Prof. Dr. Ir. Agus Purwoko, S.Hut., M.Si. was born in Kejobong, Central Java, Indonesia, on August 1, 1974. He has been a researcher and lecturer in the Undergraduate and Master's Program in Forestry since 1999, the Master's and Doctoral Program in Regional and Rural Development Planning since 2006, and the Doctoral Program in Natural Resources and Environmental Management since 2018 at the Universitas Sumatera Utara Indonesia with the title of Professor.

He obtained his Bachelor of Forestry degree in 1997 at IPB University, Indonesia. The passion for education led Agus Purwoko to continue his Master's Degree in Regional and Rural Planning in 2005 and Doctoral Degree in Regional Planning in 2011 at the Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, Indonesia. Currently, Prof. Agus serves as Vice Dean III for Research, Community Service, and Partnership at the Faculty of Forestry, Universitas Sumatera Utara. He teaches several courses, such as Economic Valuation of Natural Resources and Environmental Damage Assessment (doctoral degree), Methods and Science of Regional Planning (doctoral degree), Advanced Regional Planning (doctoral degree), Location Theory and Regional Development (doctoral degree), Regional Planning (master's degree), Forest Resource Management Policy (master's degree), Spatial Planning (master's degree), Forestry Policy and Legislation (bachelor's degree), Forest Resource Economics ( bachelor's degree), Forest Resource Economic Valuation (bachelor's degree), Social Research Methodology (bachelor's degree), Entrepreneurship (bachelor's degree) and Forestry Business (bachelor's degree).
Until now, he has been actively teaching and guiding student research (undergraduate thesis, thesis, and dissertation).

He also actively researches topics related to his expertise, such as forest management, natural resource and environmental economics, nature tourism management, and regional and rural development planning. Various publications written with his team can be accessed openly on Google Scholar and Scopus accounts. More than 280 articles have been recorded on Google Scholar, with 49 Scopus-indexed articles published.
He primarily researches topics related to management-based regional development and potential development of forest resources (especially non-timber and services). Various forms of utilization and management of forest resources by communities, companies, and local governments are the focus of his research to identify potential and recommend ways, approaches, and policies for their development. In addition, he also collaborates with many experts from various backgrounds and institutions in carrying out various research and services. Not only that, he also continues to learn from senior experts to develop his capacity and knowledge.