www.osca.utm.my 2023
SOLUTIONS First Issue 2023 © Office of Strategy and Corporate Affairs Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia Advisors: Mohd Shafry Mohd Rahim Johari Surif Editors: Mahani Stapa Rohaizan Khairul Anuar Fatin Nabihah Rosli Mohd Fadthul Ikmal Misnal Nur Mazdiana Noor Azizaman Authors: Noorzana Khamis Sabrinah Adam Lee Siew Ling Azman Abd.Samad Zainudin Hassan Designer: Hafizah Mohamad Ahyah Coordinated by: Office of Strategy and Corporate Affairs Centre for Community and Industry Network Designed and Published by: Office of Strategy and Corporate Affairs Bangunan Canseleri Sultan Ibrahim Universiti Teknologi Malaysia 81310 UTM Johor Bahru Johor Darul Ta’zim, MALAYSIA Printed in Malaysia by: JASAMAX ENTERPRISE No. 16, Jalan Kebudayaan 2, Taman Universiti, 81300 Skudai, Johor Darul Ta’zim, MALAYSIA Cataloguing-in-Publication Data All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, please write to the publisher at the address below.
INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 3 Foreword Introduction Turning Waste to Wealth: Used Cooking Oil Recycling and Upcycling Enhancing Community Socioeconomic Status through Digital Entrepreneurship Initiative High-Quality Video Production for Interactive Scientific Experiments Kenari Apartment Community Empowerment through Chilli Fertigation Edible Garden Project Involving Special Needs Students CONTENTS 2 3 6 8 10 12 16
INNOVATING 4 SOLUTIONS Dear readers, Welcome to the 1st issue of UTM Innovating Solutions for 2023, where we proudly showcase the remarkable collaborative projects undertaken by UTM experts. Besides expanding the horizons of research and education, these projects leave an indelible mark on the community through innovative solutions that enhance their lives. In this issue, our featured projects have been carefully curated by the Centre for Community Industry Network, UTM, a dedicated hub that supports researchers in assessing the societal impact of their work. These initiatives serve as shining examples whereby can drive positive change in the world. Therefore, please enjoy perusing the stories, and we hope this will inspire you to collaborate with us to empower and uplift our community. Thank you. FOREWORD Prof. Dr. Mohd Shafry Mohd Rahim Director Office of Strategy and Corporate Affairs, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia 4 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS
INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 5 At Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), our unwavering commitment revolves around harnessing the full potential of our community. We unite to pursue our common goals, to not only excel in academics but also to extend the horizons of our research and innovation far beyond our campus boundaries. The name of this publication draws its inspiration from our University’s recent tagline, “Innovating Solutions,” which was conceived to firmly establish UTM as a leading and renowned Research University in the fields of science, technology, and engineering that can benefit the community through the creation and exploration of new knowledge. Through this publication, we aspire to cultivate a high-impact research and innovation culture among our readers. We feature projects that exemplify outstanding endeavours that have positively impacted our community. These projects encompass diverse activities, from environmental initiatives to technology and knowledge transfer programs, all led by our team of experts. Importantly, all these initiatives are thoughtfully aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda, reinforcing our dedication to building a sustainable and prosperous future. INTRODUCTION INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 5 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS
6 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT The community consider the program relevant and needed. A formal university-community cooperation agreement exists The community program results in a change of knowledge, skills, attitudes or aspirations The community program results in a change of practices The community is empowered and can independently sustain the practices that were introduced through the program The community has a positive orientation towards the program STAR RATING PROJECTS Community Engagement (CE) Star Rating is a 'tool' used to evaluate the impact of community project implementation. Impact needs to be measured to assess the effectiveness of the exchange of expertise and research results through innovative projects run jointly by academic staff, researchers and business partners from the industry and target community. This is to ensure that every project implemented successfully brings positive changes to the community. IMPACT MEASUREMENT PROGRAM ACCEPTANCE MEETING COMMUNITY NEEDS KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE, SKILLS AND ASPIRATION CHANGE ADOPTION OF CHANGE AND PROGRAM IMPACT SUSTAINABILITY FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STAR RATING
7 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STAR RATING PROJECTS
INNOVATING 8 SOLUTIONS 30 children of single mothers The community gained a better understanding of environmental preservation and the collection of used cooking oil. The community can earn money by selling used cooking oil and recyclable goods. Able to help communities of single mothers generate additional income. Able to enhance sustainability knowledge on managing used cooking oil for the children of single mothers in the area. HEAD OF PROJECT Dr. Noorzana Khamis Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities [email protected] TURNING WASTE TO WEALTH BENEFICIARY IMPACT ACHIEVEMENT Under the supervision of Yayasan Pembangunan Keluarga Darul Ta'zim (YPKDT), a community program on recycling spent cooking oil has been made available to 30 children of single mothers from Johor Bahru. This program aimed to raise awareness and exposed them to the efficient management of spent cooking oil. Communities of single mothers were assisted in preserving the environment by participating in this hybrid community program, which was conducted from August 2021 to March 2022. The program aimed to increase knowledge about sustainable management of used cooking oil and generate additional income through recycling and upcycling. The outcomes showed a significant improvement in environmental awareness, and participants were able to put the program's recommendations into practice. USED COOKING OIL RECYCLING AND UPCYCLING
INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 9 Oil lamps production The collection of 204.1kg used cooking oil for income generation 1 1 2 2 1 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 9
10 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 28 B40 entrepreneurs. 150 B40 Students from 5 Higher Education Institutions (UTM, UKM, UM, UTHM, UPM). The community received positive customer feedback and responses regarding the use of exciting tools such as copywriting and teasers. The community noticed that the number of page likes and viewers on their Facebook Business page increased. Total business sales are growing, allowing them to generate income. 28 B40 entrepreneurs continue applying the knowledge and tools trained through the knowledge transfer program and can work independently in managing their online businesses. Increased in total sales. THROUGH DIGITAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP INITIATIVE ENHANCING COMMUNITY SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS Digital Entrepreneurship (DE) is bridging traditional entrepreneurship with a modern strategy for creating and operating a business in the digital age. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the DE entrepreneurial ecosystem in helping B40 students generate income. Several initiatives have been implemented to help B40 students escape poverty. This program exposed students to pursue a career as a digital entrepreneur by establishing their own business as one of their income-generating activities as part of the Entrepreneurship Action Plan 2021–2025, which aims to create a competitive and sustainable entrepreneurial environment. This program primarily focused on a triple helix perspective involving academia/ universities, government, and industry, as well as a fourth helix representing the community. HEAD OF PROJECT Dr. Sabrinah Adam Faculty of Management [email protected] BENEFICIARY IMPACT ACHIEVEMENT
11 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS B40 students during the physical and online knowledge transfer session
INNOVATING 12 SOLUTIONS 150 science students from SMK Kangkar Pulai. Students were exposed to presentation skills and techniques in video presentation using different tools for a science experiment. Students possessed good communication skills and could produce good videos for a science experiment presentation in their science subjects. Students were confident to participate in science video presentation competitions at state, national and international levels. Students were able to produce high-quality video. Students were capable to join science innovation competitions at the international level. HEAD OF PROJECT Assoc. Prof. ChM. Dr. Lee Siew Ling Faculty of Science [email protected] A virtual STEM course called “Wonder Lab at Home: Video Making by Junior Scientists” was organized on September 11, 2021, by the Centre for Sustainable Nanomaterials (CSNano), Ibnu Sina Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research (ISI-SIR) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This program was part of CSNano’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) effort to spark the interests of secondary school students in science subjects and enhance their capacity to produce interactive films for presenting scientific experiments. Postgraduate students from the Faculty of Science led the presentations and workshop portions of the knowledge transfer program. Secondary school students were introduced to guidelines and procedures for creating science experiment videos in the disciplines of biology, chemistry, and physics. HIGH-QUALITY VIDEO PRODUCTION FOR INTERACTIVE SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS BENEFICIARY IMPACT ACHIEVEMENT
INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 13 CSR CSNANO program sessions SOLUTIONS
14 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS Kenari Apartment CommunityEmpowerment The fertigation system offers several benefits, including increased space efficiency, reduced risk of soil-borne diseases, cost savings on fertilizer based on plant growth stages, efficient weed control, and large-scale production of high-quality crops. Phase I of the fertigation-based chilli planting project started in May 2021 in cooperation with the residents of Kenari Apartment in Kangkar Pulai and under the Penjana Grant initiative allocated by the Johor Bahru District Agriculture Office. Despite the increase in total chilli production in Malaysia, the supply by local producers cannot meet the nation’s demand. Therefore, to create high-income potential and growth for the Kenari apartment community, ongoing knowledge and experience sharing with UTM professionals are required, especially for those who are interested in chilli fertigation projects. HEAD OF PROJECT Dr. Azma Abd. Samad Faculty of Science azmansamad@ utm.my THROUGH CHILLI FERTIGATION 22 residents of Kenari Apartment, Kangkar Pulai. The community can increase their income through the chilli fertigation system. The Kenari community acquires good practices in chilli fertigation. BENEFICIARY IMPACT ACHIEVEMENT
15 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS Chili fertigation project visitors 15
INNOVATING 16 SOLUTIONS https://news.utm.my/ms/2020/12/utmurban-farming-projects-in-johor/
INNOVATING SOLUTIONS 17 https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=hrbm5TokCSs
18 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS Edible Garden Project This program aims to provide students in the Special Integration Education Program (PPKI) with exposure, knowledge, and practical experience to apply what they have learned in their daily lives. Students can create downstream products for profit using the crops they grow. Additionally, it enables PPKI students to become self-reliant without requiring assistance from others. This program provides them with incomegenerating opportunities by selling Brazilian Spinach to the community. Furthermore, the project has also created a cheerful and conducive atmosphere for both the teaching and learning. INVOLVING SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS 25 PPKI students from SMK Kayu Ara Pasong, Pontian Johor. Students were exposed to basic knowledge about gardening and recycling. Created an area of edible plants at the school. Provided additional income to the participants. HEAD OF PROJECT Prof. Madya Dr. Zainudin Hassan Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities P-zainudin@ utm.my BENEFICIARY IMPACT ACHIEVEMENT 18 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS
19 INNOVATING SOLUTIONS The edible garden yield 19
INNOVATING 20 SOLUTIONS https://youtu.be/ZxuL8-4NgO0