Planners

I was elected the Honorary Secretary for the Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP) during the AGM last Saturday. MIP is the umbrella body for the town planners in Malaysia. While safeguarding the interest of members is our priority, protecting the interest of community becomes our top concerns. The Institute is revisiting these priorities.

Nowadays, whenever a disaster happened, people will point the fingers to town planners. For example, landslide in Ulu Kelang, flooding in city centre of Kuala Lumpur, traffic congestion, high rise construction etc. While undoubtedly planners play an important role in urban development, the negative impacts of development such as inefficiency of services, lack of facilities, incompatible of activities are contributing by multiple factors. These include the capacity problem such as provision of infrastructure and competency, cooperation of the users, coordination amongst stakeholders etc. Thereby, blaming planners alone for cities failure is uncalled for.

Having said this, planners have crucial role, at least to minimise these failures. Realising this, MIP organised the workshop to chart the future road map for the Institute and Planners a day prior to the AGM. It was acknowledged that planning is facing many key challenges due to globalisation and liberalisation, climate change, rapid urbanisation process and demographic change. Planners have no choice, but to embrace the challenges with the acquisition of new skills and knowledge. Many of the planners agreed that knowledge and competency are 2 main challenges for the planners to improve their skills and integrity. For example, we have to be good in responding to the market demand, in solving multiple issues, in translating the aspirations of the people into plans, in planning with economic sense, keeping abreast on other dimensions of development and mediating the space.

The Planners have also called upon the Institute to play a crucial role in uniting the planning fraternity by getting everyone working together. In order to make ourselves known to the community, MIP should also engage the communities and other stakeholders more often so that we are seen to be People-Oriented and Community-First or else MIP will never have the chance to establish itself in the heart and mind of the people. This will ultimately helping the Institute to promote the profession as well as the MIP.

While being elected as the Honorary Secretary is an honour, the responsibility is equally honourable. I am determined to work hard contributing to the image enhancement for the Institute and also the profession.

Effective Media Conference Organising

Media conference is an excellent opportunity to communicate with the media and to market sustainable initiatives to the stakeholders at large. While press coverage opportunity is there to grab, it is of no help if proper planning on organizing a media conference is not forthcoming. Throughout my years of experience in attending media conference either for event announcement or held after an event, media although in full attendance is selective in reporting the happenings. At times, a proper event is becoming a by-product of other side events. For example, write up on a tree planting event might be mentioned in passing with heading focusing on the public objection for open space encroachment as the news piece. Hence, marketing the media conference and getting attention is important and doing it right and effectively is an art of communication.

So, the question is how to go about it? There are 9 basic steps, namely first setting the right time and venue, secondly preparing the press kit with precise and helpful information, thirdly to choose a firm and knowledgeable chairman or perhaps the one with charisma, fourthly to anticipate problems and preempt an answer, if possible. This followed with media invitation in which right personnel with good credentials should be targeted. Sixthly get the chairman to make a precise and forceful opening statement during the media conference as this will interest the audience to follow through. Please be reminded too to be assertive with the journalists as effective two ways communication is pre-requisite for a lively conference. Also be prepared for further interviews and finally close the conference at appropriate time, no necessary to prolong the conference for unnecessary delay.

For observing the above, treating every media conference organizing a new challenge is a way forward. MBPJ as the front line authority facing with the public has to leverage on opportunity provided by media conference to communicate well with the public so that information is disseminated and corresponded effectively, rightly and timely. Perhaps in future media conference organizing with more professionalism is required or else we might be wasting our effort in organising a fruitful less media conference continually .

Change

Change is inevitable. Change is unavoidable. Change is for either better or worse.

With many stakeholders talk about Local Agenda 21 since middle of year 2008, I have much hope that changes are forthcoming.

Changes for new approaches in local governance, changes for smarter partnership, changes for more community sustainable initiatives took place on the ground, changes for greater transparency and accountability, changes for having a better quality of life and environment. After a year I saw the light albeit a bright one.

The most important, yet the most difficult change is people's mind set. I saw it remained unchanged, or if yes too little. Changes can only be done if people have no choice but to change for survival or force to. People is too complacent and resist for changes as the uncertainty might disrupt their normal way of life or working. Thereby, to institute a change, perhaps radical actions have to be taken or else the progressive little changes might have to reverse back after a while. For an organisation with many liabilities and branding problem, radical changes are the only solution to wake people up.

It is a matter of choice for the leadership. An effective leader with gut and vision will definitely do this. The line of separation between the leader and manager is always the leadership quality. A Leader embraces changes without fear and favour.

I presume we have a lot to learn.

