The Student Achievement Award is an award given to the most innovative student of all time

KOTA SAMARAHAN, 27 October: The Campaign for the Campus Independent Awards Dialogue Series at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) is a platform to encourage students and young researchers to explore research and innovation that can make an impact on society.

The Secretary of the Merdeka Awards Trust, Mufidah Mahmud said that universities play an important role as a space for knowledge sharing, exchange of ideas and cross-disciplinary cooperation to explore solutions to various societal challenges.

"Universities are an important space where science is developed, challenged, and shared.

"It brings together individuals from diverse disciplines and backgrounds, thereby creating opportunities for new perspectives, new collaborations, as well as innovative approaches to tackling complex challenges through research and exchange of ideas and universities can help bridge the gap between invention and application", he said.

He said this when addressing the programme at UNIMAS, on Tuesday.

He believes that research and innovation should not only produce new discoveries, but also translate them into practical applications that can benefit society.

Clearly, collaboration between different fields of expertise can open up new opportunities, expand perspectives and bridge the gap between scientific discoveries and their implementation in real life.

Meanwhile, the Connecting the Dots: From Curiosity to Impact themed session gives participants an opportunity to explore a variety of pathways that connect curiosity, research and innovation to meaningful impact.

The discussion featured panels from a wide range of areas of expertise, including infectious diseases, science policy and STEM talent development as well as high-energy astrophysics.

The panel involved is Dr. Timothy William, Hazami Habib and Professor of Medicine Dr. Nur Adlyka Ainul Anwar, while the session is conducted by Professor Dr. Tan Chong Eng as the moderator.

The launch of the campus edition also coincided with the 15th anniversary of the Merdeka Awards, which recognized Malaysians' contributions to advancing science, innovation and national development.

Mufidah said that he hoped the programme would encourage students and researchers to explore ideas beyond their respective fields of expertise, as well as foster collaboration capable of producing discoveries and innovations that benefit the country. -TVS