Little River Festival highlights hidden connections beneath cities

KUALA LUMPUR: The third edition of the Little River Festival (LRF) was a community-driven event that placed strong emphasis on river ecosystem restoration, sustainability and civic engagement.

Held from Dec 12 to 14, the festival was designed to draw public attention to nine core pillars – river, nature, biodiversity, sustainable development goals, education, culture, community, art and science. Together, these pillars support Community Action Nexus Berhad’s (CANB) long-term vision of transforming Taman Melawati into Malaysia’s first fully sustainable zero-waste township by 2030.

This year’s theme, ‘From the River to the Streets’, was inspired by four flooding incidents that affected the Taman Melawati Town Centre over the past three years.

The floods were linked to hillside development, increased siltation, reduced river carrying capacity and intensified rainfall, which caused backflow into the drainage system.

“This festival makes the connection visible,” said CANB co-founder Syuen Toh.

“Streets and drains are directly linked to rivers. Our daily actions shape flooding risks, pollution levels and ecosystem health.

“We began with rivers. Festivals follow, but only through small steps, consistent effort, research, community action and perseverance.”

LRF also served as a platform to showcase the community’s work, programmes, milestones, research, partnerships and measurable impacts.

In the post-Covid era, CANB has expanded its reach by accelerating impact, strengthening communications, training emerging leaders, confronting environmental threats, combating criminal behaviour and holding authorities accountable.

The inaugural Little River Festival in 2019 was created to celebrate 52 consecutive weeks of Gotong Royong Education by Action (GREduAction), carried out by Friends of Sungai Klang Taman Melawati River Three (FoSK TMR3) and the Society of Eco Greater Melawati (SeeGEM).

FoSK TMR3 founder Kennedy Michael said the community’s GREduAction gotong-royong sessions adopt a STEAM-based approach – science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics – to clean rivers while educating volunteers, including students from local universities.

Activities include upcycling old tyres, mural painting, photography, woodwork, biodiversity observation, multimedia communications, water quality monitoring, CPR training, food waste composting, used cooking oil recycling and public outreach programmes.

Using a placemaking approach, these grassroots groups worked to restore the upstream section of Sungai Klang while building environmental awareness within the community.

Following the conclusion of the River of Life Public Outreach Programme in December 2020, the Alliance of River Three (ART!) was formed to govern river stewardship efforts in Taman Melawati and Mid Valley.

As of 2025, the community has achieved a remarkable milestone – 386 and 351 consecutive weekly GREduAction sessions – reflecting an unwavering commitment to CANB’s 2030 mission of restoring river ecosystems through placemaking.

“We have continued this work even during the various Movement Control Orders of Covid-19,” said Michael, who founded FoSK TMR3 in 2018 to help save Sungai Klang.

Through a partnership with Lorong Seni@Jalan Negara Kita, LRF 2025 was a fully community-driven event that placed ecosystems at the centre of Taman Melawati’s social, cultural and economic life.

This year’s festival was funded by The Habitat Foundation and co-funded by Adrenaline Multimedia Productions Sdn Bhd, CANB and FLK Enterprise, in collaboration with a wide network of partners, including GEF SGP by UNDP, Jalan Negara Kita, SMK Taman Melawati, Gombak Hulu Langat Geopark community members, Malaysian CSO SDG Alliance, Gabungan Darurat Iklim Malaysia, Critical2 TV and several local community groups. The event was supported by the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council.

The Little River Festival remains grounded in urban river ecosystem restoration rather than cosmetic beautification.

The message was clear – restoring rivers is inseparable from restoring streets, neighbourhoods and communities, and the journey begins with collective action.

The event was officiated by Ampang Jaya Municipal Council deputy president Hasrolnizam Shaari.