With the aim to provide a platform for young leaders to discuss the current trend and issues related to youth, the Department of Soft Skills Competency (DSSC) and the Department of International Student Services (DISS) from Kampar Campus co-organised a series of activities under an event titled “Voice of Today’s Youth: Young Leaders Dialogue Session” on 1 November 2020, 27 February 2021 and 27 March 2021.

According to DSSC Assistant Lecturer Fong Kah Hoong, the dialogue between different speakers from different backgrounds served to create a continual discussion and reflection among youth in being influential as many more similar events are planned to be organised throughout the year. He added, “The dialogue further aimed to support young people and build self-confidence and belief that youth can raise and discuss issues which are important to them.”

In becoming the influencer

The event kick-started with its first online forum titled ‘How Can Youth Create Influence?’. The online forum was held on 1 November 2020 via Microsoft Teams. It was a dialogue between UTAR students, UTAR alumni and also speakers from overseas. The forum was graced by UTAR Vice President for Student Development and Alumni Relations Prof Dr Choong Chee Keong.

The keynote speaker for the event was former Faculty Representative of Student Representative Council 2019/20 Alycia Wong Lye Min. In her keynote speech, Wong encouraged the young people and said, “Sometimes you will feel insufficient because you find people to be more experienced than you. Although you are still young, please remember that you have the knowledge of your generation. You could always improve yourself and become someone who could bring influence.”

Following the keynote speech was a forum by UTAR alumni. The speakers were Weight Management Coach Mak Zi Jian (Malaysia), Concordia University (Canada) Master of Business Administration (MBA) Student Kudratillo Usmonov  from Uzbekistan and System Administrator of IBM Japan Hitomi Iguchi from Japan. The event was moderated by UTAR DSSC Lecturer Yoon Seck Hoe. 

While sharing his experience as a weight management couch, Mak said, “I took six years to train my body. Before this, I used to be a very skinny guy.  So, when we say ‘influence’, it involves a lot of time. Before you become an influencer, you need to take some time to make yourself a better person.”

The forum provided a platform for young leaders to discuss the current trends and issues related to youth. It also helped to promote youth participation worldwide towards achieving sustainable development by providing this platform for them to express their ideas, opinions and needs.

Understanding the different generations in social media

The second forum titled ‘Generations in Social Media’ was held on 27 February 2021 via ZOOM. The event was moderated by UTAR alumna Colene Faith from Singapore. She is also a life coach, self-development coach, inspirational speaker and international speaker. The event was graced by UTAR Vice President Prof Choong.

The keynote speaker for the event was International Medical University Drama Club Vice President Rushmina Roy who originated from India. She presented her topic titled “The Connection Gap” and explained, “There are many social media platforms in this world, such as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Wechat, Snapchat, etc. This, sometimes, might lead to the ‘connection gap’—people born in different generations use different social media platforms.”

Following the keynote speech was a forum by UTAR Kampar Student Representative Council 2020/2021 Kan Purple, National University of Singapore Specialist Associate Yim Jian Nam  (UTAR alumnus) and UTAR researcher Christtestimony Oluwafemi from Nigeria.

Although different generations use different social media platforms, Colene advised the participants to be careful when choosing a social media platform. Colene said, “I always believe that, ‘What you consume, will also consume you’. So, it is important to make sure the things you consume on the website can empower your mind and strengthen your soul. If you found something that could bring negative thoughts to you, stay away from it.”

Throughout the forum, the three speakers shared their thoughts and views on the topic ‘Generations in Social Media’. Much information and views were exchanged during the two-hour session. The event received a very good response from the audience as many were asking questions during the session.

The E-sport

Upon the success of the first and second sessions of this series, DSSC and DISS also organised another forum titled ‘E-sport – A Career or A Hobby’ on 27 March 2021 via ZOOM.

Invited to become the moderator was UTAR Chemistry Society Secretary (2021/22) Foo Cheng Yu. The young leaders who were invited to become the speakers were Help University Comm Voice 2020/21 President Adrian Tam Zhi Tin (Malaysia), Co-founder of Crowdsukan Chee Yik Wai (Malaysia) and former Chairperson of UTAR Sports Club Iddrisu Mohammed Awal who originated from Ghana. Iddrisu is also a researcher and PhD student from UTAR.

According to Chee, the traditional sports were expanded to another level because most youngsters preferred to spend their time on computers. “E-sports can be deemed as a new form of sport as they are also creating a new type of economy. E-sports have a very strong market now and have created a new career for people,” said Chee.

On the other hand, Tam said, “E-sports have already become a trend. Now we have a lot of online games, plenty of gamers’ community as well as cryptocurrencies and blockchain.”

The forum aimed to provide a platform that allows young leaders from different institutes to discuss the current trend of e-sports, as well as the potential of e-sports to become a professional career. 

DSSC and DISS strongly encourage and welcome all the students as well as young leaders from different educational backgrounds to become part of the team either as a moderator or a speaker. Moreover, many more sessions are yet to come under the same series.