RCE Greater Gombak - 2020

Location

Malaysia
See map: Google Maps
MY
Mainstreaming SDGs- Society as Agent of Changes (Parliamentary-based Capacity Building Project)
CSV
Basic Information
Title of project : 
Mainstreaming SDGs- Society as Agent of Changes (Parliamentary-based Capacity Building Project)
Submitting RCE: 
RCE Greater Gombak
Contributing organization(s) : 
1. Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity, International Islamic University Malaysia
2. Members of Parliament
3. All Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia (APPGM for SDG)
Focal point(s) and affiliation(s)
Name: 
Zainal Abidin Sanusi
Organizational Affiliation: 
International Islamic University Malaysia
E-mail: 
zainalsanusi@iium.edu.my
Format of project: 
Group discussions, Powerpoint, Game, Group Activities
Language of project: 
Malay
Date of submission:
Friday, October 30, 2020
Web link: 
https://rce2g.iium.edu.my/constituency-based-community-engagement-programme-appgm-sdg/
Additional resources: 
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/18Ubu6G6VlV5td5ReaQ86l8ujOngIILhC?usp=sharing
Does this project link to any education and/or sustainable development policy or policies?: 
Yes
District development policy
At what level is the policy operating?: 
Local
District waste management policy
At what level is the policy operating?: 
Local
Regional tourism development framework
At what level is the policy operating?: 
Subnational
Geographical & Education Information
Region: 
Asia-Pacific
Country: 
Malaysia
Location(s): 
Tanjung Piai
Address of focal point institution for project: 
Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity
Secretariat, RCE Greater Gombak
International Islamic University Malaysia
Jalan Gombak, 53100
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
Ecosystem(s):
Agricultural, Coastal, Forest, Fresh water, Wetlands
Target Audience:
Community, Youth (Informal)
Government Agencies, NGOs
Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area : 
Tanjung Piai is a combination of semi-rural coastal area of Kukup and semi-urban of Pontian Town as a capital district of Pontian, with a total population of 53528 people. The main economy activities in the district are ecotourism, fishery, marine activities and food processing. Tanjung Piai is considered a national icon as it is the southernmost point of mainland Asia and being one of only five Ramsar sites in Malaysia. Listed as a priority site for national ecotourism, it has 22 mangrove species and an important habitat for migratory and resident birds.
Description of sustainable development challenge(s) in the area the project addresses: 
A classical textbook illustration of the case of how the economy is advancing at the expense of environmental degradation could be found in Tanjung Piai. The development project of Port Tanjung Pelepas has caused disruption of the sea ecosystem, effectively eliminated fish stock from the coastal area, and inevitably disrupted the fishing industry and source of income to local fishermen. Although blessed with unique geographical characteristics, local tourism could be considered under-developed. While there are many cross-cutting issues found in the area, one of the crucial issues found was ‘silos’ and lack of coordination among the stakeholders involved in managing the development there.
Contents
Status: 
Completed
Period: 
January, 2020
Rationale: 
The workshop is part of a bigger project that involves 10 constituencies in Malaysia. For each constituency, research to identify development issues on the ground was conducted in early 2020. From this research, an issue mapping was constructed and this mapping serves as the basis to conduct capacity building and solution projects. Research in these constituencies yielded several development issues such as loss of livelihood for fishermen, unsustainable water settlement, and unemployment issues among the youth. Despite the uniqueness of the geographical area, the findings reveal that the potential was not fully utilized. Undeniably, the issues found need a collaborative approach from multiple agencies and local communities.
Based on this finding, the capacity building workshop on SDG is proposed with the objective of introducing SDG and enhancing the understanding of SDG among government officers, NGOs, and community representatives apart from encouraging multiple stakeholders to work together towards achieving sustainable development in Tanjung Piai. This workshop is part of a buy-in process to gain support from multiple stakeholders on other proposed solution projects for Tanjung Piai. This full-day workshop in Tanjung Piai is the first one to be conducted and it was replicated to the other constituencies in the study.
Objectives: 
The main objective of the program is to introduce Sustainable Development Goals among the local government agencies, NGOs, and community leaders. Through the activities conducted, participants from various backgrounds (government, NGOs, local community) have to work together in a group brainstorming and discussing the sustainable issues in Tanjung Piai. These activities serve as a platform for them to start talking to each other and work together to solve local development issues. As the spirit of SDG is collaboration and working together, this program aims to inculcate the value and spirit among the participants.
Activities and/or practices employed: 
The program is a full-day workshop that started with ice-breaking among participants, followed by an introduction to Sustainable Development Goals talk by the facilitator. It was then followed by a presentation of research findings on the development issue in Tanjung Piai by a local researcher. Participants were then asked to discuss and identify the issues, key players in solving the issue, and suggestions on how to solve the issue. As the issue usually requires inter-agency involvement, feedback, and input from related agencies were obtained immediately during the discussion. At the end of the session, each group needs to present their findings and discussion with all the participants. The workshop also includes a fun way of learning about SDG through games. A pre-post test on knowledge on SDG was administered to measure the effectiveness of the workshop in introducing SDG to the participants.
Size of academic audience: 
The workshop was attended by 30 participants from government agencies, NGOs and local community.
Results: 
The objectives of this workshop are to introduce SDG and enhance the understanding of SDG among government officers, NGOs, and community representatives, which are considered achieved through the activities conducted. Although generally the number of attendees is considered small, it was representative of authorities and local communities, a good mixture of people who are crucial in ensuring the success of mainstreaming SDG. The success of the workshop is illustrated in the pre-post test which shows a significant increase in the score of the questionnaire on SDG knowledge after completion of the workshop. A Wilcoxon-signed ranks test was conducted to measure the difference in the score of pre and post-test as N<30. A Wilcoxon Signed-ranks test indicated that the score of the post-test is statistically significantly higher than the pre-test, Z= 4.021, p<0.001. In conclusion, there was an increase in the knowledge on SDG after the completion of the workshop.
Lessons learned: 
The workshop was conducted successfully despite a limited number of participants. From the perspectives of organizers, it is proven that if push for better understanding, the community will buy-in for solutions agreed for the constituency. Participation and engagement from attendees is encouraging despite coming from various backgrounds. This workshop could be further improved if we managed to get more participants especially from government agencies. All in all, this workshop achieved its targeted objectives in serving as an introductory course for the understanding of the general concept of SDG and identifying how it is related to their position in society.
Key messages: 
SDGs is the best platform to gather multiple stakeholders i.e. government, NGOs, local communities to address complex development problems and work together for solutions. This workshop provides avenues for that while successfully introducing and enhancing the understanding of SDGs as illustrated in the pre-post knowledge on the SDG test.
Relationship to other RCE activities: 
As the whole project involves 10 constituencies involving multiple regions in Malaysia, there is always an opportunity for other RCEs in Malaysia to work together as part of the research or solution project.
Funding: 
This program was fully funded by All Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia for Sustainable Development Goals (APPGM- SDG).

