Salliza Binti Sideni

Salliza Sideni, fondly known as Liza, is a firm believer of maintaining cultural roots. As the Head of Museums and Education for Brooke Museums, a non-profit endeavour comprising of two museums (The Brooke Gallery and The Ranee Museum) Liza has seen to its goal to preserve, conserve and develop works of historical significance for the sake of sharing it with future generations.

Having been in the line of education for 20 years before becoming a museum director, Liza also manages Brooke Museums’ ASPIRE Programme, a youth development programme that aims to upskill young Sarawakians who are currently being re-educated and rehabilitated in juvenile detention centres. Sponsored by Yayasan Hasanah, ASPIRE aims to preserve the priceless Sarawakian art of Keringkam by passing the skill down to 50 youths from Sekolah Henry Gurney Puncak Borneo Kuching, Sekolah Tunas Bakti and Taman Seri Puteri. Within the 24 months of the programme, it will not only have ensured the continuity of the art form but also equipped with the young participants with a new talent and an overall purpose to become productive members of society.

Other than her work in the museums, Liza serves as the current Chairperson for Persatuan Kesenian dan Warisan Keringkam Sarawak, a registered society premised on ensuring the well-being, continuity and sustainability of Keringkam Sarawak. She is also a main committee member of Kuching Heritage Awareness Society (KHAS) and Kuching Heritage Run (KHR) as well as a member of Sarawak Events and Tourism Attractions Association (SEATA) and Sarawak Tourism Federation (STF).

Making an impact for me is about touching lives. It is never about me being the one to make a change in someone’s life, but about how change can empower that someone to become a contributing member of society and ultimately give back. As the saying goes: Well done is better than well said.