“Building a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity” Lecture and Workshop 2026

By Ainul Amanie

GOMBAK, 4 November 2026: The launching ceremony of ‘Building a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity’ 2026 – Lecture and Workshop or SEED 2.0, organised by the Political Science Students’ Association (POSSA) IIUM, in collaboration with the Southeast Asia Research Centre for Humanities (SEARCH), The embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Malaysia, and the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). The event took place at the Multipurpose Hall of the Kulliyyah of Information and Technology (KICT) IIUM.

“This event is a result of China and Malaysia’s steadfast partnership in building a committed cooperation among the two nations. A shared hope, that this event is a symbol of carrying forward the cooperation between the 2 countries, in sectors of development, technological advancement and prosperity in the region and the whole world”, said Mr Guo Chentao, Minister of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Malaysia.

Group photo of the Guests of Honour.

In attendance of this eventful collaboration, was the Minister of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Malaysia, Mr. Guo Chentao, the Rector of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Prof. Emeritus Dato’ Sri Dr. Osman Bin Bakar, CEO of the Southeast Asia Research Centre for Humanities, Mr. Neo Chee Hua, Dean of the AbdulHamid AbuSulayman Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences (AHAS KIRKHS), Prof. Dr. Hafiz Bin Zakariya, the Deputy Dean of Academic and Internationalisation AHAS KIRKHS, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rohaiza Rokis, the Deputy Dean of Postgraduate, Research and Innovation AHAS KIRKHS, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar, the Deputy Dean of Student Development and Community Engagement AHAS KIRKHS, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tengku Siti Aisha Tengku Azzman and students from the department of Political Science and Madani Studies IIUM, and the IIUM Community.

The CEO of the Southeast Asia Research Centre for Humanities, Mr Neo Chee Hua, in his speech, expresses his heartfelt gratitude to IIUM, the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China and POSSA IIUM for collaborating with SEARCH for this event. He describes SEED 2.0 as a platform that empowers young people with industrial links, and real life experiences, allowing room for a future ready generation among the youth, with this event taking place by encouraging the youth to think on innovations, skills and cross-cultural understanding. With important skills and work force developments, socially responsible youth leaders, can turn ideas into actions.

In his lecture, the Rector of IIUM, Prof. Emeritus Dato’ Sri Dr. Osman Bin Bakar, addresses that one of the earliest values shared among human beings is humanity or humanism itself, quoting Confucius, an early Chinese philosopher and thinker, it is discussed ‘that before anything else, we are just human beings, the rest of the experience are just consequences of that’. He mentions how this collaboration is timely, where the world is experiencing various conflicts at the moment, being together in this time of troubles, with differences in civilisations, religion and culture, we can still unite and gather through similar values, like seeking knowledge and participating in intercultural discourse or dialogues.

He also explains that the key to solving many problems in human society, is to avoid being ignorant, as being ignorant leads to further misunderstandings and hate among each other. Discussions on a ‘Shared Future’ must begin at an early age, to encourage mutual understanding from a young age.

In frame: Guests of Honour having a discussion.

“Education is much more than obtaining a degree, academic excellence comes by with developing wisdom – the Prophet Muhammad pbuh & Confucius both convey that message in their education and knowledge that is passed down., Tawhidic Epistemology is an epi-centre of the inter-connectedness between knowledge. Intellectual, spiritual developments go hand in hand, leading to a comprehensive ummatic excellence”. Prof Emeritus Dato’ Sri Dr. Osman Bin Bakar, at his opening remarks and lecture.

In an interview with the Programme Manager, he highlights the main objective of this programme is to give exposure to students to economic and political partnerships, through workshops and activities, with this collaboration with SEARCH and IIUM, POSSA as a co-organiser, aims to lead the students towards more collaborations with organisations outside campus. ‘With Malaysia and China already having a long-term relationship, this particular programme exhibits how the partnership affects and influences even students at the university level”, says Amer Hakim Bin Izamer, Programme Manager of “Building a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity” Lecture and Workshop 2026, Political Science Students Association (POSSA) IIUM. He hopes that POSSA IIUM will be able to continue this meaningful collaboration with SEARCH and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China towards more interactive learning experiences for IIUM students outside the classroom.

“Participants of Today, Leaders of Tomorrow”, Mr Neo Chee Hua, CEO of the Southeast Asia Research Centre for Humanities (SEARCH). ***