Muhammad Hijas Sahari (P.J.K)
Manager, Department of Built Environment and Management
hijas[at]gtwhi[dot]com[dot]my
Fields of Expertise
• Urban and Regional Planning
• Built Heritage Conservation
• Project Management
ABOUT ME
Muhammad Hijas Sahari currently serves as Manager of the Department of Built Environment and Management (BEAM) at George Town World Heritage Incorporated, with a strong passion for heritage urban planning and safeguarding of cultural heritage. He is also a Registered Conservator with the Department of National Heritage under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia. Hijas works with his team in monitoring heritage buildings and providing technical support on heritage related matters, in accordance with the guidelines of the George Town Special Area Plan and other heritage-related legal instruments. With the team, Hijas multitasks on a range of projects including the review of the Conservation Management Plan and Special Area Plan for the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as organising forums, talks and workshops. He also spearheads efforts in educating students and the public about George Town World Heritage Incorporated’s management of the multicultural World Heritage Site. Hijas also leads the team when engaged by other state government agencies to take up roles as project manager and advisor to coordinate and monitor the state’s development on heritage related projects.
I am a passionate Site Manager because I devote most of my time in safeguarding and conserving the tangible and intangible cultural heritage. My work includes heritage urban planning and facilitating the proper management of George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site including the use and development of buildings, lands and measures that would enhance the integration of the physical environment with the socio-cultural and economic well-being of its people and the demands of growth towards a sustainable dynamic living urban heritage city.
- Manager, Department of Built Environment and Management, George Town World Heritage Incorporated
- Master of Science in Quantity Survey (QS), School of Housing Building and Planning, Universiti Sains Malaysia. (2006 – 2008), https://hbp.usm.my/
- Bachelor of Science (Honours) (Housing, Building and Planning), School of Housing Building and Planning, Universiti Sains Malaysia. (2003 – 2006), https://hbp.usm.my/
- Course on Management and Monitoring of World Heritage Site with special reference to China, ICCROM, CACH, Honhe University, Cultural Landscape of Honghe Hani Rice Terraces, China, 2017.
- Urban Conservation Planning in Malaysia, George Town Penang, ThinkCity, Badan Warisan Malaysia, The Getty Conservation Institute, 2013.
- 5 Modul Kursus Bersiri Pengurusan Projek Konservasi Bangunan Warisan, Jabatan Warisan Negara, Kuala Lumpur, 2011.
- 2011 – 2016, Research Officer, George Town World Heritage Incorporated, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2010, Town Planner, PIR Planners, Selangor, Malaysia.
- 2009, Research Officer, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2006 – 2008, Research Assistant, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.
Ongoing
- 2020, Tangible Heritage Workshops Series, George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2019 – Current, Google Cultural Institute: Google Arts and Culture Partnership Programme for George Town, Malaysia.
- 2019 – Current, Repair and Restoration of George Town World Heritage Incorporated Office Premises at No. 116 and 118, Lebuh Acheh, George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2019 – Current, Climate Vulnerability Index for George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2019 – Current, Quantitative Documentation of Vibration and Tilt in Buildings within George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018 – Current, George Town Heritage Habitat Seeds Fund for Long Term Tenants of George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018 – Current, “UNESCO World Heritage Site State of Conservation Reporting of Conservation of the Historic City of George Town, Pulau Pinang”, George Town, Malaysia.
- 2016 – Current, Conservation and Restoration of Graves and Inscriptions at the Protestant Cemetery Site, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016 – Current, Measured Drawings for Heritage Buildings Category I, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016 – Current, Restoration and Conservation of Old Documents and Maps for The Penang Botanic Gardens, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016 – Current, Sia Boey Rejuvenation Project – An Urban Archaeological Park in George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016 – Current, “UNESCO World Heritage Site State of Conservation Reporting on Heritage Impact Assessment of the Proposed Bayan Lepas Light Rail Transit, Penang” at Sia Boey, George Town, Malaysia.
Completed
- 2019, Restoration of Hock Teik Cheng Sin Temple Opera Stage, 57, Lebuh Armenian, 10200 George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2019, One Shophouse One Pot Project, George Town, Malaysia.
- 2019, UNESCO Community Advocacy Plan: George Town as a Resilient City with Fire Extinguishers and Smoke Detectors, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018 – 2019, Conservation and Restoration of Ta Kam Hong Building (Penang Goldsmith Association, No. 41 Lebuh Muntri 10200, George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018 – 2019, Conservations and Restoration of Penang Grocers’ Association, No. 4, Rope Walk, 10100 George Town, Penang.
