Love for the sky: Mazlan, Malaysia’s first astrophysicist, is among those interviewed for The Living History Project. In her video she recounts how she found her way into astronomy. — Photos: The Living History Project
IT is easy to sit around and lament what we think is wrong with the country.
How many of us have spent hours with our friends clanging the chimes of doom about the state of the country?
Similarly, Bobby YP Wong often had such post-golf conversations with his group of retired friends.
“These discussions often led to frustrations about the state of the government and community, and the lack of change.
“After years of being part of this chorus of complaints, I decided it was time to take action,” Wong tells Sunday Star.
For many people, history may be something that is relegated to dusty tomes, old museums, and school textbooks. But Wong believes that history is an exploration of the human condition, the decisions people make in challenging situations, and a reminder of our brief existence and the legacy we leave behind, among other things.
“Understanding history involves seeing how civilisations grow and evolve, how cultures coexist, and how communities adapt over time.
“These stories of co-existence and conflict offer lessons in both harmony and division, reminding us of the importance of learning from past mistakes and successes.
“History gives us the responsibility to safeguard these treasures for future generations, ensuring that the lessons, stories, and experiences of the past endure, shaping the world we live in today and tomorrow.”
With Wong’s deep love for history and belief that the preservation of heritage drives meaningful changes in society, he established The Living History Project (TLHP). He hopes that the “innovative digital museum”, as the project has been described, will create something meaningful to preserve the heritage and capture the essence of people’s lives in their own voices – or in other words, their history.
Dedicated to preserving and showcasing the personal stories, memories, and experiences of Malaysians, he says TLHP goes beyond traditional historical narratives by empowering individuals to share their stories, ensuring that the nation’s history reflects its full diversity rather than being dominated solely by the narratives of the elite, government, or academics.
“Instead of taking the easy route of writing a cheque or attending charity events, I wanted to create something that would stand the test of time.
“The project was inspired by the longing to hear firsthand stories from individuals who shaped the country, whether in small, everyday ways or through groundbreaking contributions,” Wong says, adding that it is entirely self-funded and operates as a not-for-profit endeavour.
In development since early 2023, the project already has a YouTube channel featuring over 20 interviews with various Malaysians.
Among the recognisable names are astrophysicist Emerita Prof Tan Sri Dr Mazlan Othman, film director Dain Said, radio personality Patrick Teoh, economist Prof Dr Jomo Kwame Sundaram, and footballers Datuk Santokh Singh and Datuk Soh Chin Aun.
In the interviews, they discuss at length their upbringing and their achievements in videos that mostly last around 50 minutes each.
For example, Mazlan, who is Malaysia’s first astrophysicist, speaks about how she discovered astrophysics and astronomy as a scholarship student studying physics in New Zealand.
“It wasn’t as if from a young age I was already interested because, at that time, there were no astronomy books in the library,” she says in the video.
However, she recounts that she had long appreciated the sky for its poetic, aesthetic sense due to her love of English literature from a young age.
“But I don’t think I was going to pursue astronomy based on that until I discovered physics,” she says.
The Dream Team: National football legends Santokh and Soh talking to The Living History Project about the heyday of Malaysian football and their disappointment in not participating in the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games.
In another video, national football legends Santokh and Soh recall their most memorable matches throughout their careers, and fond memories of the teams they were a part of.
“All my time with him, with all the other teams, we had a very strong defence. That is the most important thing.
“If you don’t have a strong defence, easily they can score a goal.
“This is the kind of football we need now,” Soh says.
Santokh adds, “I still remember that was a fantastic team we had.”
“Oh, that was a fantastic feeling. It’s unforgettable,” Santokh says, after recounting the teamwork back in the day.
But it is not just famous figures TLHP is interested in documenting. As Wong says, he wants to preserve the stories of ordinary Malaysians too, so TLHP is inviting the public to actively contribute to the project through two-minute video uploads, which aims to preserve these memory nuggets for future reference.
“This participatory model allows individuals to submit their own stories, family histories, photos, and documents, ensuring that the historical record is created by and for the community, making it more representative of Malaysia’s diverse population,” he says.
Wong (centre) with The Living History Project team at its launch. — Photo provided
Aside from the people of Malaysia, TLHP is also committed to documenting Malaysia’s rich cultural and architectural heritage through a unique 360° capture of prominent architecture.
“The project highlights historic buildings that are not officially classified as ‘heritage’ but are iconic for their moment in time – for example, the Chin Woo stadium, Victoria Institute, The Federal Hotel – neighbourhoods like Jalan Bukit Bintang, Jalan Brickfields and Kampung Baru in KL, and local traditions such as the Penang Indian fishing community that are at risk of being lost due to modernisation.”
TLHP, which was officially launched on Sept 19, has several exciting upcoming projects, including working with the Orang Asli community to tell their stories during Malaya’s Emergency period, and embarking on a fundraising exercise using blockchain, which will be a first for a Malaysian social enterprise, Wong says.
TLHP’s criteria for selecting who or what to document as “living history” for the archive is not set in stone as it follows a community-driven approach, which emphasises inclusivity and aims to capture stories from a wide range of Malaysians.
The community-driven aspect of TLHP is such an important part of the project because Wong says, ultimately, the project’s aim is to democratise history by preserving the voices and contributions of everyday Malaysians in an accessible and enduring format which will hopefully inspire future generations.
“Its benefit to society will become evident in the years to come but it needs all the support it can get from the community now to continue building its library,” he says.
Check out The Living History Project digital archive at thelivinghistoryproject.com.my.
