📝 Summary
UTM academics from the Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering visited Universitas Airlangga in Indonesia to strengthen international academic engagement and share knowledge in environmental biotechnology and waste treatment. The five-day visit included lectures and knowledge-sharing sessions with students, covering topics such as separation processes, waste treatment, and biomass utilisation. The visit aims to promote future collaboration and community-based innovation, aligning with UTM’s commitment to global presence and sustainability.
SURABAYA, Sep 12 – Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), through its Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering (FKT), further strengthened its international academic engagement with Indonesia through the visit of Guest Lecturers Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhammad Abbas Ahmad Zaini and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zainul Akmar Zakaria to the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) from 8 to 12 September 2026.
The five-day academic visit provided a platform for knowledge exchange between UTM academics and UNAIR students, particularly in the fields of environmental biotechnology, waste treatment, biomass utilisation, separation technology and sustainable resource recovery.
During the visit, Guest Lecturers Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhammad Abbas Ahmad Zaini and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zainul Akmar Zakaria conducted a series of sharing and knowledge-transfer sessions involving Year 3, Year 4 and postgraduate students. The sessions covered a diverse range of topics, including Separation Processes, Activated Carbon Adsorption, Agricultural Waste Utilisation, Waste Treatment, Bacterial Technology and Green Waste Valorisation.
The academic sessions exposed students to both fundamental principles and practical applications of environmental and biotechnological processes. Particular attention was given to the conversion of agricultural and green wastes into value-added products, demonstrating how waste materials can be transformed into useful resources through innovative technological approaches.
The discussions on bacterial technology and waste treatment further highlighted the potential of biological systems in addressing environmental challenges, while the sessions on adsorption and separation processes provided students with insights into established and emerging technologies for environmental applications.
Beyond the university setting, the visit also included participation in a national-level community development programme at Madrasah Tsanawiyah Negeri 2 (MTsN 2), Kota Malang. The engagement extended the knowledge-sharing element of the visit beyond the university setting to the wider community.
The visit represents an important platform for strengthening academic linkages between UTM and UNAIR, particularly through direct engagement with students, academics and the wider community. Such international mobility programmes provide opportunities to explore future collaboration in joint research, postgraduate supervision, student and staff mobility, joint publications, knowledge exchange and community-based innovation.
The engagement is also closely aligned with UTM’s commitment to strengthening its global presence while promoting research and innovation that address pressing environmental and sustainability challenges.
Through initiatives such as this, UTM continues to promote the internationalisation of education, research excellence and impactful community engagement, while contributing to the development of sustainable technological solutions in the region.
