Meet The Unsung Heroes Who Are Making A Difference With Their Sustainable Farming

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This Spotlight is sponsored by Maybank.

Launched back in 2017, the MYStories video series showcases collections of heroic and inspirational stories of individuals who have made positive changes in the communities they live in.

The series' aim is to inspire positive action and ignite changemakers of good across Malaysia and Southeast Asia. Additionally, it serves as one of Maybank's platforms to communicate, educate, and rally behavioural change amongst our people and community, in line with the bank's Humanising Financial Services mission.

Finally, these stories of selfless unsung heroes also exemplify the core values that Maybank employees aspire to uphold, such as teamwork, integrity, passion for growth, excellence, loyalty, and commitment.

MYStories 2022 celebrates ASEAN heroes who have unlocked sustainability efforts that impact the triple bottom line — People, Planet, Profit.

The series kickstarted back during Chinese New Year. Aptly capturing the theme of Water Tiger, the CNY edition highlighted the efforts of unsung heroes in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand to bring clean water to rural areas.

As the title suggests, the theme for this video is Land — something that will never fail to provide for us and preserve the lives of all, if we look after it in a sustainable manner.

The unsung heroes featured this time are Pak Salim from Melaka, husband and wife Pak Jamain and Kak Lily from Sarawak, and Pak Rayndra from Indonesia.

What they have in common is a shared belief that when one sows the seeds of positivity through cultivating the land with sustainable practices, the community and future generations will be able to reap the rewards. Hence, 'rezeki dari tanah' is bestowed to those who cultivate the land, and can subsequently be shared with others.

Also known as 'Salim 99 ekar', Pak Salim is an imam in his community. To him, farming is not only an interest, but also a therapeutic way for him to cope with depression. Plus, farming gives him a way to connect with his late wife, as well as with his present community.

Speaking on the importance of land, he said, "Even if everything else fails, the land will never let us down. The land will still provide for us. Even if the rewards are few, no matter what, we'll be blessed with rewards."

The couple, who are fondly known as 'Apai Long Sarawak', emphasise the joy of sharing and spreading rezeki through the act of sedeqah. With their shared love for farming, the couple have a strong bond with each other and the community around them.

"Our purpose of farming is to feed our family, to share with our friends, so that all of us are happy together while tasting the rewards from the land," shared Kak Lily.

Living up to his nickname of 'Petani Milenial', this young man promotes his love for farming to the younger generation, in the hopes that many more will gain interest in the field. He also believes that one shouldn't only do good during Ramadan. Instead, it should be done anytime, anywhere.

"When we inspire a person to do good, he in turn will encourage others to do the same.  The most important thing for me right at this moment is to do it myself first," said Rayndra.

The end message even uses the joy of Raya as a metaphor, relating it to the heroes' hard work and their way of celebrating the fruits of their labour with others. It is with this kind of uplifting spirit and the desire to help one another that the ASEAN region is moving forward.

Take a look at all our Spotlight stories to date here.