SURABAYA, 4th August – Twenty UTM students, accompanied by a lecturer, participated in the 9th Joint Workshop of Global Engineers in Asia 2023 (JWGEA 2023) at Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember in Surabaya, Indonesia from August 2nd to August 4th, 2023.
This annual workshop, led by a consortium of four universities including Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Indonesia; Ritsumeikan University (RU), Japan; Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Malaysia; and the King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT), Thailand, alongside the guest participation of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Malaysia, provided a unique platform for young minds to connect, expand their networks, and refine their research skills.
This 3-day workshop comprised four distinct sessions. The initial session revolved around the theme “Living to 100 Years Old: A Gift or a Curse?” drawing insights from the participants’ diverse perspectives on preparation and readiness for this milestone.
The subsequent workshop, led by Dr. Teema Lenagarun from KMUTT, Thailand, delved into strategies for coping with life’s competitions, exploring happiness factors in Asia and their correlation with living expenses across three countries: Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia.
At the end of these two sessions, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Maria Anityasari, Director of the International Office of ITS, concluded the session by highlighting how important relationships, financial stability, and overall well-being are for a long life.
Next, Dr. Sri Fatmawati from ITS and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Diew Koolpiruck from KMUTT led a pivotal session focusing on the societal and human contributions of research, demonstrating the impact of their work on local communities.
Dr. Sri Fatmawati’s research brought together locals to understand the scientific reasons behind “Jamu,” while Dr. Koolpiruck’s insights into embedding community service within university curricula highlighted the importance of structured initiatives that benefit both students and the university itself.
The community service for humanity resulting from research should be an ongoing project, as it offers many positive impacts on society and allows us to witness results within the community.
The final session, led by Dr. Kartika Nuswantara, emphasized the role of English language proficiency in cross-cultural understanding. It addressed the global significance of English and the varied approaches employed by different countries to promote language acquisition.
The most important takeaway from this session was that reading is a crucial skill that needs to be mastered for English proficiency, enhancing one’s ability to articulate ideas effectively in speech and writing.
Aligned with the objective of enhancing networking and research exchange, students showcased their research in science and engineering during the parallel sessions. This enriching segment facilitated networking and knowledge sharing.
These presentation sessions truly exemplified the essence of JWGEA 2023, as they helped participants connect and exchange ideas on recent research across various fields, enhance their presentation skills based on feedback from the reviewers, and engage in discussions about new ideas.
Three presenters from UTM, namely Athirah Zulkarnain, Kek Hong Yee, and Lee Jia Min, won the best research presentation awards.
The Joint Workshop of Global Engineers in Asia 2023 (JWGEA 2023) was indeed a hub for learning and idea exchange. From preparing for a long life to finding happiness, sharing research, and improving language skills, participants departed with a deeper understanding and new connections.
This workshop not only serves as a stepping stone for future innovations in engineering, science, and research but also as a platform for promoting cultural diversity. The fruitful collaboration resulting from the joint workshop is beneficial for the participants and the university for current and future development.
Since 2014, JWGEA has been hosted by UTM (2014), KMUTT (2015), ITS (2016), RU (2017, 2018), and ITS (2019). In 2018, St. Petersburg Electronical University (ETU), St. Petersburg, Russia, also joined JWGEA and hosted it virtually. Last year (2022), JWGEA was hosted by KMUTT, also virtually.
Each university normally sends a delegation of two to three academic staff and around ten graduate students from various disciplines (engineering, science & technology, built environment, etc.).
More about JWGEA:
Find out more about JWGEA from the international office of the respective institution. For UTM, contact UTM International, Global Education unit at e-mail: globaleducation@utm.my.
Watch out for the Call of Applications for JWGEA around March-April each year on the UTM Mobility Program Facebook page and UTM International Website: http://www.utm.my/international/iip/.
By: Athirah Zulkarnain, Rozana Alik, Dr. Wong Keng Yinn and Prof. Dr. Nor Haniza Sarmin.