The role of the university in recovering from COVID-19 and preparing for future crises—perspectives and experiences from Sunway University, Malaysia

Frontiers in Public Health

Public Health

Elil Renganathan¹  Jemilah Mahmood²  Renzo Guinto²  Abhi Veerakumarasivam³  Oliver Lacey-Hall⁴  Sibrandes Poppema⁵ 

[1] School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;Sunway Centre for Planetary Health, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;Sunway Centre for Planetary Health, Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;Sunway University, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia;

关键词: COVID-19;    education;    research;    public health;    planetary health;    resilience;    communications;    university;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2023.1072823

 received in 2022-10-18, accepted in 2023-04-03,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

This article is part of the Research Topic ‘Health Systems Recovery in the Context of COVID-19 and Protracted Conflict’.Universities, as engines of knowledge creation and dissemination and as incubators of disciplined yet original thinking, have a key role to play in tackling the most complex challenges that societies and our planet face, from infectious diseases to the climate emergency. This commentary presents the perspectives from Sunway University, a young private university in Malaysia that made a strong commitment to the sustainable development goals (SDGs) prior to the pandemic, and its experiences in promoting research, innovation, and learning as part of COVID-19 recovery and in preparation for future crises such as the climate emergency. Some of the university’s initiatives include embracing the planetary health approach, reviving essential public health functions, exploring pandemic resilience, addressing ‘infodemics’ and promoting science diplomacy. The example of Sunway University provides some insights on the opportunities and challenges that academic institutions face as they seek to reorient the paradigm of education, research, and service away from disciplinary siloes and towards a more integrated, preventive, accessible and translational approach.

【 授权许可】

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Copyright © 2023 Renganathan, Guinto, Mahmood, Lacey-Hall, Veerakumarasivam and Poppema.