UTAR News / Awards

Another successful international collaboration forum was organised by the Division of Community and International Networking (DCInterNET) on 30 April 2021 via ZOOM.

Held for the third time, the forum, themed ‘Getting Started with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through International University Collaborations’, was joined by six international universities. The universities were Bina Nusantara (BINUS) University, Hengyang Normal University, University of Batangas, Davao Del Norte State College, Lanzhou Jiaotong University and Tamkang University (TKU). Also present at the forum were Vice President for Internationalisation and Academic Development Ir Prof Dr Yow Ho Kwang, DCInterNet Director Assoc Prof Dr Lai Soon Onn, and Deputy Direct Dr Chen, I-Chi, along with staff and participants.

The aims of the forum were to promote SDGs through international collaboration among universities and establish SDGs related virtual study tour programmes with the participating universities.

Gracing the event with an opening speech was Prof Yow. “Today’s forum will bring focus on the three collaborative projects initiated by UTAR, in collaboration with our partner universities, who are also present here today. These three projects are related to SDGs, outlined by the United Nations. Among the 17 SDG Goals, UTAR has organised 896 projects/ activities in the year 2019, in relation to SDG 4: Quality Education, which attracted more than 210,000 participants. It is the highest number of activities/ projects conducted. While the second highest of the activities that have been conducted were aimed at achieving SDG 17: Partnership for the Goals. In total, UTAR has organised 174 activities related to SDG 17 and has attracted more than 17,000 participants,” said Prof Yow.

He continued, “When the pandemic hit in 2020, we moved our SDG related projects to online platforms. UTAR Department of Soft Skills Competency (DSSC) has organised a virtual mobility programme, namely The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): An Introduction with Action. This virtual mobility was a milestone for UTAR and the herewith proposed course is intended to further its commitment to advance the promotion of the SDGs not only within Malaysia but within the broader Asia Pacific. UTAR also established the Sustainable Development club back in 2018 to promote the SDGs at the university. Therefore, I believe the three collaborative projects will bring forth fruitful and meaningful discussions because we are not only promoting the student mobility programmes, but also the SDGs to achieve a better future and living.”

Session one was a forum-cum-sharing session on “Roles of International University Collaborations in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”. Speakers, namely TKU Office of International and Cross-Strait Affairs Dean Dr Lucia Chen spoke on “Achieving Quality Education and Global Citizenship: Hands Together Project”, while BINUS University’s BINUS Global Program & Collaboration Coordinator Lidya Sin spoke on “The Role of Passage to ASEAN (P2A) to Promote Short Term Student Mobility to Improve Quality of Education and Building Partnership for the Goals”.

Dr Lucia enlightened participants on TKU’s university social responsibility (USR) initiatives through the Hands Together project. Under this project, TKU works with stakeholders to create a sustainable living community, with the vision “Tamsui Good Life”. Their effort with the stakeholders also aimed to co-develop a town with the self-consciousness of food, clothing, housing and commuting; allowing students to work in the real fields with local people and residents. Other USR initiatives by TKU also included the “More than a Story” project, where they took part in the community picture book tutoring, and accompanied disadvantaged children by telling stories. Dr Lucia further elucidated that the Hands Together project not only aimed to achieve SDG 4 but to also provide a cross-cultural learning classroom for Taiwan elementary and high school students. The project also implemented local culture immersion for TKU international students, and fostered UNESCO’s Global Citizenship Education, while developing their capacities of creativity, innovation and commitment to peace, human rights and sustainable development.

Sin, on the other hand, elucidated on the Passage to ASEAN (P2A) project. Participants learnt that this project is a non-profit network consisting of universities in ASEAN to facilitate and promote student mobility between members.

“P2A was initiated with the principle that higher education should be a leader in the development of society. The benefits of P2A physical mobility to students are exposure and instruction to culture and people of ASEAN, affordability, learning to make new friends and connecting with people of different cultures, and learning about teamwork and partnership. Meanwhile, virtual mobility benefits students by exposing them to new cultures and friends, free activities, learning teamwork in a virtual setting, and learning through academic materials,” explained Sin.

Session two was a breakout session, whereby participating universities were divided into three sub-groups to discuss joint student mobility programmes, targeting different SDGs. Room 1 was led by UTAR Department of Soft Skills Competency and gathered Davao Del Norte State College and University of Batangas to discuss “Getting Started with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through International Universities Collaborations” through organising virtual mobility programmes. The focus of the virtual mobility programmes was to promote the development of knowledge, skills, understanding, values and actions required to create a sustainable world. The programme also aimed to ensure environmental protection and conservation, as well as to promote social equity and encourage economic sustainability.

Room 2 was led by UTAR Department of Student Affairs and gathered TKU and Lanzhou Jiaotong University to discuss “The Role and Participatory of Youth in Building Sustainable Cities (Virtual Conference)”. Together, they discussed on the proposal to organise the International Youth Development Virtual Conference 2021, which will provide a platform for students and youths to discuss and share ideas on building sustainable and resilient cities. The virtual conference will also enhance dialogue on ways multi-stakeholders’ partnerships can be leveraged towards the implementation of SDG 11, while harnessing the role of higher learning institutions in the implementation of SDG 11, especially in the Asia Pacific region.

The third room was led by UTAR Centre for Corporate and Community Development and gathered BINUS University and Hengyang Normal University to discuss “Virtual English Immersion Programme”. The programme will bring focus on SDG 4: Quality Education, SDG 10: Reduced Inequality, and SDG 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions.