Kedah School Students’ Innovative Green Projects Recognised by Pintar Foundation and University Kebangsaan Malaysia

ALOR SETAR, 27 August 2018 – SMK Simpang Kuala, Kedah won first place in the Final Competition of the “PINTAR-UKM Sustainability and Green Technology through iG-Home Module” (iG-HOME) programme with their project based on composting. The first runner up went to SMK Paya Kamunting and SMK Muadzam Shah took third place.

iG-HOME is a multidisciplinary programme by PINTAR Foundation and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) that inculcates interest in environmental sustainability through science and technology implementation. The initiative, which is funded by Yayasan Hasanah aims to raise awareness amongst students, their families and local communities about environmentally friendly production and consumption practices as well as sustainable living.

The final competition saw the top six schools presenting each of their unique projects to the panel of judges, which comprised lecturers from UKM specialising in green technology education. The panel also awarded the Best Presenter Award to SMK Muadzam Shah and Special Award to SMK Abdul Malik.

“I am happy that PINTAR secondary schools in Kedah were able to participate in the iG-HOME Programme, a project which is funded by Yayasan Hasanah. It marks an important step in the Foundation’s continuing efforts to provide opportunities for students of PINTAR schools to explore new fields of interest which cannot be taught in the confines of a classroom,” said PINTAR Board of Trustees Chairman, Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Utama Arshad Ayub.

“The three secondary schools that won the main awards in the Final Competition are excellent examples of how persistence, determination, commitment and strong partnership between the students, their teachers and advisors can produce innovative, environmentally-friendly products,” said Tan Sri Arshad.

“I believe that through this competition, the aim to develop more great ideas that innovatively tackle climate change issues through the prism of the construction industry can be achieved. This experimental learning process is also a holistic approach to further develop Malaysian students, in line with the mission of PINTAR Foundation. Above and beyond academic achievements, we seek to nurture future generations that are as creative as they are knowledgeable, with a high sense of social responsibility and moral integrity,” said Tan Sri Arshad.

“With the Yayasan Hasanah grant amounting to RM260,000, we were able to produce two books – Buku Teori iG-HOME Inovasi Rumah Lestari and Buku Aktiviti iG-HOME Inovasi Rumah Lestari, which were used throughout the duration of the programme by 1,200 students and 60 teachers in 30 secondary schools in Kedah,” said Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Vice Cansellor Prof. Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Noor Azlan Ghazali, adding that the programme required both students and teachers to innovate and create a sustainable home.

“The iG-HOME programme is an excellent platform that combines both of Yayasan Hasanah’s key pillars; Education and Environment.  We are pleased to observe that the programme has built on the success of its first phase by expanding beyond the schools to involve the wider communities in Kedah. Furthermore, it has been pivotal in raising the bar in environmental awareness amongst young people, allowing them to act as advocates while also coming up with collaborative solutions that could better improve our environment in the long term. These are fundamental elements in every programme that we support,” said Shahira Ahmed Bazari, Managing Director, Yayasan Hasanah.

“We are confident that the programme will continue to deliver solid impact towards Malaysia’s sustainable development aspirations while providing greater opportunities for more young people to become innovative, creative and most importantly passionate about their environment and future,” Shahira concluded.

Phase 1 of iG-HOME was held from May-November 2017 and saw 25 teachers from 13 PINTAR and non-PINTAR secondary schools in Kedah attended a ‘Training of Trainers’ session conducted by UKM. During the programme they learned about the iG-HOME modules, which would be used to teach a total of 558 students in their respective schools. In Phase 2, a total of 34 teachers and 737 students from 17 secondary schools in Kedah were involved from February-August 2018.

In both phases, the students actively engaged in hands-on activities, and had in-depth discussions on current environment and sustainability issues, as well as implemented programmes and activities through green innovation technology. Towards the end of the Phase, each participating school submitted one main project for the interschool competition jointly organised by PINTAR and UKM.