31 July 2022

Roar For Life Eco Festival marks Global Tiger Day 2022

Roar For Life Eco Festival marks Global Tiger Day 2022

31 July 2022, Kuala Lumpur: WWF-Malaysia in partnership with Maybank organised The Roar For Life Eco Festival to mark this year’s Global Tiger Day celebration. The two-day Eco Festival was open to the public on 30 and 31 July at the Piazza, Pavilion Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur and was much anticipated after two years of the Global Tiger Day celebrations being held virtually.

The Eco Festival kicked off on Saturday 30 July at 12 noon with family-friendly activities. Children aged 7 to 12 took part in a tiger-themed contest while youth and older family members joined a Kahoot Quiz on tiger conservation and an ‘Ecosystem Race’, all with WWF-Malaysia merchandise to be won.

The main event, on Sunday 31 July at 4:00pm, was graced by the Secretary General of Energy and Natural Resources Dato’ Hj. Rosli bin Isa. Also attending were key officials of the Royal Malaysia Police, Perhilitan, Perak State Parks Corporation and other key agencies representing the Malaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (MYCAT).

The national premiere of a recently completed mini-documentary on ‘Securing a Safe Haven for the Malayan Tiger’ was screened during the main event. Produced by WWF-Malaysia with the support of Maybank, the 20-minute documentary outlines how tiger conservation can be managed and measured against Conservation Assured Tiger Standards (CA|TS) to ensure sustainability.

Maybank Chairman, Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa said, “As a corporate organisation with a mission to humanise financial services, we are in a unique position to continue supporting biodiversity conservation efforts. As of today, we are very pleased to see visible outcomes under our tiger protection efforts which is also in line with a key focus area within our sustainability charter under Maybank’s M25 Plan. Our goal is to create value and make a positive, measurable and meaningful impact on society and the environment.”

“The Year of the Tiger in 2022 calls for greater learning and understanding of this majestic national icon. We need more than just a declaration of commitment, but immediate action and stronger collaboration with all agencies, conservation NGOs and Corporate Malaysia. More importantly, we need the support of the public to ensure the Malayan tiger’s survival as a species in the wild,” said WWF-Malaysia Chairman, Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar.

“As a non-governmental organisation, the conservation journey can be a tough road. WWF-Malaysia values our partnership with Maybank and the support of KeTSA, as well as PDRM, Perhilitan, Perak State Parks, TRAFFIC and CA|TS, among others. We would also like to thank all our donors who have helped make an impact, and our event partner Pavilion Bukit Jalil, for supporting the Roar For Life Eco Festival this year,” he added.

Event-goers had the opportunity to shop for eco-wares, and enjoyed seeing the Piazza decked out like a forest with creative paper sculptures of tigers in the midst of green paper foliage. All the sculptures on display are made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper.

Hosted by bubbly emcees Azura Zainal and Jeremy Teo, the Eco Festival culminated with performances by R&B, Pop and Neo soul singer and musician Clinton Jerome, prolific singer-songwriter Zee Avi and the iconic Blues Gang.

During the event, WWF-Malaysia launched 150 limited-edition tiger collectibles made entirely from sustainable and eco-friendly materials, each uniquely customised by Malaysian artists. Tiger-themed sweaters designed by popular Malaysian artist Katun were also launched. The collectibles and sweaters can now be purchased at pandashop.my with proceeds channelled to WWF-Malaysia’s conservation efforts.

Maybank Foundation has had a long standing partnership with WWF-Malaysia, providing support for conservation work and helping create public awareness through various programmes such as documentaries, educational events and art exhibitions to highlight the plight of the declining Malayan tiger population and the avenues available for the public to help stop illegal poaching activities. Maybank Foundation is Maybank’s regional corporate responsibility arm and focuses on six areas of community support namely Education, Community Empowerment, Healthy Living, Arts & Culture, Environmental Diversity & Disaster Relief.

For more information, visit: www.roarforlife2022.info