Wisdom of the Past, Quest for the Future

Wisdom of the Past, Quest for the Future

That was the theme for this year’s Merdeka Meeting, held in Melaka on 18 March 2019.

The 2019 Meeting was officiated by Deputy Minister of MESTECC, YB Madam Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis. Key persons during this Meeting were made up of Merdeka Laureates as well as two guest experts from the industry.

A Keynote Lecture was delivered by ASM Fellow and 2014 Merdeka Laureate Professor Datuk Dr Ahmad Fauzi Ismail FASc. He expressed his dissatisfaction at the current trajectory of Malaysia’s STI development compared to other developed nations. He believes utilising STI as a tool in creating wealth creation and promoting societal well-being in order to address challenges and issue correct interventions for Malaysia to progress as a developed nation.

A roundtable dialogue followed, featuring three Merdeka Laureates and two expert guests from the industry. The five panellists were moderated by Associate Professor Dr Zaiton Abdul Majid, ASM Associate and Deputy Dean (Research, Innovation, Development & Alumni) at the Faculty of Science, University Teknologi Malaysia.

During this roundtable dialogue, the panellists have identified low level of R&D, inadequate pool of scientists, engineers, researchers and technologists at the cutting edge of innovation and scientific development were key weaknesses of the Malaysian economy.

These shortcomings were further compounded by a dearth of collaborative networks that are coordinated by industry-led trusted neutral entities, as well as weakly-connected actors and industry-related knowledge dissemination channels.

The lack of coordination and centralised management have managed to dilute efforts of creating a successful innovation ecosystem.

Panellists dished out their experience and expertise from as academia and industry players to discuss how a fortified strategic and synergised partnership can be combined with a sound STI ecosystem to invigorate the national advancement of STI. The panellists also cited several national STI achievements as the success models that can be replicated across sectors.

Following the roundtable dialogue, participants were divided into three groups to attend three separate Masterclasses. These Masterclasses featured two experts each, who will be open to mingle with the participants, to allow them to be inspired by their success stories.

Participants were also able to ask a multitude of questions related to the research background of the Laureates and guest experts, find out more about their scientific achievements, as well as how they overcame challenges, motivation and find their way forward.

Rounding up the Merdeka Meeting, a Merdeka Lecture was delivered by the 2015 Merdeka Laureate, Academician Emeritus Professor Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Dr Zakri Abdul Hamid FASc. His lecture titled Quest for the Future: Positioning Malaysia in a Scientifically-globalised World.

According to Tan Sri Zakri, climate change and digitalisation of daily life are two big factors that are obvious recent and future concerns to the global scientific community to adapt and evolve through the challenges and implications.

Continuing his lecture, Tan Sri Zakri believes that science can be harnessed to address these factors to create a comprehensive plan to overcome these challenges. Hence, a large-scale science infrastructure and cooperation to propel globalised science initiatives, transcending geographic, political and cultural boundaries. Malaysia should leverage on this opportunity of cooperation by strengthening its roles and abilities in science, to favourably place itself in any advantageous position for collaboration and networking.

The 2019 Merdeka Meeting was the second of its kind, with the inaugural Meeting held in 2017. The Merdeka Meeting is a collaboration between ASM Southern Chapter and the Merdeka Award Secretariat, providing a platform for Merdeka Laureates and Malaysian young scientists to foster scientific exchange.

The Meetings were also inspired by the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, where it allows Malaysian young scientists to build mentor-mentee relationship with the Merdeka Laureates, hence facilitating knowledge transfer as well as building capacity for them to communicate science to the public.