Sustainability can sometimes be seen as a concept only achievable by those with resources, but it can also be practised by smallholders and bring about financial benefits, according to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

According to RSPO, 85% of oil palm plantation owners ar...

Agriculture: Sustainable palm oil practices in Surat Thani province

KPMG International’s Survey of Sustainability Reporting 2024, published in December, highlights that sustainability reporting has become a routine part of business operations for nearly all of the top 100 companies in each country. Notably, Malaysia is among seven countries where all top 100 companies report on their sustainability efforts.

Top global companies make sustainability reporting part of core practice

Litigation and enforcement, particularly related to ESG matters, have seen a significant uptrend recently. While corporate sustainability and climate change have long been contemplated in corporate decision-making, the increased global emphasis on ESG has brought litigation in this area to the fo...

Views: The global trend in ESG litigation: Lessons for Malaysia

The narrative surrounding the Orang Asli has often been confined to stereotypical roles such as labourers, craftspeople selling traditional wares or subjects of anthropological studies.

However, this narrative is being rewritten among the communities who live in the villages of Tonggang...

Environment: Empowering indigenous communities through tourism and conservation

Based on the National Oil and Gas Services and Equipment (OGSE) Sustainability Roadmap, Malaysia Petroleum Resources Corp (MPRC) is targeting 50%, or 973, of OGSE small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to start sustainability reporting by 2030.

Within the national OGSE industry, 98% of ven...

Reporting: Empowering OGSE SMEs

As the founder and designer of the homegrown luxury women’s shoe brand Lewre Bespoke, Datuk Lewre Lew Fong Voon believes he has the responsibility to lead by example and set a benchmark for sustainability in the fashion industry, especially since the brand has been around for 27 years.

...

Coverstory: Making fashion sustainable

Amirul Safuan Mohd Ishak has not always been identified as a person with disabilities (PWD). His life took a turn in 2020 when he met with a car accident. The aftermath left him almost entirely paralysed and bedridden for a year.

Because of that, he wasn’t able to continue his 18-year c...

Social: Making workplaces PWD-friendly

In the last two weeks of 2024, the solar industry in Malaysia was taken aback by changes to the self-consumption (SelCo) programme for solar power, announced by the Energy Commission Malaysia (ST) and Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation.

The first announcement made on...

Energy: New solar self-consumption guidelines a setback

With the failure of developed countries to provide sufficient climate finance to developing countries at the recent COP29, US President Donald Trump’s second term in office and a shift towards the right in Europe, there is a likelihood that climate action will take a backseat globally.

...

Outlook: Reconsider climate strategy to address worst impacts of climate change

Energy transformation should be a top priority for Asean as it tackles climate change, and the key strategies should be the development of connected infrastructure and capitalising on the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution.

Jeffrey Sachs, president of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions and Research (UN-SDSN), said during his presentation at the Asean Workshop on Sustainable Development that regional integration has become a strategic necessity for every nation in the world, and Asean must have diplomatic unity to have influence in the world.

Sustainable Asean-wide policies with connected infrastructure and AI

Minister of Economy Rafizi Ramli’s words, according to which Malaysia is set to adopt nuclear power generation as one of its energy sources in the coming years, are extremely welcome.

According to Rafizi, nuclear power is a cleaner energy source compared to others, which could help the ...

Views: A case for nuclear energy

Year in review: Major ESG-related events in 2024

In Southeast Asia, conversations in the Business and Human Rights-Environmental, Social and Governance (BHR-ESG) space focus on encouraging companies to voluntarily adopt sustainability measures and subsequently report on their sustainability initiatives. While some progress has been made, it rem...

Views: How the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive will impact Malaysian businesses

Every monsoon season, I’d feel the dread that grips Southeast Asia — the deadly floods currently displacing hundreds of thousands in a day, the thick blankets of haze we’ve grown up with and, of course, the unease over how our leaders will respond.

This year, I feel cautionary hope at t...

Views: Malaysia’s 2025 resolution: Adopt Asean’s first environmental rights declaration

Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has urged sports associations in the country to reduce political practices including during elections for new leadership.

Hannah Yeoh urges sports associations to reduce political practices

President Donald Trump is renewing his push to end civil lawsuits seeking to hold him liable for the violence and disruption of Congress during the Jan 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Trump revives bid for immunity against Jan 6 civil lawsuits

Nissan Motor Co may slow a planned ramp-up of electric vehicles (EVs) made in the US after halting output at a joint venture in Mexico, signalling unease about energy and trade policy under President Donald Trump’s second administration.

Nissan looks to Trump-proof North American production plans

China’s government failed to meet its spending target for last year, as the housing market slump left local governments strapped for cash and unable to meet funding commitments.

China misses fiscal spending target on effects of housing slump

Moody’s Ratings has reaffirmed Malaysia’s sovereign credit rating at “A3” with a “stable” outlook while declaring that Malaysia’s medium-term growth prospects remain buoyant.

MOF: Moody’s affirmation reflects govt's consistent efforts to sustain economic growth

Fissures within US President-elect Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” coalition have appeared sooner than expected. By the end of December, the tech-billionaire wing was in open warfare with MAGA’s nativist wing over America’s H-1B visa program, which enables US businesses to employ some 6...

Economics for the Many: Are High-Skill Immigrants a Problem?

Currency traders looking for their next big idea could do worse than talk to Wong, who runs a news stand in Hong Kong’s Central District.

Her business is one of many street stalls that line the city’s busy financial quarter, selling newspapers, magazines and bottled water to everyone from well-heeled executives to Chinese tourists on sightseeing trips.

This Hong Kong newspaper seller is preparing for a yuan crash

The Cabinet on Friday decided to shelve the Waktu Bekerja Berlainan (WBB) pilot project to make way for a more in-depth and comprehensive study.

Cabinet shelves MOH's staggered working hours pilot project, says Dzulkefly

A group of banks led by Morgan Stanley is preparing to sell as much as US$3 billion (RM13.18 billion) of senior debt tied to Elon Musk’s buyout of X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Banks prepare to sell as much as US$3b of X buyout debt, Bloomberg reports

Wall Street's main indexes closed lower on Friday as investors stepped back while they digested a mixed bag of economic data and earnings reports and prepared for a week filled with economic releases and a Federal Reserve (Fed) meeting.

Wall Street slips with mixed data and earnings ahead of Fed week

Have you ever wondered where your money goes when you place a minimum bet of RM2 on a lottery ticket?

It’s been a week since Malaysians flocked to Sports Toto Bhd's (KL:SPTOTO) outlets nationwide, eager to try their luck at the record-breaking RM100 million Supreme 6/58 jackpot.

Where does a RM2 bet on Sports Toto go?

To those following healthcare issues in the country, it may appear that the Ministry of Health (MOH) has been under siege recently, having been bombarded by complaints and criticisms from all sides as it grapples with deep-rooted systemic issues in the public as well as the private healthcare system.

Healthcare reforms: Dzulkefly pledges action amid criticism

Currency traders looking for their next big idea could do worse than talk to Wong, who runs a news stand in Hong Kong’s Central District.

Her business is one of many street stalls that line the city’s busy financial quarter, selling newspapers, magazines and bottled water to everyone from well-heeled executives to Chinese tourists on sightseeing trips.