourism Office, Dezire Mulyani, Head of the Denpasar BKraf Daily Executive, I Putu Yuliartha, and related City Government officials.

Lontar Souvenirs

On the sidelines of a warm conversation with the Mayor of Jaya Negara regarding strategic issues to be collaborated on, Williams expressed his praise for the City of Denpasar which has made progress but still stands on its traditional values. He was even surprised when the Mayor of Jaya Negara gave him a souvenir in the form of a lontar palm in which his name was written, complete with his birthday and interpretation according to the Balinese wariga (calendar).

Moreover, the lontar has been registered as a Non-Fungible Token (NFT) digital asset and stored as a collectible asset on baliola.com, the marketplace for NFT assets founded by a startup incubated by BKraf Denpasar.

“I look forward to meeting leaders and innovators among Bali’s vibrant business, educational and creative communities and learning about their extensive relationship with Australia,” said Williams after visiting the Bali Blockchain Center which is one of the building’s newest facilities.

Towards the end of his visit, William again emphasized that the collaboration between the Governments of Australia and Indonesia in key sectors, which will be implemented in several cities including Denpasar, is an important step to promote Australia’s greatest assets – diversity, openness, and innovation.

Williams said, as our economy recovers from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, partnerships and collaborations focused on skills development and training in the creative and digital sectors are becoming increasingly important.

“With these various activities, it is hoped that Bali’s tourism will recover, Bali’s economy will gradually become more diverse with digital and technology industries as well as education and environmentally friendly green industries that are starting to grow,” Williams said.

Commenting on the visit, the Mayor of Denpasar, I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara, thanked the Ambassador and hoped that this momentum would be the beginning of a fresh breath to build world public trust regarding safety and comfort of Bali, especially Denpasar City.

“This is a good momentum to spread positive vibrations for Bali’s economic recovery, especially Denpasar City, to raise the confidence of tourists, domestic and international to Denpasar City,” he said.

Jaya Negara emphasized that his party would spread the news about this visit as a form of world trust in Bali and Denpasar, which have begun to recover.

“This will be a good hope for the people of Denpasar City to recover their economy,” said Jaya Negara.