KUALA LUMPUR: A three -day congress on a sustainable future kicks off today at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here.
Organised by Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP), the World Engineering, Science and Technology Congress (ESTCON2016) is the only event that provides a platform for industry, academia, government and the public to take part in global business roundtables that cover a wide range of topics.
In conjunction with the event, UTP planted 100 trees in its Seri Iskandar campus in efforts to reduce the carbon footprint.
Its vice-chancellor, Datuk Dr Abdul Rahim Hashim, said carbon dioxide emission was one of the major contributors to climate change.
“The trees we planted will contribute in a small manner to reduce carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases’ emissions. They will help to safeguard biodiversity and ecology for future generations and, thus, create a more sustainable future.”
Sponsored by UTP staff and the community, each tree cost RM300.
Previous editions of the congress saw more than 600 trees planted in the campus, including durian, rambutan, mangosteen and guava during ESTCON2010, 2012 and 2014.
The trees can capture 102,773kg incarbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to a passenger travelling 30 round-trip flights from Kuala Lumpur to Heathrow, the United Kingdom.
Organised with support from the Higher Education Ministry, Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry and Yayasan UTP, ESTCON2016 carries the theme “Engineering, Science, Technology and Humanities: Convergence for a Sustainable Future”.
The theme stresses the bridging of the community of experts in research and innovation to sustain knowledge for the betterment of society.
Topics range from leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship and finance to technical topics of exploration, nanotechnology, greencomputing, environmental and water resource engineering, infrastructure, geotechnology and transportation engineering.
Petronas president and group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin and Singapore’s Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology executive director Professor Jackie Y. Ying are scheduled to deliver keynote addresses during the event’s opening ceremony.
Pitching sessions will allow innovators and inventors to pitch their new technologies and inventions to potential investors, opening up the possibility of the private sector to discover the latest innovations.
They are an avenue for researchers to interact and network with industry players for potential commercialisation opportunities.
ESTCON2016 is being held at Level 3, Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here until Wednesday from 8am to 6pm.