Balikpapan — Institut Teknologi Kalimantan (ITK), through its Library Technical Implementation Unit (UPA Perpustakaan), organized the Literacy Culture Enhancement and Book Discussion Program on Friday, September 4, 2026, at Building A, Room A.307, 3rd Floor, ITK. The activity was part of ITK’s efforts to increase interest, appreciation, and participation among the academic community and the general public in reading, discussion, and writing activities. 

The program featured the book “On the Other Side of East Kalimantan: Nature, Culture & Creative Economy,” which explores another side of East Kalimantan through three key areas of richness: nature, culture, and the creative economy. The book was selected for its relevance in introducing and documenting the region’s identity and diverse potential to a wider audience. 

East Kalimantan possesses abundant natural resources and cultural diversity that serve as important assets for regional development. At the same time, the creativity of local communities in transforming local potential into products, services, creative works, and economic activities demonstrates that a region’s wealth lies not only in its natural resources, but also in its knowledge, culture, creativity, and innovative capacity. Stories about the environment, traditions, communities, destinations, and local creative products are also valuable sources of knowledge that need to be continuously documented. 

Through the book discussion, participants were encouraged not only to understand the content of the book, but also to explore its ideas, perspectives, creative process, context, and underlying messages. Such interaction is expected to create a more meaningful reading experience while providing a space for exchanging ideas between authors and readers. 

The main session featured Dr. Rahmad Azazi Rhomantoro, S.Pd.I., M.Pd., an academic and activist in education, literacy, arts, and culture in Indonesia. As the author, he discussed “On the Other Side of East Kalimantan: Nature, Culture & Creative Economy” and shared perspectives on the various potentials and stories found throughout East Kalimantan. 

In addition to the book discussion, participants attended a session entitled “Motivating Generation Z to Strengthen Literacy Culture,” also delivered by Dr. Rahmad Azazi Rhomantoro. The program continued with an interactive discussion and question-and-answer session, providing participants with an opportunity to deepen their understanding and exchange perspectives on reading and writing culture amid technological developments and changing patterns of information consumption. 

The program is particularly relevant amid the rapid flow of information in the digital era. Easy access to information through various digital platforms does not necessarily lead to stronger habits of in-depth or deep reading. The dominance of short, fast, and highly visual information may encourage fragmented reading habits, making it increasingly important to strengthen the ability to understand, analyze, reflect on, and develop ideas in greater depth. 

Through this program, participants were also encouraged to move beyond being readers and develop the confidence to produce their own written works. The surrounding environment can offer a wide range of inspiration, from nature, culture, travel, culinary traditions, local figures, community life, innovation, and creative enterprises to various regional issues that can be transformed into informative and meaningful writing. 

This spirit is closely linked to the importance of documenting local knowledge. Regional potential that is not properly recorded and documented risks being known only to certain groups or generations. Through books and other written works, however, knowledge about a region can transcend geographical and generational boundaries, reach a wider readership, and be passed on to future generations. 

Through this activity, UPA Perpustakaan ITK also reinforced the role of the library not merely as a place for storing and lending collections, but as a center for knowledge, discussion, creativity, and the exchange of ideas. The program is expected to contribute to the development of an academic ecosystem that promotes reading, discussion, critical thinking, and writing. 

Ultimately, the Literacy Culture Enhancement and Book Discussion Program is expected to create a space that brings together reading, discussion, exploration of local potential, and writing as part of a continuous literacy process. Through this initiative, the academic community and the wider public are encouraged to recognize that every region has stories worth reading, every experience contains knowledge worth sharing, and everyone has the opportunity to produce meaningful written works.