Lai Cheng

KAMPUNG GOMBAK UTARA The Thriving Community Garden of Suburban Residents The sound of water splashing through rocks and pebbles in the pristine river at Batu 9, north of Gombak, and the greenery that adorns the fringe of the river, offer a spectacular view to passers-by. Kampung Gombak Utara is about 10 kilometres to the northeast of Kuala Lumpur. The Kebun Komuniti Gombak Utara (KKGU), the...

Bringing together the community and committing them to good ecological practices through a community garden enhances the environment by leaps and bounds and makes the world a better place to dwell in. At the same time, it instils a sense of responsibility and fosters unity and solidarity among the members. Community gardens in Tanjung Bungah, Penang and Gombak, Selangor, set a perfect example of...

SANGGA SINAYAH: Integrating the Environment and Agriculture into the Lives of Students For the past decade, former Head Master, Sangga Sinnayah has been receiving praise and accolades for his work in introducing agroecological concepts, instilling environmental awareness and practising organic farming in the schools he taught. Although environmental education is progressively taking root in the...

Empowering the Differently Abled with Agriculture Most of the learning centres meant for the differently abled provide skills training for their inmates. However, the welfare centre for the differently abled (Persatuan Kebajikan Kanak-Kanak Kurang Upaya) at Jalan USJ 18/7, Subang Jaya, Selangor, has gone one step further to equip them with agricultural knowledge. The centre firmly believes it is...

CAP's NATURAL FARMING TRAINING for the Students of MYSKILLS FOUNDATION (Part 3) Incorporating agroecology into all educational institutions would be one effective way for the next generation to continuously carry the seeds of transformation. Educational institutions provide space and time for expanding environmental initiatives. A deeper understanding of the ecological facts, challenges, and the...

MYSKILLS FOUNDATION: What the Students Learn (Part 2) In MySkills Foundation, students learn the following: 1. Basics of livestock farming. Vakesh Rao not only learned to rear cows but also to build the cow shed. He also learned to grow napier grass, which is a popular fodder for cows due to the high nitrogen content of the grass. “In the beginning, I felt meaningless with all these...

MYSKILLS FOUNDATION is Sowing the Seeds for Transformation (Part 1) It has become a norm for educational institutions to conduct environmental activities in order to create awareness about the environment among their students. However, in most instances, the intention is to fulfil the requirements of the syllabus of the institution rather than be an effective, long-term activity to improve the...

The following is the message by CAP President Mohideen Abdul Kader in the preface of the new CAP book, “Agroecology for All: Initiatives in Malaysia”: AGROECOLOGY has been an intrinsic part of our lives ever since the human race started cultivating its own food. The term agroecology has been in use since the 1920s when scientists first applied ecological principles to agriculture,...