International Student Society of Bangladesh (ISSBD) is one of the largest international student Country chapters of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). Throughout the past few years, ISSBD had arranged some prominent events for the betterment of the international students as well as for the community.
One of the recent notable events is “Johor City Tour and Beach Cleaning Program” which was held in 6th June 2022. A total of 38 students and 2 officials went to the beach cleaning event at Tanjung Leman. Beach cleaning activity is an important aspect of environment reservation. It helps us understand the rate of pollution that is having on the beach every day and gives us realize the responsibility to keep our environment clean and out of hazards.
Even though it has been practiced by many communities worldwide, it was a new experience to most of the participants of the event. It was pretty challenging yet fun to take part in this kind of novice activity. The students were divided into groups and were provided with gloves and trash bags.
Nearing the middle of the day and the heat of the sun was at its peak, the students were still vigorous and energetic to participate in the beach cleaning as the sea was soothing to look at. Cleaning the beach was a temporary solution, eradicating the origin of the problem was something which was very hard. That’s why, in order to overcome it, the students decided to share awareness as well as communicate with the local people in the surrounding to persuade them.
Since Universiti Teknologi Malaysia has provided the students with sufficient knowledge about the environment, they have been able to make thoughtful and informed decisions, which has helped them grow as a strong community. Knowing their responsibility towards the environment has enhanced their sense of self awareness.
ISSB has taken full responsibility of the safety and security of the students who joined the program. The program aimed at building skills such as team work and communication among students. By doing the community service program, the students felt connected to the foreign place and built a sense of responsibility towards the community and environment.