Sunway University hosts a week long SDG festival

In a wonderful display of unity, corporate leaders, non-governmental organisations, local school children, special society groups, influencers and over 20,000 students from all across the Klang Valley gathered at Sunway University.

The university will be the home of a week-long festival of events and activations in support of the United Nations 17 SDGs and its worldwide initiative of Local Action for Global Goals 2022, celebrated from Monday, 19th of September through to Friday, 23rd of September.

This unique festival and the first of its kind in Asia featured talks, performances, interactive workshops, and corporate displays on sustainability from Volvo, Uniqlo, The Body Shop and Huawei.

Visitors had an opportunity daily flag parades, on-stage demonstrations, a sustainable marketplace and a space to connect with leaders, changemakers, activists, the private sector, and live musical performances.

The children from the Spastic Children’s Association of Selangor and Federal Territory will also be performing during this event.

A splendid and memorable adaptive fashion show by Dawn Adaptive also ensured the occasion was a truly inclusive event at Sunway University.

Joining the excited visitors on campus were a host of international dignitaries, including Swedish Ambassador to Malaysia Dr Joachim Bergström, Ambassador of Finland to Malaysia and Brunei Sami Leino, German Ambassador to Malaysia Dr Peter Blomeyer, and Deputy Head of Mission at Embassy of Hungary Ambassador in Malaysia Anikó Farkas.

Meanwhile, Subang Jaya assemblyperson Michelle Ng will be representing the local community.

“Slowing climate change requires behavioural change – and governments must facilitate this for its citizens,” said Michelle.

During the event, there was an e-waste collection where staff and students could environmentally dispose of their unwanted electrical items.

Since the start of the initiative, over 34,000kg of electrical waste has been collected.

The noteworthy occasion also received royal approval as Selangor Princess Tengku Zatashah Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, delighted crowds with her passionate address on the planet.

“It is truly important how we treat planet earth, other fellow citizens of this planet and every living being here. With the recent climate change we have been experiencing, we must be very concerned about the state of our planet,” said Tengku Zatashah.

Younger participants enjoyed an interactive “Treasure Our Planet Trail” across the campus, learning 17 new SDG facts every step of their journey of enlightenment, ensuring the next generation will continue to carry the message of influence and action.

Daily on-stage demonstrations included soap making from used cooking oil by Pusat Wanita Berdaya, a cooking demonstration of edible vegetable scraps by Professional Culinaire Association Malaysia and a creative upcycling demonstration by Maslisa Zainuddin from Sunway University.

The week-long event was an overwhelming success and an excellent advert for Malaysia in the global world of sustainability.

“This is our aim with the Local Action Global Goals 2022 – to educate and re-educate and also to remind everyone that we need to work collectively to bring about sustainable and meaningful change,” said Chief Executive Officer of the Sunway Education Group, Professor Elizabeth Lee.

President of Sunway University, Professor Sibrandes Poppema, added he was delighted the event was hosted at Sunway University as the institution works tirelessly to merit its growing reputation as A Campus With A Conscience.

The Local Action for Global Goals 2022 emphasised the need for the world to work together to deliver the Global Goals by 2030 through special events and inspiring activations for all ages and interests.

It brought together world leaders, policy-makers, decision-makers, business leaders, partners, academics, scientists, stakeholders, activists, and advocates from around the world to connect, examine solutions, identify a path forward, and work collectively in achieving the Global Goals at a critical time.

Malaysia can be rightly proud of its exceptional contribution toward this global goal.