Projek Kalsom

The idea for a Projek Kalsom motivational camp was initially mooted by a group of Malaysian students in London in 1993 upon reading a newspaper cutting of a Mrs Kelthom Abdullah,[3] a single mother living in the rural areas of Kelantan, Malaysia, who could not bear the cost of her children's education. Aside from raising funds for Mrs Kelthom Abdullah, these students decided to organise the first Projek Kalsom motivational camp for underprivileged students in Jerantut, Pahang in 1994.[4] Of note, as the founders of Projek Kalsom were also the founders of the United Kingdom & Eire Council for Malaysian Students (UKEC), it is not surprising that Projek Kalsom has been associated with UKEC in the past.

Subsequent Projek Kalsom motivational camps were rotated between the 11 states and federal territories of West Malaysia as a one-off motivational camp annually. In 2012, under the leadership of Dr Hannah Nazri[5] (2011 Projek Kalsom 17 Director), formerly a medical student of University of Bristol,[6] Projek Kalsom finally became a registered entity known as Kelab Belia Kalsom under the Registrar of Youth Societies (Ministry of Youth & Sports, Malaysia); ensuring its sustainability and continuity. 2012 also saw the Projek Kalsom motivational camp being held for the first time in East Malaysia, in Miri, Sarawak. The following year, saw the first Bristol Commonwealth Cultural Programme involving 10 British university students joining Projek Kalsom motivational camp in Kuantan, Pahang.[7] In 2014, under the leadership of Mohd Zulikhwan Ayub (2013-2015 Kelab Belia Kalsom President), Kelab Belia Kalsom underwent a major transformation phase with an expansion plan of partnerships in place, an increase in the number of volunteer applications by nearly 300%,[8] an introduction of a one-year Kalsom Harapan plan,[9] as well as a re-branding exercise where the youth-led charity became widely known as The Kalsom Movement.[10][11]

Since 2014, The Kalsom Movement remained the only student-led organisation to receive support and endorsement from Bursa Malaysia (formerly Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange).[12][13] In 2015, The Kalsom Movement was nominated as one of the Top 10 Organisations (Education and Community) for Merdeka Award, a highly prestigious award in Malaysia. Projek Kalsom itself, is endorsed by the Malaysian Book of Records as the longest student run motivational camp in Malaysia.[14] For 2018, The Kalsom Movement received the support of Shell Malaysia and was the only student-led charity to benefit from Shell Raya Charity Campaign 2018.[15][16][17]

The 'tour' of all 14 states and federal territories of Malaysia was completed with the organisation of the 2015 Projek Kalsom 21 in Papar, Sabah. In 2015, the movement received 364 applications as facilitators from Malaysian students studying in 15 different countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland, United States of America, Canada, Poland, Spain, Egypt, Indonesia and Malaysia for 40 places.[18] 11 international facilitators through the Bristol Commonwealth Cultural Programme (third year running)[19] and American Fulbright Scholars were also selected with a dual aim in mind, to encourage bilateral relationships between the two countries and to encourage English speaking between Projek Kalsom student-participants.[20]

Since the establishment of The Kalsom Movement, many other education programmes were organised.

Flagship programmes are programmes that are always held annually. As The Kalsom Movement aims to provide a training ground to Malaysian university student-leaders to organise and get involved in projects of their interest, Executive Committees are encouraged to introduce and pursue new education programmes each year that can benefit younger Malaysians.

Flagship programmes that are held annually:

• Projek Kalsom Motivational Camp - The movement's one-week motivational programme.
• Commonwealth Cultural Programme - A community tourism programme in partnership with Bristol Students Commonwealth Society to bring non-Malaysian students to explore Malaysia via a series of education initiatives and community programmes.
• Kalsom Harapan - Initially started in 2012, the revisit workshop is held for Projek Kalsom motivational camp student alumni of the previous year in January of the following year, firstly in collaboration with Malaysian Students' Council of Australia. Now this programme has been extended to two revisit workshops and Kalsom Academy organised by the beneficiaries for other students in their respective schools with the mentorship of facilitators and teachers. The 2017 revisit workshop was graced by the attendance by Tengku Amir Shah ibni Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, the Crown Prince of Selangor who also took time to speak to the student-participants.[21]
• Entrepreneurship and Innovation Workshop - A programme that was first designed in 2015 to train beneficiaries with essential business and entrepreneurship skills as well as innovative ideas.
• Kalsom Global Outreach Programme - A platform established in 2015 for students globally to design and implement their very own social ventures. Among the beneficiaries include Projek Rafflesia (Malaysian students in the United States) and Seeds of Deeds Motivational Camp by Small Changes.

Previous programmes:

• Kalsom Scholarship Workshop - A post-secondary education opportunities workshop held for the first time in 2014 to equip students with proper interview skills and etiquette.
• Kalsom English Enrichment Programme - An initiative in 2014 to motivate students to learn English through explorative learning methods.
• Projek Whiteboard - An online crowdfunding initiative held monthly in 2015 to assist schools from marginalised areas with financial assistance.
• Kalsom Goes Cyber Workshop - The latest addition to the movement in 2016 to expose students with coding and programming skills.
• Keen for Knowledge Campaign - A secondhand book donation drive which was first held in 2015.

Tengku Dato' Zafrul Bin Tengku Abdul Aziz, CEO of CIMB Group sharing his experiences of being a facilitator in Projek Kalsom 1 in 1994 during The Kalsom Alumni High Tea 2018 in Kuala Lumpur.

Members of The Kalsom Movement alumni consists of both Malaysian university student-leaders (facilitators) and beneficiaries (student-participants) have gone to have very successful careers in their chosen field. A substantial number have started up their own businesses, charities and social enterprises. A non-exhaustive list of The Kalsom Movement alumni members are as below:

• Datuk Abdul Rahman Mohd Redza - Member of the Negeri Sembilan State Assembly for Linggi, one of the primary founders[22] of Projek Kalsom and alumnus of London School of Economics and Political Science.
• Tengku Dato' Zafrul Bin Tengku Abdul Aziz - Current Minister of Finance of Malaysia and 1994 Kalsom 1 alumnus (facilitator).
• Rafizi Ramli - Member of the Malaysian Parliament for Pandan and 1996 Projek Kalsom 3 alumnus (facilitator).
• Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad - Selangor State Executive Councillor (EXCO) for Education, Human Capital Development, Science, Technology and Innovation, Member of the Selangor State Assembly for Seri Setia and 2004 Projek Kalsom 10 alumnus (facilitator).[23]
• Dr Soo Wincci - Miss World Malaysia 2008, recording artist and music producer, model, PhD holder. Dr Soo Wincci was a facilitator of the 2006 Projek Kalsom 12.

• Official website
• Teach for Malaysia
• United Kingdom and Eire Council for Malaysian Students