KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 21 – The Faculty of Civil Engineering (FKA), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) marked an important milestone with the soft launch of the PESISIR mode for its Master of Engineering in Environmental Management (MEAK) at the Wastewater Management Leaders Bootcamp (WMLB) 2026, organized by Indah Water Konsortium Sdn. Bhd. (IWK) through the Asian Sewerage Training, Research & Innovation Centre of Excellence (ASTRICE).
Held at the Renaissance Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, WMLB 2026 is a three-day executive program focusing on the future of wastewater management, including utility transformation, financing, digitalization, innovation, sustainable wastewater management and resource optimization.
The bootcamp brought together wastewater leaders and professionals from Malaysia and across the region, including representatives from IWK, the Department of Sewerage Services (JPP), National Water Services Commission (SPAN), as well as delegates from Cambodia and the Philippines. The diverse participation provided a valuable setting for knowledge exchange, professional networking and discussions on the future direction of wastewater management in the region.
Against this backdrop, the soft launch provided FKA UTM with a strategic platform to introduce the PESISIR Master of Engineering in Environmental Management to wastewater professionals, regulators and industry leaders. It also underscored the increasing importance of viewing environmental challenges beyond individual technical or management functions.
Wastewater management involves interconnected technical, operational, environmental and organizational considerations. While technical teams focus on treatment performance, process requirements and regulatory compliance, management decisions must also take into account resources, costs, risks and organizational priorities. Bridging these perspectives is therefore essential to ensure that management decisions are supported by sound technical understanding, while technical solutions remain practical and aligned with broader organizational and sustainability goals.
The Master of Engineering in Environmental Management provides a multidisciplinary platform for developing this broader perspective. The program equips professionals to integrate technical knowledge with environmental management and decision-making, while strengthening competencies in critical and integrative problem-solving, stakeholder collaboration, communication, leadership and responsible resource management. In doing so, MEAK supports the development of professionals who can work effectively across organizational functions and contribute to more informed and sustainable environmental decisions.
A key highlight of the PESISIR program is its strong industry integration. In addition to UTM academics, experienced personnel from IWK will be involved in teaching selected courses alongside UTM lecturers, bringing practical industry knowledge, operational experience and real-world perspectives directly into the classroom. This combination of academic expertise and industry experience enables participants to relate theoretical concepts to actual environmental and wastewater management challenges, strengthening the relevance of their learning to professional practice.
UTM’s Master of Engineering in Environmental Management offers engineers, wastewater professionals, environmental practitioners, consultants, researchers and government officers an opportunity to strengthen their technical foundation while developing broader environmental management and leadership competencies. Further information regarding the MEAK program is available on the FKA website at https://civil.utm.my/postgraduate/meak/.
