Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) through one of its co-curricular clubs, TEDxUTB in collaboration with TEDxBandarSeriBegawan, who is the organiser of the TED talks by its own local speakers hosted the first stimulating talk highlighting the theme of “Using Technology in a Globalised Workspace” today.
Present as the Guest of Honour was Yang Mulia Pengiran Haji Mohd Hasnan bin Pengiran Haji Ali Hassan, Permanent Secretary (Policy and Strategy), Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sport. Also present were Yang Mulia Professor Dr Dayang Hajah Zohrah binti Haji Sulaiman, Vice-Chancellor of UTB and Her Excellency Homeira Rigi Zirouki, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Brunei Darussalam.
The President of the TEDxUTB, also an undergraduate student at UTB, Yang Mulia Kevin Siu stated that the mission and the vision of the club are devoted to empower youth and UTB students in particular. He recalled that the journey started back in 2019 when the co-curricular club organised its TEDx event with the theme of “Youth Development”.
The TEDxBandarSeriBegawan Founder and Curator, also Assistant Professor at the Centre For Communication, Teaching and Learning (CCTL) at UTB, Yang Mulia Dr. Malai Zeiti binti Sheikh Abdul Hamid stated that the TEDxBandarSeriBegawan is founded as a platform for mentoring more young people and potential future leaders to discuss meaningful ideas, while developing intellectuality to be shared not just to the people of Brunei, but also globally.
She also said that the event such as TEDxBandarSeriBegawan provides endless opportunities for young people and similar enthusiasts to share ideas regardless of language, race, religion, and skin colour.
The event was initiated with a talk entitled “Digital Literacy” by Dr. Malai Zeiti binti Sheikh Abdul Hamid. The second talk entitled “Can Renewable Solar Energy Completely Replace Oil and Gas-Based Power Generation?” was delivered by Yang Mulia Dayang Hamidah Ismail, Managing Director and Founder of Quaezar Engineering and Construction. The event continued by Yang Mulia Dr Sheikh Lukman bin Sheikh Abdul Hamid, Acting Director of Lifelong Learning Centre, Higher Education, Ministry of Education with the talk “Education as a Means To Achieving Social Justice”. The fourth talk on “A Journey to Zero Unemployment Through E-Commerce Development” was presented by Yang Mulia Awang Haji Nasir bin Dato Latif, CEO of the Brunei Food Awards and the President of the Brunei Food and Beverage Alliance. The series of stimulating talk was concluded with “Can Brunei Be a Transition Leader in Electric Vehicle (EV) Technology” by Yang Mulia Pengiran Fairol Malek Faesal bin Pengiran Haji Marali, Founder of Mantuka Brunei.
The event was held at the Lecture Theatre 2, Library Complex, Universiti Teknologi Brunei.
To date, various initiatives have been planned under TEDxBandarSeriBegawan, while encouraging more talents as young as school children – at schools and beyond schools – to speak and to be able to share critical ideas in attempt to nurture a new generation of young leaders in Brunei.
TEDx is an international platform with a mission of spreading ideas through a series of short, concise talks, demonstrations and performances that are idea-focused, and cover an extensive range of subjects that will facilitate learning, inspiration, and wonder – and eventually spark conversations that matters.
