In recent years, the link between human rights and the environment has gained increased traction, together with the escalating global expectations that businesses need to act responsibly to minimise their contribution to potential future climate change. The business case for the corporate sector to prioritize the right to a healthy environment is becoming part and…
PRIME Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s expressed wish to review the Environmental Quality Act, enacted in 1974, is refreshing to hear. There have been amendments to the act from time to time, but the moment has come for a comprehensive review of this country’s foremost instrument of environmental governance. Our awakening at the time and…
RECOMMENDED reading: a new United Nations synthesis of several major past scientific assessments of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. The year-long effort was led by two leading experts and long-time friends, Ivar Baste of Norway and Sir Robert Watson of the United Kingdom. The report’s title, “Making Peace with Nature” (at bit.ly/UNEP-UNEA), is striking.…
Business has a critical role to play in accelerating projects and investments that support climate, nature and people. While the risks of inaction are significant and well documented, the benefits to both business security and growth are very compelling.To unlock investment and ensure credible, high-quality projects receive funding, there must be a common understanding of…
International observers of biodiversity governance watch very keenly any action by the United States government. Remember the phrase, “when America sneezes, the world catches a cold”. At the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, for example, the world community watched in total exasperation when the late president George H.W. Bush personally declined to…
How do we get 9.7 billion people to live well and within the boundaries of the planet 30 years from now? Considering that we are at 7.8 billion people now and are already struggling on many fronts, this question should trigger some anxiety. The current level of consumption in developed economies is made possible through…
SINCE 1990, the Earth has lost 420 million hectares of forests to land conversion for agriculture, urbanisation, mining and industry. Forested areas equal to the combined land territories of India and Egypt were lost in the span of a single generation. It happens gradually, such devastation seldom if ever registers on the public radar in…
The importance of environmental diplomacy was underscored by Environment and Water Ministry Deputy Secretary-General Dr K. Nagulendran in a recent interview with the Global Environment Facility’s newsletter. He listed three of Malaysia’s most pressing environmental concerns: First, as a fast-developing country, there is a need to balance development with sound environmental stewardship — a fragile…
BCSD Malaysia has partnered with LEARNTech Asia in organising a webinar titled Access to Jobs – Sustainability. As many Asian countries are committed to a more sustainable recovery and to a greener economy, new opportunities for ‘green jobs’ are becoming available. The purpose of this webinar is to offer an overview of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), job options…
More than half of the global economy depends on the prosperity of the natural world. From the water we drink, to the food we grow, and the resources we use in manufacturing, biodiversity and ecosystem services support our daily lives and many of our products and services. We would be in great danger without the…