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Antarctic values and Malaysia's involvement in Antarctica: perceptions among young citizens of Malaysia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 November 2015

Ahmad Firdaus Ahmad Shabudin
Affiliation:
Centre for Global Sustainability Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia 11800, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia ([email protected], [email protected])
Rashidah Abdul Rahim
Affiliation:
School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia 11800, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Norizan Md Nor
Affiliation:
School of Humanities, Universiti Sains Malaysia 11800, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Kamarulazizi Ibrahim
Affiliation:
Centre for Global Sustainability Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia 11800, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia

Abstract

Lack of support and interest among the public is one of the major challenges in strengthening and sustaining the future national agendas on Antarctica. The main goal of this study is to identify the perception of Malaysia's public with regard to Antarctic values and Malaysian involvement in the region. A survey on Malaysia's young citizen perception on Antarctic has been conducted for mapping out the future landscape of Malaysian involvement in the Antarctic region. Surveys have been conducted on respondents from secondary schools and universities in Malaysia. A questionnaire was designed to seek respondents’ knowledge and awareness on the values of Antarctica and their opinions on Malaysia's involvement. The results of the study showed that respondents had a high level of awareness of Antarctic environmental issues. However, general knowledge about the Antarctic region was still intermediate. On the other hand, the results of this study showed that the young citizens had positive and strong support for strengthening Malaysia's Antarctic involvement. This study hopes to contribute as baseline data on the matter. Such background information will reflect on the national strategy in strengthening Malaysia's current policy and future involvement in Antarctica.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015 

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