On January 16 to 17, 2021, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) successfully held a two-day online joint event, involving the Regional Conference on Environmental Engineering (RCEnvE2020) and the Regional Congress on Membrane Technology 2020 (RCOM2020) under the theme “Enhancing Translational Research Towards Sustainable Environmental Technology.”
Nearly 200 participants attended the joint conference, including professionals and researchers worldwide in the field of membrane and environmental engineering to discuss current environmental issues in the ASEAN and beyond, providing valuable information on the latest research activities and findings, potentially leading to promising solutions. In addition, delegates from the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (EJUST) and Vietnam Japan University (VJU) were welcomed as observers to the joint conference. The event provided participants with the opportunity to explore future collaboration for network expansion while creating and strengthening the linkage with potential partners in the target regions of South Asia and Africa. This aligns with the current initiative of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific and the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP).
The event began with welcoming and opening remarks. After the speeches, the day continued with a plenary session, followed by five parallel presentations, including questions from the audience and rich discussions on the conference themes. The event ended with a montage video showing the most memorable moments. Parts of the event can be viewed at https://fb.watch/34aN_Fp7lR/
During these difficult times when the whole world is faced with the unprecedented spread of COVID-19, the event represents a collective effort by those involved to continue with planned programs and activities. Everyone at the JICA Project for AUN/SEED-Net would like to express their gratitude to all UTM organizing team members, especially the chair, Associate Professor Juhana Jaafar from the Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre (AMTEC), School of Chemical and Energy Engineering, UTM for their effort, devotion, and hard work which have contributed to help this fruitful event achieve its goals. Those involved with the JICA Project are also grateful to all Member Institutions and Japanese Supporting Universities for standing strong together.
