The Journey of Transformation Toward a Sustainable UNIMAS

In the year 2020, we embarked on yet another chapter of transformation—this time, a change in name and purpose that would redefine our role in championing sustainability at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). Within less than a year, the centre was rebranded as University Sustainability Centre (USC), replacing its former identity as the UNIMAS Community Sustainability Centre. Though our core responsibilities remained, our mission expanded—to become a driving force behind the university’s holistic sustainability agenda, aligned with the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Our commitment was clear: every community programme we offered, no matter how modest the budget, had to make a meaningful impact. The initiatives introduced by the Vice Chancellor were not only continued but strengthened, with sustainability-focused programmes that echoed UNIMAS’s strategic direction for 2021–2025. We deepened our connections—with local communities, government agencies, and industries—through collaborative efforts that brought real change.

But our story began much earlier.

Back in February 2015, the seeds of this journey were planted with the appointment of the Special Advisor to the Vice Chancellor for Industry and Community Engagement (KIKOM). Two divisions were born: the Industry Engagement Division and the Community Engagement Division, both designed to energize UNIMAS’s mobility agenda with external partners. Just a year later, these divisions merged into the Industry Engagement and Community Transformation Division, which later evolved into UCTC UNIMAS following the launch of the national NBOS programme.

In 2019, during the Vice Chancellor’s Address, this division was elevated to a full-fledged centre—the Community Sustainability Centre. And today, it stands as the University Sustainability Centre (USC), carrying the responsibility of actively strengthening ties with industry and community, in alignment with the United Nations SDGs.