The used cooking oil collection challenge module and awareness of the importance of natural assets have been introduced in conjunction with the tenth year of this year’s Iskandar Malaysia Ecolife Challenge (IMELC) competition to increase understanding and environmental conservation efforts among students and schools throughout the state of Johor.
Apart from these two new challenge modules, this competition also involves the challenge module of recycling goods, saving water and even electricity.
Launched in 2013, IMELC this year was implemented by Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA), Johor State Education Department (JPNJ) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) as the Implementing Agency together with Iskandar Puteri City Council (MBIP) and partners.
The introduction of the awareness module on the importance of natural assets is expected to aid Johor students in recognising and appreciating the uniqueness and significance of natural heritage, as well as being aware of what needs to be done to protect it.
Used cooking oil collection complements zero-waste practices and is expected to reduce overall waste in landfills.
IRDA Chief Executive Dato’ Dr Badrul Hisham Kassim stated, “This competition is being held to encourage students, teachers, school institutions, and families to get involved in environmental preservation efforts. We saw a carbon reduction of over 3.2 million KgCO2 as a result of low-carbon activities implemented between 2017 and 2021.”
“This amount of reduction is comparable to the carbon absorption of nearly 210,000 trees, or approximately 125 hectares of land.” This is something we should be very proud of because we were able to involve the younger generation and the community in general at an early stage in order for them to better understand and be dedicated to the effort to form a low-carbon society and make the region more resilient.”
According to Md Said Md Daimon, Director of JPNJ, IMELC was held in all 908 primary schools in the state of Johor, with over 100,000 students participating.
“The Johor State Education Department strongly encourages all schools to participate in this programme because it is one of the main programmes in the Holistic Education 2.0 initiative: Sustainability Education, which aims to raise awareness and practice about the importance of environmental protection among students, teachers, parents, and then the local community,” he said in a statement.
Prof. Datuk Ts Dr Ahmad Fauzi Ismail, Vice-Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), is confident that the IMELC module’s knowledge empowerment and low-carbon culture will continue to aid in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in terms of climate action.
“The digitisation process, as well as the use of gamification elements in the six IMELC challenges, allows for greater access and knowledge development among students, which is then translated into a change in low-carbon culture behaviour not only among students and school members but also as a whole household,” he said.
“As a viable city, MBIP, with an administrative area of 40,269 hectares and a population of 580,944 people (Census 2020), is acutely aware of the importance of sustainable development efforts.” Dato’ Haji Mohd Haffiz Haji Ahmad, Datuk Bandar of the Iskandar Puteri City Council said.
“MBIP is also committed to ensuring the well-being of Iskandar Puteri residents through all efforts, particularly low-carbon initiatives that are carried out and implemented in a dynamic, inclusive, and holistic manner. The organisation of IMELC 2022 adds value to MBIP’s efforts to carry out low-carbon initiatives that catalyse behavioural change and improve the quality of life of people in the State of Johor in general,” he added.
