Making a Difference the SCOT Way

What course are you taking in UBD? What are your future plans?

I am a 2nd year FBEPS student majoring in Business Administration; and one of my aspirations is to eradicate poverty in Brunei. To realise this vision, my partner, Syazwani Yusof and I are establishing a social business known as SocietyCare – a type of business that is intended to train and equip the capable underprivileged community in Negara Brunei Darussalam with entrepreneurial skills and micro-loans. Currently we are in the process of developing the framework and looking for companies and government agencies to kick-start this business. Turning this into a reality will provide another platform for entrepreneurship under SCOT.

What is SCOT and what impact does it have on the community?

SCOT was established in May 2011 as the Student Community Outreach Team of UBD. It is now known as the Society for Community Outreach and Training or SCOT. Its purpose is to act as a catalyst for sustainable poverty alleviation and to assist the underprivileged through various projects and activities. In the past, SCOT had conducted a charity drive in Tutong which involved visiting five houses per week over four weeks during the month of Ramadhan and donating solar lights. In other places, we had also conducted a recyclables-for-commodity exchange project where the community was encouraged to trade in recyclable materials for rice. In this project, each traded recyclable material would be compensated with 1.5 kg of rice. By far, more than 3800 kg of recyclables have been collected.

Why choose SCOT?

I initiated Green Xchange 3 in July 2012 as a project manager; and as cliché as it may sound, joining SCOT is probably the best thing that ever happened to me. It opened my eyes to new perspectives and made me aware of poverty issues in Brunei Darussalam that was previously invisible to me. Having that in mind, my SCOT teammates and I are very eager to engage our community to take part and work hand in hand to solve this problem. Working with people of different academic backgrounds, too, is one of the most invaluable experiences for me. It is interesting how these people come and sit together to generate ideas, troubleshoot and make things work. In short, we are offering our blood, sweat and tears to turn the vision into a feasible mission.

How do you think the SCOT experience will help you for your future career?

I am a very driven person. I work for what I want and I never give up. Before I joined SCOT, my ambition was to be a millionaire. However, now all I can think of are the faces of those people who are suffering due to poverty. Since then I decided to be a social entrepreneur like Muhammad Yunus, and will devote my life to it as long as I can. SCOT has made me realise my vision in life and gave me the platform to achieve it via leadership, interpersonal and communication skills.

What are your tips or advice for those interested in Community Outreach?

Volunteering is an amazing opportunity for anyone who wants to make a difference, find aspirations and be the inspiration. To me, it certainly refines my passions in life. Whenever the opportunities are made available, you should go overseas, join youth conferences and build network with people of different nationalities.

 

 


Source: Borneo Bulletin
Author: Features, Borneo Bulletin
Published Date: 19 October 2012

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