- 2018 – 2019, Conservation of Cannons and Cannonballs from Fort Cornwallis, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018, International Conference on Managing Urban Cultural Heritage, George Town World Heritage Incorporated, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2017 – 2018, Conservation and Restoration of Ng Fook Thong Cantonese Districts Association Temple, 407, Lebuh Chulia, 10200, George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2017, Feasibility Study Prior to the Introduction of the Rent Regulation Enactment, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2017, Updating the Tangible Heritage Building Inventories in Buffer Area, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2017, Seminar on Implementation of Special Area Plan, organized by George Town World Heritage Incorporated, PlanMalaysia@Penang and City Council of Penang Island, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016 – 2017, Kimberley Street Restoration Project, George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016, Additional Platform at Chew Jetty, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016, Updating the Tangible Heritage Building Inventories in Core Area, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016, Research for Proposed Inscription of Penang Botanic Gardens as UNESCO World Heritage Site (Phase 1), Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016, Research and Documentation of Historical Material, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2016, “The Power of Culture: Supporting Community-Based Management and Sustainable Tourism at World Heritage Sites in Malaysia and Southeast Asia”, UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, George Town World Heritage Incorporated and UNESCO Office in Jakarta.
- 2012 – 2013, Integrated Heritage Database System, George Town World Heritage Site, Penang, Malaysia.
Publications [expandable tab]
- Jaafar, M. and Sahari, Muhammad Hijas. 2013. The development of network linkages and housing developers: International Journal of Sustainable Society.
- Jaafar, M., Abdul-Aziz, A. R. and Sahari, Muhammad Hijas. 2009. The use of social network theory on entrepreneurs’ linkages development. Urban Issues in Asia. Theoretical and Empirical Researchers in Urban Management Journal.
- Jaafar, M., Abdul-Aziz, A. R. and Sahari, Muhammad Hijas. 2009. Entrepreneurs business network: A survey on Malaysian Housing Developers. Presented in CIB W107 2008, 18 – 20 January 2008, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago.
- Sahari, Muhammad Hijas, Jaafar, M and Abdul-Aziz, A. R. (2007) Social network theory and Private Housing Developers in Malaysia. Presented in ICCPM/ICCEM 2007, 1 – 2 March 2007, Meritus Mandarin, Singapore.
- 3 – 6 September 2018, “Managing George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site”, International Seminar on the Conservation and Regeneration of Historic Spring City Cultural Landscape of Jinan, Shandong, China.
- 26 – 27 June 2018, “George Town World Heritage Site – Role, Responsibility and Capacity Building Needs”, World Heritage Managers Forum 2018, Bahrain.
- 5 May 2017, “Rancangan Kawasan Khas Tapak Warisan Dunia George Town: Panduan Perancangan dan Pëmbangunan”, Seminar on Implementation of Special Area Plan, organized by George Town World Heritage Incorporated, PlanMalaysia@Penang and City Council of Penang Island, Penang, Malaysia.
- 30 March 2017, “Special Area Plan for George Town World Heritage Site”, University Science Malaysia – Bournemouth University Global Festival of Learning ASEAN 2017, Penang, Malaysia.
- 16 November 2016, “Special Area Plan: How it works”, Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2 – 4 November 2016, “Protecting Heritage Shophouses through Sustainable Conservation Development”, A Workshop on UNESCO Sustainability Science Demonstration Sites in Asia Pacific, Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia.
- 6 – 7 March 2012, “GIS Application in George Town World Heritage Site”, Malaysia Geospatial Forum 2012, Melaka, Malaysia.
- 23 – 26 November 2009, Experiences and challenges of engagement of academe/university with community/industry”, A showcase presentation in University-Community Engagement Conference 2009 (UCEC 2009). Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.
- 2018 – Current, Registered Conservator in Malaysia with National Heritage Department.
- 2019, Judge, Waris 20Tiga:8 MIID Interior Design Students, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang.
- 2016, Jury, Sketch Competition (Tetramatra Programme), 28th Architectural Student Workshop, Universiti Sains Malaysia.
| Bahasa Melayu | Mother tongue. Fluent in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. |
| English | Fluent in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. |
| Bahasa Indonesia | Fluent in reading and listening, basic in writing and speaking. |
| Bahasa Bugis | Basic in speaking and listening. |
- 2017, First Runner-up, ICT Category of Anugerah Inovasi Kerajaan Negeri Pulau Pinang Tahun 2016 for the project Mobile Application Survey “The New Innovation for Heritage Building Survey”. Awarded during Majlis Sambutan Hari Inovasi Peringkat Negeri Pulau Pinang Tahun 2017 on 28 November 2017.
- 2016, Winner, Innovative Planning Award for the project Mobile Application Survey – The New Innovation for Heritage Building Survey, awarded during Malaysian Institute of Planners (MIP) Planning Excellence Awards on 25 November 2016.
