Di Sekitar Kita: Urban Biodiversity Challenge aims to identify and map habitats and biodiversity that we can find in Malaysian cities, especially those that may be “under the radar”, as well as unpacking preliminary insights into the norms, values, attitudes and perceptions of various stakeholders towards urban biodiversity.

Urban Biodiversity Challenge

Di Sekitar Kita: Urban Biodiversity Challenge (UBC) aim to identify and map the plant and animal biodiversity in our towns and cities. Read more about this citizen science project in conjuction with the annual City Nature Challenge (CNC).

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Urban Biodiversity Challenge (Analysis)

This section is about the insights that we learned from the Di Sekitar Kita: Urban Biodiversity Challenge. Using surveys and big data (over 21,000 iNaturalist observations!), we looked at how participants observed and perceived urban biodiversity.

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Your Story

Di Sekitar Kita: Your Story aims to unpack various stakeholders’ norms, values, attitudes and perception towards urban biodiversity in Malaysia, particularly in evaluating its potential as nature-based solutions. In June and July 2021, we engaged with 16 organisations and individuals using semi-structured interview and focus group discussion.

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Human Nature

This section consists of four photo essays about Urban Ecology, a fundamental question we will be addressing is: Why does nature matter? And more specifically, how does “Nature” matter to Malaysians in the city?
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Access To Nature

In July 2021, we worked with 60 students from Buku Jalanan Chow Kit (BJCK) to carry out a Community Mapping project to better understand challenges in navigating and exploring “sekitar kita.” We connected social issues with physical spaces for insights into community wellbeing, placemaking, and citizen science.

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Supporting organisations

The Di Sekitar Kita: Urban Biodiversity Challenge (UBC) was conducted from April until September 2021.

The UBC was conceptualized and executed by the UNDP Accelerator Lab Malaysia.
Implementation was coordinated by UBC consultant, Affan Nasaruddin with support from:

•  Siti Norasiah Abd. Kadir: Your Story, Urban Nature Around Us (Handbook), Habitat Kita Toolkit

•  Lai Khai Ling: graphic design, webmaster

•  Tuan Muhamad Izzuwan Bin Tuan Nawi and Tan Kai Ren: Urban Biodiversity Challenge
(project management)

•  Thary Gazi Goh: Urban Biodiversity Challenge
(big data and quantitative analysis)

•  Zeeda Fatimah Mohamad and Hashem Salarzadeh Jenatabadi: Urban Biodiversity Challenge
(analysis of the citizen science experience)

•  Teoh Jia Chern: Human Nature (ethnography) and Access to Nature (community mapping)

•  Aliah Syafiqah Abd Rahim: Your Story
(interviews, focus group)