Some old buses in Iskandar Puteri are no longer carrying passengers. They are now being used as classrooms.
The buses are just one of several ways Iskandar Puteri is expanding learning beyond schools and universities. The Malaysian city joined UNESCO’s Global Network of Learning Cities in 2025, alongside 72 other cities from 46 countries.
One example is the BOLEH Youth Empowerment Centre, where the repurposed buses provide a learning space for young people with disabilities to develop digital and vocational skills.
According to UNESCO’s Institute for Lifelong Learning, the centre provides accessible spaces where disabled youth can develop digital and vocational skills, with the aim of helping them build pathways toward employment and income.
Turning a City Into a Learning Space
Iskandar Puteri is a city in southern Johor, bordering Singapore and connected to the island by the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link.
With a population of about 647,202, the city is also home to EduCity Iskandar, a multi-campus education hub. But learning in Iskandar Puteri is not limited to schools and universities.
Iskandar Puteri has been developing itself as a Learning City, a concept promoted by UNESCO that treats learning as something that happens throughout a community and across different stages of life.
The city officially joined UNESCO’s Global Network of Learning Cities on December 4, 2025, together with 72 cities from 46 countries. It became the second Malaysian city and the first local authority in Johor to join the network.
The city’s approach is summed up in three words: “Educate, Empower, Sustain”
MBIP, the Iskandar Puteri City Council, began preparing for the Learning City initiative in 2024, establishing a dedicated secretariat and working on programmes designed to expand lifelong learning opportunities across the city.
Why Use Buses?
BOLEH does not have a typical building. Instead, several old buses were repurposed into spaces for young people with disabilities.
They can learn digital and vocational skills. UNESCO’s Institute for Lifelong Learning says the centre also aims to help them find employment and earn an income. The project fits into a larger effort to connect learning with practical skills and economic opportunities.
Iskandar Puteri’s municipal government also operates RumahTVET, a training hub offering spaces and courses related to sewing, culinary skills and hairdressing. The city has also developed a Drone and Robotics Zone where young people can learn coding, drone piloting and participate in innovation activities.
For young people with disabilities, BOLEH offers both a place to learn and a chance to pick up practical skills.
The centre is designed to be accessible, while its programmes focus on areas such as digital and vocational training. These skills can be useful, particularly when participants start looking for work.
Education With a Practical Side
BOLEH is only one piece of Iskandar Puteri’s wider Learning City experiment. The city has also been using schools as testing grounds for sustainability education.
Its E-Lestari programme allows students to monitor electricity and water consumption, recycling and used oil collection at their schools. The data is then used to identify ways to reduce consumption and improve environmental practices.
The results are large for what started as a school based learning programme.
UNESCO reports that E-Lestari generated RM2.37 million (roughly US$586,000) in electricity savings and RM1.31 million (roughly US$324,000) in water savings in 2024, while schools also collected more than 60,000 kilograms of used cooking oil.
The city has also established a Government-University-Community-Industry (GUCI) platform to connect local authorities, universities, schools, community groups and companies.
In 2024, the platform brought together 140 participants and 40 exhibits showcasing sustainability projects, according to UNESCO.
Skills, Support and Opportunity
There is also a social policy angle behind the project.
The Iskandar Puteri Caring Foundation subsidises up to 70% of training fees for women taking courses such as tailoring, cooking and swimming, according to UNESCO’s Institute for Lifelong Learning.
Meanwhile, Yayasan Penyayang Iskandar Puteri lists helping urban poor, underprivileged and disabled communities improve their socioeconomic conditions through education, welfare and youth programmes among its objectives.
BOLEH is one of several programmes under Iskandar Puteri’s Learning City initiative.
The repurposed buses serve a practical purpose. They provide a space where young people with disabilities can learn digital and vocational skills.
