Research Inquiry - 1st Draft

Specific Question/Brief

Are there any specific questions/headings that were prompted and helped structure your thinking? Set out the concept or question you want to research. You should articulate this as a statement that sets out your intentions.

Throughout this research project, I want to dive deeper into endangered Malaysian species and animals. Animal endangerment is an issue that I do not have much knowledge on therefore expanding my knowledge in that area will help myself to become more aware of current situations as an environmentalist. Instead of focusing on the threats they are facing in endangerment, I want to explore the behaviours and characteristics of these animals and how that creates/builds their own personalities.

Additionally, I want to look into the ‘lepak’ culture that is present within Malaysians across all ages. As a TCK, I was deprived of experiencing the Malaysian culture as a full package. I believe that ‘lepak’ culture is really important to many Malaysians as a way of catching up with friends or to watch a sports match. Hence I want to research and observe how ‘lepak’ culture is a big part of being a Malaysian; as well as how it unites its citizens despite their race and beliefs. I aim to bring the two topics together by expressing them through packaging design and relevant collaterals in a more humorous, fun and exciting direction. How can I create a light-hearted tone through the use of typography, colour and illustration? I want to challenge myself to exit my comfort zone and produce something I am proud of. The two topics are slightly more different and abstract compared to the issues researched in the previous project. However, they are still in relation to one another.

Is there a specific proposition/ judgment/ opinion that you have regarding this question/concept?

Many projects regarding endangered species are often done in a serious matter; which is why I want to step out of my box and create something more light-hearted. Every animal has its own personality and behavioural habits that makes them unique despite what we may perceive them as. I think that it is important to celebrate these animals especially when they are enlisted as endangered, critically or not. Each animal has its own role in their habitats, which is important because if a species were to decrease in population or to go extinct, then it would have an effect on its niche which consequently disrupts the food chain and ecosystem. I believe that humans and animals have common traits in terms of personality which brings this to the second topic.

As a Malaysian who lived abroad for a long period of time, there are many things that I was not able to experience growing up such as celebrating independence day at school. In english, to ‘lepak’ translates to ‘loiter’ which has a more negative connotation. However in our culture the term can be taken both positively and negatively. Though throughout this project the term will be taken as something positive. The word ‘lepak’ in the Malay language is known as to ‘hang out’. The youth tend to meet up with friends after classes whereas the slightly older generation would meet up after work. Even so, one thing these generations have in common is that their preferred location is almost always a local ‘mamak’. A mamak may be considered as a bistro where they are run by Malaysian Indians. The affordability of eating at a mamak creates a more welcoming feeling among its customers hence why Malaysians opt for meeting up there. I believe that the correlation between ‘lepak’ culture and these bistros, you are able to see so many races in harmony who are all enjoying their time with local food.

Why is this idea important to consider now in this time and age? (so you will have to show you are culturally/ socially aware of its relation to current issues)

In recent years, we have come to see the drastic changes in weather patterns due to rapid climate change. Many believe that 2020 has been a terrible year because of bad luck when in fact, it is all due to the effects of climate change. Along with on-going human activities, we have seen the effects of our actions on our own lives and communities but we often forget about wildlife. For instance, during the Borneo forest fires that took place in Kalimantan took a rigorous toll on the native species such as orangutans which were spotted hopelessly escaping (Cochrane, 2020). As previously mentioned, wildlife plays an important role in our ecosystems where they help to naturally maintain them, such as dispersing fruit seeds as well as the balancing act of the food chain. Larger animals such as elephants are able to disperse seeds after feeding which helps to reproduce plants whereas predators feed on prey which makes sure that the population of those species maintain at a reasonable number. Without them our lives would be severely impacted if they were to all go extinct, which with years to come, it could possible. By doing the best we can, big or small, are able to at least help preserve what is left of these incredible animals.

Moving along to another existing crisis, with current global protests for the Black Lives Matter movement raising awareness for the black community in America; the Malaysian youth have quickly come to speak out on the racist acts seen in our own country whilst educating one another. For example, there have been many cases where landlords and employers who only seek applicants of a specific race. Though as of more recently, during the beginning stages of the pandemic a number of hospital cleaners were arrested after protesting against their employer for mistreatment (Xiang, 2020). These individuals were seen peacefully protesting outside of the hospital claiming that they were unknowingly transferred to different locations far from home and were not being paid equally despite the change of their working schedule. This caused outrage among our community who showed their support for these individuals online. It is evident that those who are racist are often of an older generation simply because of what society taught them in the past. However there are many communities who have learnt to live harmoniously despite the colour of their skin for generations; where they know it is important to continuously speak up for others when they are clearly being mistreated. To people outside of Malaysia, they see it as a diverse country of people who live in unisons regardless of their race and beliefs which is both easy and difficult to believe. There are times where citizens proudly unite together and instances where a person may face mistreatment simply because of their colour. To promote unity and harmonious living, it is important to continuously show its significance everyday to prove that we are a country that is able to fight against racism.

Current Word Count: 1071

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References

Cochrane, J. C. (2020, April 9). Indonesian fires and toxic smoke devastate wildlife as well as people. Retrieved September 13, 2020, from http://www.borneonaturefoundation.org/en/news/indonesian-fires-and-toxic-smoke-devastate-wildlife-as-well-as-people/

Xiang, Y. W. (2020, June 2). Hospital Cleaners Arrested For Protesting Alleged Mistreatment By Employer During Pandemic. Retrieved September 13, 2020, from https://says.com/my/news/5-hospital-cleaning-frontliners-arrested-for-protesting-against-employer-for-mistreatment