Pictures:

File Name Caption for picture Photo Credit
Image icon WhatsApp Image 2020-09-28 at 6.31.30 PM.jpeg (77.26 KB) A good platform to gather government agencies, NGOs and local community Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity
Image icon WhatsApp Image 2020-10-30 at 2.40.15 PM.jpeg (154.9 KB) SDG Snake & Ladder Game- A fun way to learn about SDG Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity
Image icon WhatsApp Image 2020-10-30 at 2.51.26 PM.jpeg (165.86 KB) Presentation by Participant on the Sustainable Development Issue and Solution Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity
Image icon WhatsApp Image 2020-10-30 at 3.21.25 PM.jpeg (69.71 KB) Participation from all age groups including elderly Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs) and other themes of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
SDG 6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all 
Indirect
SDG 11 - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable 
Indirect
SDG 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns 
Indirect
SDG 14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development 
Indirect
SDG 15 - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation, and halt biodiversity loss 
Indirect
SDG 16 - Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels 
Indirect
SDG 17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development 
Direct
Theme
Agriculture 
Indirect
Ecotourism 
Direct
Waste 
Indirect
ESD for 2030-Priority Action Areas
Priority Action Area 1 - Advancing policy 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 3 - Developing capacities of educators and trainers 
state: 
Indirect
Priority Action Area 4 - Mobilizing youth 
state: 
Indirect
Priority Action Area 5 - Accelerating sustainable solutions at local level 
state: 
Direct
Update: 
No