Gotong-royong at KDCFR

Photo session after the gotong-royong

Thirteen UTAR students along with five staff and one public member joined an off-campus gotong-royong and an environmental trip to Kota Damansara Community Forest Reserve (KDCFR). It was organised by the Department of Student Affairs (DSA) of Sungai Long Campus on 3 February 2018.

The gotong-royong started as early as 9am with the volunteers divided into two teams after a light briefing.

Volunteers during the cleaning session

Focusing on the lake area and one of the trails, the volunteers took almost three hours to clean up the entire area. The two teams were led by KDCFR member, Wong Ee Lynn and Temuan Orang Asli volunteer, Mor Ajani respectively.

“This event helped to create awareness and appreciation among the volunteers towards the urban forest, especially since we are living in the city. Not everyone is aware of the existence of urban forest, therefore this event helped to expose such forest to the volunteers, thus instilled a sense of social responsibility in them,” said DSA Assistant Manager Chow Keng Fatt.

Being a green island in the sea of rapid urban development has always threatened the forest reserve. Thanks to the concerned Samaritans, such as the local community and Temuan Orang Asli, the 120-years old forest reserve is preserved under a good community management.

Along the process, Mor also shared some knowledge about the plants found in the area.

Wong during the sharing session

After the cleaning session, Wong shared some insights on practising sustainable lifestyle by using reusable items instead of disposables. Chow, on the other hand, shared the idea of reducing waste in daily life.

“We should conduct a regular gotong-royong in the community forest or places similar to it. Not only can we help the Mother Nature, but also enjoy the great environment,” commented one of the participants, Nur Shafarina binti Abdul Wahab.