MASTER for LA21

Anyone aspires to effectively implement the Local Agenda 21 has to acquire the MASTER skill. MASTER means

1. Meeting the stakeholders. Efforts to identify and engage relevant people is important as human is the main contributing factor towards the success of sustainable development programmes.
2. Asking questions in which analysing the SWOT of stakeholders and issues will ensure that strategic actions taken are of bottom line basis. Followed by searching for pragmatic and workable solutions together with the stakeholders. Strategic actions encompass the programs, implementers, time frame, indicators and allocation of resources should be in place.
3. Selling the strategic plan is contributing to the success of Local Agenda 21. Communicating and marketing actions or programmes that flavour to the desire of target groups will ensure that planned actions have better chances for implementation. Thereby, creative selling and marketing via innovative communication, publicity, promotion and marketing strategies are essential.
4. Tackle objections, if any from other stakeholders. No plan is perfect and no plan is agreeable to everyone. LA 21 process tends to have objections from quarters who are not happy. For implementation to cover wider groups of people and area, it is good to have marketing and communication strategies to get rid, if not to minimise the chances of objections.
5. Empower the stakeholders especially the key personnel to act proactively. At time supports in the form of resources can be of help to motivate stakeholders to implement initiatives closer to their heart.
6. Reward the outstanding initiatives and leaders with excellent performance. Never stingy of recognising and reward the stakeholders appropriately who have helped in the sustainable development process, big or small. If a person who have done well but not to be rewarded, it is tantamount to marginalisation and biasness. Once, this perception is formed, it is killing the spirit of Local Agenda 21.

To me, if a Local Agenda 21 Officer or those in the sustainable development fraternity is equipped with MASTER skill, the prospect for the effective implementation of Local Agenda 21 is brighter. Perhaps it is time to send them for MASTER course now.

Catch 22@PJ: Doing the right thing wrongly

I was informed recently that the water quality of Bukt Gasing dropped from Standard II A or B to Standard III or IV. It was suspected that the water quality deterioration was due to the drain construction at the hill top. While i understood that the drain was constructed to facilitate better run off and water flow from within the hill and residential area, the little good gesture has affected the natural water system of Bukit Gasing. It is a clear showcase of doing the right thing wrongly. Very often we want to do good but do not know how to go about it, and even we have done it, it might be with the wrong tool or method.

Perhaps the capacity of MBPJ staff on environmental sustainability can be further improved. It is important to get people to understand that engineering solutions might be helpful in solving the urban infrastructure and human problem, it might however affect the natural environmental quality. We have to weight and appreciate the importance of nature to us. We have to extra careful when dealing with the environment. A decision that we all think is logical and simple might be haphazard to the environment, both short and long term. We might not have the opportunity to witness the impact of our decision, but if we do we might be regretted for what we have done unintentionally. For example, cutting down a tree with 0.8 metre diameter for road expansion purpose although there is other option, conveniently taking the drain and river as waste carrier, filling up the retention pond for development purpose, letting the running pipe to have free flow, procuring non recyclable stationary, encouraging the use of plastic bags and etc.

We are in the Catch 22 situation now. Unless people understand the environment and start evaluating their decisions based on sustainability performance, we will continue disturbing the environment as we do now. We have to embark on environmental education to build up people's awareness, knowledge, attitude and skill or else "NO CHANGE", business as usual.

Goes Green

The buzz word for businesses nowadays is to go green. Every business aspires CSR friendly is promoting GREEN, either through action or reflected from the corporate vision statement. However, at times CSR initiative turns out to be another PR exercise. What went wrong? It is simply due to capacity problem.

It is a challenge to differentiate the Not So Green (PR exercise), Normal Green (CSR initiative) or Very Green (A culture) of an establishment. It has no standard guidance as well. It is very much up to the public perception of what establishment has done. Public has own value judgement on the Green Performance of an establishment, and with better information and knowledge, the criteria for judgement is getting higher and higher now. Hence, the terminology of Goes Green is also subjected to stringent evaluation.

The common saying of "Being green can be profitable" is vindicated with some success stories. Establishments like The Body Shop, Ikea, The Natural Conservatory, Ecofuture have shown that money making is possible even the green operations are applied.

So, the question is how and where to start especially for the SMEs? We can buy energy efficiency products, use green perishables, save water when possible, reduce paper and stationery usage, reduce resources consumption in every possible way and if not possible then to recycle every recyclable items, procure reused items, use energy saving appliances, unplug unnecessary electronics, commuting emissions, reduce travelling and using more ICT assisted business tools, plan out logistics and travelling plan and more importantly getting the involvement of the employees and bosses. Total participation and value believe up hold by everyone is critical success factor.

It is important to at least started with the above or else the slogan of Goes Green will remain as a lip service. This is the major internal enemy of sustainable development movement. While it is good to have many businesses openly calling for going green, it is also danger of having many NATO (No Action Talk Only) around.

April Fool

I must be a fool to believe that...

• Sustainable development is achievable
• Smart partnership is attainable
• Equality is practical
• Participatory planning is workable
• Social cohesion is visible
• Environmental sustainability is reachable

Without

• Full understanding and shared vision about sustainable development
• Genuine political and management will
• Willingness to share
• Sincerity and respectful
• High tolerance as well as give and take attitude
• Full commitment towards Mother Nature

We might come across with people branding the recyclers as "rubbish man", the volunteer as people trying to "botek" the authority or taking advantage, the philanthropies as people with hidden motives, the outspoken champion for sustainable environment as hypocrite, the constant critics as people anti establishment. While there are people tend to do something with their prioritised interest, it is not ethical to put everyone in the same shore. I believe we have many people out there prepare to serve and to contribute wholeheartedly and with commitment. It is time to mobilise everyone after the Earth Hour, and not to fool around about our environment after the Day.

I do not mind to be a fool if the above are achieved. Happy April Fool.