By Sarah Rashdi
GOMBAK, 12 July 2020 – The Takrim Day 2020 held last Thursday (9 July) at IIUM Cultural Centre (ICC) was memorable not only because it was held during the recovery period of the movement control order (RMCO) at a time we are still facing the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was a proud occasion to celebrate the university’s achievement for being recognised as the Sustainability Institution of the Year on winning the International Green Gown Awards 2020 recently.
The International Green Gown Awards is supported by UN Environment in partnership with The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU), L’Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), International Association of Universities (IAU) and Higher Education Sustainability Initiative.
“It takes a leader to take us beyond the world”
The event, graced by the presence of IIUM Rector, Prof. Emeritus Tan Sri Dato’ Dzulkifli Abdul Razak also witnessed the presence of the Third Rector, Prof. Emeritus Tan Sri Dr. Mohd Kamal Hassan as well as the Fourth Rector, Prof. Dato’ Sri Dr. Syed Arabi Syed Abdullah Idid, which gave additional meaning to the event.
The Third Rector of IIUM, Prof. Emeritus Tan Sri Dr. Mohd Kamal Hassan, who was given the honour to share his thought and words of wisdom, said, “This is one of the happiest days of my life in IIUM. After 37 years, we are now on top of the earth, brought by the forward looking futuristic leader, the current Rector of IIUM and his great team. It takes a leader to take us beyond the world and we have gone beyond the earth.”
expressing his words of wisdom
Meanwhile, the Fourth Rector of IIUM, Prof. Dato’ Sri Dr. Syed Arabi Syed Abdullah Idid also expressed his thought on this meaningful event, saying, “It is something good for us to have this award by the United Nations which shows that we are now going up and up. We have yet to establish another milestone that shows Islamic university is a universal university as well.”
The Takrim Day 2020 was also a meaningful occasion to record the university’s appreciations towards more than 100 staff and members of the IIUM community for their contributions to the university’s achievement in sustainability recognition.
Along with winning the International Green Gown Awards 2020, a special recognition was given to honour the people behind the success story of winning the Sustainability Institution of the Year award. They are Dato’ Hj. Wan Mohd Hilmi Wan Kamal, Executive Director, Development Division; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zainal Abidin bin Sanusi, Director of Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity; and Dr. Muhammad Faris Abdullah, Director of the Office for Strategy and Institutional Change (OSIC).
A special recognition was also given the finalist for Benefitting Society category award, Prof. Ar. Dr. Abdul Razak Sapian, the Dean of Kulliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design (KAED). The Rector took this opportunity to express his gratitude to all parties involved in making IIUM the best university in sustainable development around the world.
Other recipients for Special Recognition
The following were accorded special recognition for their contributions:
- Peninsular Medical Sdn. Bhd.
- Malaysia 1200 IIUM Inter-Campus Ultra-Distance Cycling
- RCE Greater Gombak
- IIUM front liners
The full recording of Takrim Day 2020 can be viewed on official IIUM YouTube channel. ***