Good homes not just for the rich

The Star

3 days ago

Proud moment: Chan receiving the valedictorian award from UCSI chancellor Tunku Zain Al-'Abidin.
A PASSIONATE advocate for community architecture, sustainability and grassroots impact, Joanne Chan Wen Hui is on a mission to make life better for the marginalised.
Addressing the Class of 2025 as valedictorian at UCSI University's first convocation ceremony of the year, Chan spoke about her mission to serve underprivileged rural communities through architecture.
These families often have to live in environments that lack dignity and are poorly designed because they can't afford better, more comfortable spaces, she said.
Good design should not be a luxury reserved only for the rich, she said, when delivering her speech at the varsity in Kuala Lumpur on May 10.
That belief guided her tertiary education journey as she actively volunteered and contributed to various causes – serving people, communities and even animals over the past three and a half years at UCSI.
In her first semester, Chan joined COLLAB, a student-led initiative advocating for architecture's civic responsibility. Through COLLAB, she helped build a kindergarten for refugee children.
'The children wanted to learn so badly despite their underprivileged circumstances. Seeing them affirmed my desire to use architecture to drive meaningful change for those in need,' she said.
Since then, the aspiring architect has spent every semester break on COLLAB projects, including building affordable homes in remote highlands. She also collaborated with Paw's Eden, a local NGO and animal shelter housing over 200 stray cats and dogs.
Through crowdfunding, she and her team raised over RM11,000 to customise wheelchairs for 20 mobility-impaired dogs. They also built a bamboo hut and improved the shelter's outdoor playground.
Apart from dedicating herself to volunteer work, Chan also initiated the Study Buddy system to foster peer mentorship, cross-year collaboration and student-led workshops. She also served as president of Makelab, UCSI's architecture student society.
'My experiences as a student affirmed what I have always believed – that everyone deserves access to thoughtful, inclusive spaces. It is a necessity, not a privilege.'
Driven by this ethos, Chan turned down higher-paying offers to work as an assistant architect at a local startup focused on sustainable and socially conscious design.
She plans to pursue her master's degree, sit for the Lembaga Arkitek Malaysia III Examination and eventually establish her own firm to revitalise rural and educational spaces through culturally sensitive, sustainable design.
Moved by Chan's choices and desire to make a change, UCSI vice-chancellor and president Emerita Prof Datuk Dr Siti Hamisah Tapsir said, 'I'm proud to share that today, she is doing the work she believes in.'
The university's 38th convocation ceremony also marked the installation of Tunku Zain Al-'Abidin Tuanku Muhriz as UCSI's second chancellor, following his tenure as pro-chancellor since 2021.
The ceremony celebrated the achievements of 898 graduates in the presence of UCSI University council chairman and founder Datuk Peter Ng and UCSI Healthcare Group chairman Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.