Joko Widodo was born in Surakarta

Surakarta

Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...

, June 21, 1961. He is better known by his nickname Jokowi, is the mayor of Surakarta

Surakarta

Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...

 for the second time until 2015. The vice mayor is F.X. Hadi Rudyatmo. He was nominated by Indonesian Democratic Party – Struggle.

Education

Jokowi is an engineer graduate from the Faculty of Forestry at Gadjah Mada University

Gadjah Mada University

The Gadjah Mada University is the largest and the oldest national university in Indonesia . founded on December 19, 1949; although the first lecture was given on 13 March 1946. The name was taken from the name of Majapahit's Prime Minister, Gajah Mada.UGM is located in Yogyakarta, Daerah Istimewa...

 in 1985.

Achievements

When running for mayor, many doubted the ability of a man who works as a property and furniture businessman. But a year after he led, many progressive breakthrough he had made. He took the example of the development of many cities in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 which he visited in the framework of frequent business travels.

Under his leadership, Solo experienced a rapid change. Branding the city, by approving the motto "Solo: The Spirit of Java

Java

Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...

". One of the big laps was to do a quite progressive for the size of the cities in Java

Java

Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...

: he was able to relocate the junk dealer in the Garden of Banjarsari almost without turbulence to revitalize the functions of the open green land, giving the opportunity for investors to think about performing the public interest, perform routine and open direct communications (broadcast by a local television) with the community. Balekambang Park was abandoned by its organizer, he made it a public park. Jokowi also did not hesitate to dismiss the investors who do not agree with the principle of leadership. As a follow-up of branding Surakarta

Surakarta

Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...

, he also filed Surakarta

Surakarta

Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...

 to become a member of the Organization of World Heritage Cities

Organization of World Heritage Cities

The Organization of World Heritage Cities was founded on September 8, 1993 in Fez, Morocco. As of December 31, 2007, the organization was made up of 233 cities in which are located sites included on the UNESCO World Heritage List...

 and approved in 2006. The pace continued with the success of Surakarta

Surakarta

Surakarta, also called Solo or Sala, is a city in Central Java, Indonesia of more than 520,061 people with a population density of 11,811.5 people/km2. The 44 km2 city adjoins Karanganyar Regency and Boyolali Regency to the north, Karanganyar Regency and Sukoharjo Regency to the east and...

 to host the organization's conference in October 2008. In 2007, Surakarta had also hosted the World Music Festival (Festival Musik Dunia/FMD) which was held at the Fort Vastenburg Complex. Fort Vastenburg was threatened to be bulldozed and replaced by business center and shopping malls. FMD in 2008 was held in the Mangkunegaran Palace Complex.

In the Tempo magazine

Tempo magazine (Indonesia)

Tempo is an Indonesian weekly magazine that covers news and politics. It was founded by Goenawan Mohamad and Yusril Djalinus and the first edition was published in March 1971.-New Order era:...

, Joko Widodo was chosen to be one of the "10 Indonesian Best Mayors of 2008"