UNDIP, Semarang (October 24, 2025) – The Department of Business and Finance, Vocational School of Universitas Diponegoro (UNDIP), successfully held the 1st International Conference on Vocational Business, Logistics, Accounting, Supply Chain, and Tax (ICoBLAST 2025) on October 23–24, 2025. The hybrid conference took place in the 5th-floor Conference Hall of the ICT Center at the UNDIP Tembalang Campus and was streamed live on the official YouTube channel, UNDIPTV.
This inaugural international conference carried the theme “Sustainable Growth in the Age of Disruption: Resilient Supply Chain, Ethical Accounting, and Fiscal Refinement.” It served as a strategic platform for academics, researchers, and practitioners to share ideas and the latest research in business, logistics, accounting, supply chain management, and taxation.
Representing the Rector, Vice Rector IV for Research, Innovation, Partnership, and Public Communication, Dr. Wijayanto, S.IP., M.Si., Ph.D., officially opened ICoBLAST 2025. In his remarks, Dr. Wijayanto stated that the conference theme is highly relevant to current global conditions. It reflects the reality that, amid an era of transformation driven by technological change, global uncertainty, and environmental challenges, sustainability is no longer merely an option or end goal, but an ongoing process that requires adaptability, innovation, and resilience.
“Sustainable growth is not only about maintaining stability but also about our ability to face disruption with creativity and integrity, transforming every challenge into an opportunity to move forward,” said Wijayanto, Ph.D.
He emphasized that vocational education plays a strategic role in this transformation, acting as a bridge between academic excellence and real-world application—linking theory with practice and knowledge with tangible impact. Through this conference, the Vocational School reaffirmed UNDIP’s commitment to transforming ideas into solutions that enhance industrial competitiveness, empower communities, and support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“I believe that meaningful innovation is born from meaningful collaboration. No single institution can achieve transformative change alone. We must build strong bridges among academia, industry, government, and society. This is the essence of the quadruple helix model that UNDIP continues to strengthen,” explained Wijayanto, Ph.D.
In her report, ICoBLAST 2025 Chairperson Stacia Reviany Mege, S.E., M.S.M., stated that participants came from six countries: Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Romania. “ICoBLAST 2025 received many paper submissions, and after a rigorous selection process by the Scientific Committee—comprising experts from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Romania, and France—50 papers were accepted for presentation on the second day of the conference,” said Stacia.
Stacia added, “The conference featured four distinguished keynote speakers from renowned universities, who shared insights and expertise on the future of vocational research, business transformation, logistics, accounting, taxation, and supply chain management:
- Assoc. Prof. Dr. Marziana Madah Marzuki (Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia) – “Embedding Ethics in Financial Reporting: The Role of Corporate Governance, Digitalization, and Cultural-Religious Values for Sustainable Accountability”
- Prof. Mark Goh (National University of Singapore) – “Sustainable Growth in the Age of Disruption Through Supply Chain Resiliency”
- Prof. Piyush Sharma (Curtin University, Australia) – “International Business-to-Business Relationships: Challenges and Opportunities”
- Assoc. Prof. Singgih Wijayana, Ph.D. (Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia) – “The ISSB’s Sustainability and Climate Disclosure Standards and Research on the Usefulness of Annual Reports of Multinational Corporation”
Throughout the two-day event, participants joined parallel sessions, panel discussions, and networking forums designed to foster collaboration, innovation, and interdisciplinary knowledge exchange. “As an appreciation for academic excellence and presentation quality, the committee will also present the Best Paper Award and Best Presenter Award during the closing ceremony,” Stacia added.
ICoBLAST 2025 marks a strategic milestone for the UNDIP’s Vocational School in strengthening its academic and applied research position, directly contributing to industrial development and public policy. Through this international conference, UNDIP’s Vocational School reaffirmed its commitment to advancing sustainable development and strengthening vocational human resources in Indonesia.
This effort aligns with UNDIP’s spirit of “Noble and Valuable UNDIP”, supporting the “Diktisaintek Berdampak” program and contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).