JUMAAT, 10 OGOS - Majlis Bersama Pihak Pengurusan Universiti dengan Semua Alumni Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) yang berkhidmat di universiti itu berlangsung dengan jayanya dengan kehadiran kira-kira 60 alumni.

Bertempat di Dewan Auditorium Pascasiswazah baru-baru ini, program tersebut merupakan inisiatif Pusat Alumni UMS.

Penganjuran program itu antara lain bertujuan untuk membincangkan hala tuju alumni UMS dan mendapatkan maklumat serta perkongsian info bagaimana meningkatkan lagi hubungan alumni dengan alma meter.

Di samping itu, ia juga sebagai usaha untuk mengeratkan lagi hubungan silaturahim antara pihak pengurusan dengan alumni serta mengeratkan hubungan keakraban sesama mereka.

Sementara itu ketika berucap pada majlis tersebut, Timbalan Naib Canselor (Hal Ehwal Pelajar dan Alumni) UMS, Prof. Dr. Ismail Ali menggesa agar setiap alumni staf UMS aktif dalam menarik alumni yang lain untuk turut sama dalam setiap aktiviti alumni.

“Banyak manfaat termasuk boleh diperoleh melalui penglibatan dalam aktiviti-aktiviti yang dijalankan.

“Di samping memperoleh input-input baru dan terkini, setiap aktiviti yang diadakan juga sentiasa memberi ruang dan peluang untuk para alumni membina jaringan kerjasama antara satu sama lain mengikut bidang dan keperluan masing-masing,” katanya.

Pada majlis itu, Prof. Dr. Ismail turut mengumumkan cadangan penubuhan sebuah chapter alumni khas untuk alumni yang berkhidmat dengan UMS.

Turut diadakan sesi soal jawab bersama Pengarah Pusat Alumni UMS, Darwis Awang.

KHAMIS, 09 OGOS - Seramai 60 warga dan alumni Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) menjayakan Program Tanggungjawab Sosial Korporat (CSR) di Pulau Sebatik Tawau baru-baru ini.

Program CSR yang dianjurkan dengan gabungan kerjasama Pusat Alumni UMS dan Alumni UMS Chapter Tawau itu menyaksikan para alumni menyumbang khidmat komuniti mengecat bangunan pusat sumber Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Mentadak Baru.

CSR itu turut merangkumi sumbangan berupa alat tulis kepada sekolah tersebut di samping dua sekolah lain iaitu SK Wallace Bay dan Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Wallace Bay.

Majlis perasmiannya disempurnakan Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN) Sebatik merangkap Pembantu Menteri Pembangunan dan Infrastruktur Negeri Sabah, Datuk Hj. Abdul Muis Hj. Picho.

Dalam ucapannya beliau berkata, usaha pihak UMS dan alumni untuk mengadakan CSR ke pulau itu sangat dihargai dan diharapkan dapat diteruskan pada masa-masa akan datang.

“Program seumpama ini dapat memberi kesedaran dan mengukuhkan lagi ikatan tali persaudaraan antara penduduk kampung dengan komuniti luar,” katanya.

Beliau menaruh keyakinan program seumpama itu memberi banyak manfaat kepada penduduk kampung dan pelajar sekolah.

“Ini merupakan bukti jelas usaha-usaha kerajaan sentiasa komited dalam memperjuangkan dan membela nasib rakyat yang meliputi keseluruhan masyarakat tanpa mengira kaum,” katanya lagi.

Pada CSR tersebut, UMS melalui Pusat Pulau-pulau Kecil (SIRC) turut menjalankan kajian air di sekitar Pulau Sebatik.

Turut hadir, Pengarah SIRC UMS, Prof. Datuk Dr. Mohd Harun Abdullah, Pengarah Pusat Alumni UMS, Darwis Awang, serta para pemimpin tempatan dan penduduk kampung.

WEDNESDAY, 08 AUGUST - 32 lecturers from Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) recently participated in a six day digital entrepreneurship Training of Trainers (TOT) on campus.

The training, which was organised by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) in collaboration with UMS, was designed to strengthen the lecturers’ skill in digital entrepreneurship, such as how to use the digital platform, how to boost sales, and how to utilise the existing free tool website.

The Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic and International) of UMS, Professor Dr. Rasid Mail, supported the training.

He recognised the benefit of the training for both UMS students and lecturers, as well as for UMS itself.

The training enabled lecturers to gain knowledge-based technology and, and this would help UMS progress towards achieving Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0).

The programme aims to provide exposure on digital entrepreneurship among local youths and micro-entrepreneurs, in order to help them generate lucrative income through digital platforms.

In addition to gain knowledge on digital entrepreneurship, UMS lecturers also integrated the MDEC programme module into the existing curriculum (i.e., Fundamentals of Entrepreneurial Acculturation curriculum) with the purpose of providing UMS students with practical knowledge and skills to conduct online business via different digital platforms, namely Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

The training was facilitated by three master trainers from MDEC and managed by two lecturers from the Centre for the Promotion of Knowledge and Language Learning at UMS.

Also present at the training was the Project Leader of eUsahawan Muda MDEC, Suhaina Yaakub

For the record, MDEC has launched the “eUsahawan” programme at colleges, polytechnics, and universities in Malaysia since 2015.

The “eUsahawan” programme is divided into the “eUsahawan Muda” for entrepreneurs who are studying at institutions of higher learning  and Technical and Vocational Education and Training centres, and the “eUsahawan Mikro” for micro-entrepreneurs.

Source: PPIB

TUESDAY, 07 AUGUST - Our ocean is not a dumping site for people’s debris. Surplus human activities have severely affected the marine life in the oceans by releasing harmful substances such as plastic, industrial and agricultural waste, and chemical particles into the ocean.

It is a disturbing fact to know that even though people are aware of the state of marine pollution we are facing, they still continue to use plastic; the most common man-made element found in the ocean.

A recent beach clean-up programme under a joint marine conservation project between the Borneo Marine Research Institute, UMS and Sutera Harbour Resort; found that the biggest source of pollution in the ocean came directly from the land based sources.

“Based on the rubbish collected, most of the trashes are produced locally. Rubbish were thrown into the river and carried out to the ocean.

“Some rubbish will sink to the bottom of the sea, and some will be taken by the tides to the beaches or mangrove areas,” said Associate Professor Dr. Juanita Joseph during her presentation of the Beach Combing survey findings for the Sustaining Kota Kinabalu’s Marine Heritage project, here on Friday.

She also pointed out that some of the rubbish was suspected to be dumped directly into the ocean or on the beach.

“In fact, thousands of tonnes of waste and rubbish are dumped into the ocean on a daily basis,” she added.

She revealed that from the survey, for every 100-metre of the beach clean-up namely Pulau Sulug, Kampung Kibagu, Sepanggar and the public beach near Sutera Harbour Resort; the most common waste was plastic. 

“There were 6,500 plastic mineral water bottles and 8,000 pieces of styrofoams collected during the beach clean-up. We even collected 100 diapers. Plastic bottles and diapers take up to 450 years to biodegrade and styrofoams appears to last forever; it is a non- biodegradable product.

“What is really disturbing to me is that most of the plastic wastes were single-use plastics. This is something that we can change by reducing the usage of single-use plastic into more environmentally friendly reusable alternatives,” she said.

More than 130 volunteers from Jebsen & Jessen (SEA), Trash Hero Borneo, Kota Kinabalu City Hall, Universiti Malaysia Sabah and the public took part in this beach clean-up. The effort managed to remove at least 1,000 kg of litter from 3 beaches.

Meanwhile, according to Dr. Chen Cheng Ann, the Head of Marine Science Programme in Universiti Malaysia Sabah; “the earth is covered with 70% water and it is common for people to assume that all rubbish and debris will be diluted or dissolved in the water.

“But in reality that is not the case; especially with plastic, it never disappears.

“It is imperative for people to know that plastic is a significant threat to the entire marine life,” he said.

He stressed that even though the debris and rubbish dumped into the ocean are released kilometers away from land, they are washed up to beaches and coastal areas, which affect the marine biodiversity.

“Plastic pollution is one of the most serious threats to the ocean. It is harmful to the environment as it does not decompose easily and is often perceived as food by marine animals.

“Change is inevitable and we need to take action now. We need to be responsible human beings by working together to protect our oceans by beating plastic pollution,” he said.