The Tropical Resource Mapping (TropicalMap) Research Group incorporations with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Massive Open Online Course (UTM MOOC), Pan Ocean Remote Sensing Conference (PORSEC) Association, Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research, and Committee of Space Research (COSPAR), had successfully organized a virtual Capacity Building Development (CBD) program that focused on the ocean remote sensing towards climate resilience. The CBD was delivered through MOOC platform from 22 February till 8 March 2021.
Presenting 14 modules, the CBD added values to foster active interactions between the experts and participants by holding the student-mentorship program. The modules were prepared by 13 international experts from three continents, the United States, Europe and Asia. Enrolled to the program were 26 students or early-career scientists from Asia including Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and Bangladesh.
“Thanks for putting up the amazing course material together. It is great to see how the course has evolved online which allowed all of us to connect through a single platform. Last year was a tough year of the pandemic, yet many things have evolved. I have been impressed by some of the modules that are being put up in the platform and looking forward to learn so much from here!” said one of the participants, Lee Bing Yu from Malaysia.
One of the instructors, Dr. Norhakim Yusof from UTM said “overall, this online capacity building course has provided me a productive experience despite the challenging environment as well as has enabled me to reach out wider audience that sharing a common research interest in the field of ocean remote sensing.”
According to the Chairman of PORSEC 2020 Local Organizing Committee (LOC), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nurul Hazrina Idris, the MOOC program has aligned with UTM vision to become a world-class university in education and research through innovative technology, and enhance knowledge excellence through synergy with collaborators. The MOOC itself offered flexible education in supporting the university initiatives to foster the Learning On-Demand. Gathered international experts and participants worldwide were not easy, but through synergy, we had successfully delivered it.
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One of the instructors during the teaching video recording at UTMLead Recording Studio