July–September 2023
1. Partnering with the Boys’ Brigade in Malaysia
CREST was invited by the Boys’ Brigade in Malaysia to partner with them to promote the awareness and culture of disaster preparedness among the officers and members in Malaysia.
The CREST representative made a presentation on the background, focus and past projects of CREST along with the objective of the partnership and the proposed forward plans with BB during their national 3rd Brigade Conference in Melaka in August 2023..
2. MISAR Training
Two of CREST’s personnel participated in the recent Malaysia International Search & Rescue (MISAR) Public Flood Survival Program in September 2023 at MISAR Academy to further enhance their flood survival awareness with hands-on practical simulations that will serve the team well in preparing for flood relief response work in the future.
3. New Executive Director for CREST
CREST is proud to introduce the new Executive Director, Dr. Yoong Sao Chin. Dr. Yoong had been a volunteer for CREST since 2005. His first volunteering response was to the Nias Island, Sumatran Earthquake. Ever since then, Dr Yoong has served in responding with CREST to nations such as Pakistan, Laos, Myanmar and within the vicinity of South East Asia.
Driven by passion for disaster response and materializing sustainable ideas and solutions for communities that are vulnerable, Dr. Yoong joined CREST board of directorship in 2006. One of the most notable projects under Dr. Yoong’s guidance was in Myanmar which involved building and supporting fifteen early child development centers which cared for underprivileged, malnourished and stunted children.
A letter from Dr. Yoong as he steps up into this new responsibility within CREST:
Our vision for CREST
We celebrate our 25 years as a disaster dedicated organization this year. Along the way we have embraced many changes that are milestones for us. From being a disaster responder, we have evolved into development projects. Sustainability and empowering communities into resilient societies were our ultimate goals. These are not mere cliches but best exemplified in our income generation and animal husbandry projects in many countries affected by disasters. Nearer home were the Covid quarantine centres of 2021 which won us accolades.
At this juncture, we pause and ask where we go from here.
When I ventured out for a year at University College London to pursue my Master in Risk and Disaster Sciences, it was a time for reflection. In God’s time, we need to be still and seek His direction. We will renew our engagements with our partners both locally and overseas. Though we will continue our development project focus, we will venture out to reduce risks faced by vulnerable communities. We will explore avenues to implement financial instruments for risk sharing in vulnerable communities. So, stay tuned with us at CREST for brighter days ahead as we move forward in the area of risk reduction.
Dr Yoong Sao Chin
Executive Director
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CRISIS RELIEF SERVICES & TRAINING BERHAD (Co. No. 199801017686 | 473815-A)
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