When we think about any city in various parts of the world, we will imagine what the city looks like, the people, the characteristics that it has, and the various things related to the city. When you hear the word New York, you may be reminded of the appearance of the city which is full of sparkling night lights with all its business. You may also have seen a t-shirt that reads I love NY, which has a very close image with New York. Besides New York, you may already be familiar with the slogan I amsterdam with the words "I am" in red or the image of the city of Seoul, South Korea, I·SEOUL·U. If these cities have a city branding attached to them, then, does Jakarta also have one?

Jakarta Presents +Jakarta (Read: Plus Jakarta)

Plus Jakarta is a driving platform to ignite collaboration at the community and city levels to have a positive impact on Jakarta. Plus Jakarta is not only present as a logo, but also an identity that Jakarta is a city of collaboration. To get acquainted more deeply, Jakarta Smart City had the opportunity to chat with William Reynold who was the representative of the Plus Jakarta team.

“Everyone Has an Impact”

Since it was officially established and listed in Pergub No. 58 of 2020 on June 22, 2020, +Jakarta certainly has a vision and mission behind this City Branding movement.

+Jakarta's vision is to create a spirit of unity towards a strong city, through collaboration. Together, create change, make innovation, and make a new history for Jakarta.

William as part of the +Jakarta team also added that the background behind the +Jakarta vision is a belief that everyone has an impact.

“One value that we instill in Plus Jakarta is that everyone has an impact. We are not talking about the size of the impact. When we collaborate, the impact gets bigger and more reverberating.” explained William.

In addition to this vision, +Jakarta also has a mission to try to be present as a meeting point that brings together collaboration for anyone in the form of simple activities that do not need to be complicated.

“Elevating the Spirit”

Since its establishment in 2020 until now, +Jakarta has carried out various collaborations. William stated that many collaborations have been carried out, from BUMD such as Ancol and LRT, there are also collaborations with communities and other media. Among the collaborations that have been established is the Being Human +Jakarta collaboration. Being Human has passion in the field of mental health issues, now this is echoed by Jakarta in the form of public service advertisements, and other contributions.

Ancol +Jakarta collaboration presents video podcast content with interesting themes to discuss. You can watch it here. Then, another collaboration is with Grow Up Indonesia together to create the #KitaBerhakAman campaign which is ongoing now until December 10

William emphasized that +Jakarta wants to echo the spirit that already exists in every person, community, or institution to be introduced to the wider community. So that people can know that there are good things in Jakarta and Jakarta is open with various collaborations.

“Introducing, Meeting, Celebrating” 

Even though it's been around for a year and a half, many people still wonder about +Jakarta. So, the #IniJakarta Festival was initiated which aims to introduce, bring together, and celebrate collaboration in Jakarta. This festival took place on 3-5 December 2021 at Banteng Square, Jakarta.

In this festival, Governor Anies Baswedan will officially introduce +Jakarta. In addition, +Jakarta will also introduce collaborators who have or are currently collaborating with Jakarta. In +Jakarta's effort to introduce existing collaborations, a Jakarta Community Guidebook was created which contains 64 communities in Jakarta which are open to the public and distributed free of charge.

Then, #IniJakarta also became a space that brought together 20 communities that opened booths to convey their programs and enthusiasm to Jakarta residents to be interested in collaborating together. In addition, #IniJakarta brings together photographic works with the theme of resilience and collaboration in a space entitled Jakarta's Viewpoint, which contains 50 photos.

Lastly, #IniJakarta also celebrates collaboration in the form of a community stage for communities willing to showcase their talents and works. The community is also welcome to open a special session in the Green Open Space which is provided to present sessions such as photography, nutrition, storytelling, or other sessions that can be enjoyed by many people.

“All Citizens Collaborate”

When asked who or what institution was the dream collaboration of the +Jakarta team and volunteers to collaborate with, William answered that there was no dream collaboration at all that they wanted, because "We want all citizens to collaborate" he stressed. +Jakarta opens collaboration opportunities for anyone. So, for those who are interested, you can visit Instagram @plusjakarta, tiktok @plusjakarta, or get other complete information via the plusjakarta.com website.

As the last message from the interview with William Reynold, +Jakarta team, he invites us to realize that the spirit of collaboration has been permeated in this country for a long time, both in Indonesia and especially in Betawi in Jakarta. One of the traditions of Betawi is called nyambat--mutual collaboration. So, +Jakarta is not just a jargon but a form of collaborative action that has been around for a long time. "Let's all introducing, meeting and celebrate collaboration," he concluded.