Latest news with #577
The Star
2 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Tmn Impian Emas folk use recycling revenue for events to foster ties
Muhammad Imran weighing a bag of recyclables at the Perita recycling centre in Taman Impian Emas, Johor Baru. A neighbourhood-led recycling centre in Iskandar Puteri is quietly making an impact, having collected nearly 20 tonnes of recyclable materials since it was launched almost four years ago. The Community Recycling Centre under Impian Utara 6B Residents Association (Perita) has become a key part of daily life for Taman Impian Emas residents, offering a convenient way to manage waste and contribute to sustainability. Its recycling committee chairperson Muhammad Imran Ismail said the centre was part of a wider movement to empower residents to manage recyclable waste at a time that suited them. Established in October 2021 through funding from the Iskandar Puteri Low Carbon Community Grant 1.0, the centre started with regular awareness campaigns to get residents on board with the idea of sorting recyclables at home before disposal. 'The initiative is guided by local academics who also reside in the area, forming a close-knit partnership with Perita,' he said. Muhammad Imran said the recycling centre had collected 19,967kg of recyclable items, including paper, aluminium cans, glass bottles, plastics and e-waste. He said this had generated an income of RM9,577, which was used to support centre operations and community programmes in the area. In addition, he said the centre had collected 660 litres of used cooking oil, equivalent to RM1,077. 'Community response has been overwhelmingly positive, with many residents requesting expanded facilities, such as specific stations for electronic waste and workshops for upcycling old items into useful products,' he added. Muhammad Imran said based on its records, paper-based materials accounted for 59.4% of all items collected, making it the top category. He said this included boxes, newspapers, coloured paper, and books while plastic accounted for 13%, glass bottles 10%, scrap metal 7.6%, e-waste 6.6% and used cooking oil 3.4%. 'Revenue from recycling is primarily used to cover operational costs and maintenance of the centre. 'Any surplus funds are channelled into the Perita community fund, which benefits all residents. 'While there is no fixed allocation for the proceeds, the funds have allowed us to organise community events like Malaysia Day and the Mid-Autumn Festival,' he said. Muhammad Imran said these events helped to strengthen neighbourhood bonds while promoting sustainability and collective responsibility. He said the association planned to explore more upcycling workshops and expand recycling categories in response to residents' feedback and growing environmental awareness.
Malay Mail
28-04-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Australia's ruling party to hike student visa fees again in pre-election pledge
SYDNEY, April 28 — Australia's ruling Labor Party said today it would raise visa fees for international students to A$2,000 (RM5,577) if re-elected, the latest measure aimed at the lucrative education sector that has been a major source of immigration. The visa fee hike, from A$1,600 currently, will bring in A$760 million over the next four years, Australia's Treasurer Jim Chalmers and finance minister Katy Gallagher said in a statement on Labor's policy costings for Saturday's federal election. 'We think that's a sensible measure that really prizes, I think, the value of studying here in Australia,' Gallagher told a news conference. The government more than doubled the fee for international student visas in July last year to A$1,600 from A$710. Australia's conservative opposition has already pledged to raise the visa fee to a minimum of A$2,500, and A$5,000 for applicants to the country's top universities, known as the Group of Eight. International students are a major source of revenue for Australian universities, but are also in part responsible for a rise in net migration that has driven up housing costs. Almost 200,000 international students arrived in Australia in February 2025, government statistics show, an increase of 12.1 per cent over the previous year and 7.3 per cent higher than pre-Covid levels in February 2019. Labor has promised to cap international student commencements at 270,000 in 2025, while the opposition favours a lower figure of 240,000. There were more than a million international students enrolled in Australia in 2024, while 572,000 students commenced their studies. Visa fees for students in Australia are already significantly higher than similar countries such as the U.S. and Canada, where they cost about $185 and C$150 ($108) respectively. The government last year also tightened English language requirements for student and graduate visas, as well as introducing powers to suspend education providers from recruiting international students if they repeatedly break rules. — Reuters
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Fayette County leaders organizing community to fight to save Penn State branch campus
The Penn State Fayette Eberly Campus is one of 12 branch campuses that could potentially be closing. It's one of four local branch campuses in southwestern Pennsylvania. 'We've got to be loud, we've got to be heard, and we've got to do it quick,' said Muriel Nuttal, director of the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce. She said she was stunned when she heard the Fayette campus could be on the chopping block. 'My first thought was, 'I can't even imagine a Fayette County without Penn State Fayette Campus,'' she said. Nuttal, along with elected leaders at the local and state level, want to gather as much community support that they can to make sure Fayette is not one of the Penn State branch campuses to close. 'Those experiences and opportunities deserve to be passed on to another generation,' said Republican State Representative Ryan Warner. The Fayette campus had 407 students enrolled for this past fall semester. That's down 30% from 577 students in fall 2020. It's likely one of the reasons the university is looking to close it down. 'I can't understand how they don't view the campus the way we do,' said Republican State Senator Pat Stefano. He said enrollment and credit hours shouldn't be all the university is considering. He said the campus has a huge impact on the community, and now the community has to help shine a light on that. 'This requires grassroots to get up through the layers of the university and to get to the right people who are making these decisions so they can understand what I call unmeasurable metrics,' Stefano said. But time is of the essence. The university is expected to announce what branches will close before the spring semester is over. Leaders in the county are now working to form two committees. One is for community outreach and social media messaging. The other is a community, student, and alumni communications strategy to help form a letter-writing campaign to university officials. There's also a petition that was created by a Fayette campus student and shared by Republican State Representative Charity Grimm Krupa. Nuttall said if you'd like to help, you can reach out to the Chamber of Commerce. 'We would love to hear from people who want to save this campus,' she said. These committee meetings in Fayette County are going to continue. The next one is scheduled for Wednesday morning. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
