by Ts. Gs. Dr. Kamarul Rahim Bin Kamarudin
PAGOH – Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) students of the Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology (FAST) have successfully completed the “International Summer Course on Tropical Biodiversity and Sustainable Development: From Ecosystems to Repositories: Data-Driven Insights into Tropical Biodiversity”.
Hosted by the Faculty of Biology at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, this short-term, non-credit international outbound mobility program took place across two phases: a Pre-Course (Online Hybrid) session from July 6 to 9, 2026, and an Onsite Course in Yogyakarta from July 13 to 18, 2026.
The initiative aimed to broaden students’ global exposure to diverse cultures, emerging technologies, and data-driven scientific practices, while further strengthening two-way collaborative ties under the existing Memorandum of Understanding between UTHM and UGM.
Throughout the summer course, the students immersed themselves in a series of intensive academic and practical modules including expert lectures, hands-on workshops in bioinformatics and GIS spatial analysis, terrestrial and coastal/intertidal field sampling, DNA extraction, and Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) library preparation.
The participating students, Nur Qistina Binti Rosidi, Arisa Dania Binti Hamdan, Lim Jasmine, and Nurul Nabihah Binti Mat Idris, were coordinated by Ts. Gs. Dr. Kamarul Rahim Bin Kamarudin and accompanied by Dr. Aqilah Binti Awg Abdul Rahman, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology.
During the Biodiversity Summit, the participants presented group findings and discussed how to translate research data into policy recommendations.
By continuously fostering such global engagements, UTHM remains dedicated to equipping its students with interdisciplinary knowledge, soft skills, communication proficiency, and cross-cultural competencies essential for addressing complex global challenges in biodiversity conservation, thereby enhancing UTHM’s standing as a globally recognized institution
