Learning has no age limit, but the journey can begin in childhood. At DISTED College, we believe in nurturing curiosity and a love for learning from a young age, which was why our School of Communication, Arts and Multimedia Programme Leader Luqman Aliff readily accepted an invitation to serve as tutor for the Climate Disaster Adaptation Short Video Competition during the Conference on Sustainable Development through Education Malaysia (COSDEM) 2026.
Required to produce a three to four-minute short video addressing climate-related issues such as flood preparedness, extreme heat, water conservation, ecosystem protection, and community resilience, the secondary school students participating in the Creative Digital Storytelling workshop were first introduced to the fundamentals of developing an engaging visual narrative for climate-related topics. The students were guided on how to identify a clear message, understand their target audience, develop a storyline, plan appropriate visuals, and communicate climate issues in a way that could be understood and appreciated by the wider community.
Luqman also conducted a practical session on creative video editing, demonstrating how techniques such as shot selection, pacing, transitions, text, sound, music and visual effects can be used purposefully to enhance storytelling. The students were encouraged to make creative editing decisions that supported their message rather than rely on effects purely for visual decoration.
The tutoring session most definitely provided the students with practical knowledge that can be directly applied to their project submissions, which require them to independently plan, record and edit videos. The activity further strengthened the students’ creativity, digital media literacy, communication skills, teamwork and problem-solving skills while connecting digital storytelling with climate awareness and community action.
