At the Kuala Lumpur International Sustainability Conference, themed “Synergizing Climate Action: Fostering Collaboration Across Regulators, Corporations, and Academia,” the Asia School of Business (ASB) gathered over 300 experts to tackle pressing sustainability challenges. Sponsored by the Joint Committee on Climate Change (JC3) and FIDE Forum, the event featured prominent regulators and corporate leaders.  

ASB Deputy CEO, Professor Joseph Cherian, opened the conference by emphasizing the role of education in fostering sustainability. “Our research centers focus on applied and impactful science, informing policymaking, improving lives, and promoting ASEAN-based sustainability themes,” he said. 

Datuk Kamarudin Hashim, Co-Chair of JC3 and Managing Director of the Securities Commission Malaysia, delivered the keynote address, stressing the urgency of collective efforts and regulatory frameworks. “Achieving our sustainability goals requires consistent efforts from all stakeholders. Regulators, corporations, academia, and civil society must collaborate and coordinate their actions to drive meaningful change,” he urged. 

International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) Vice-Chair Sue Lloyd highlighted the current IFRS S1 and S2 standards. “The adoption of these standards marks a significant step towards unified and transparent sustainability reporting,” she remarked. 

Panels discussed corporate resilience and climate change adaptation. Professor Asad Ata of ASB, Dr. Gary Theseira, Senior Consultant to the Ministry of Environment and Water, Datuk Darrel Webber, Sustainability Consultant, and Sue Lloyd emphasized innovative, pragmatic approaches for better sustainability outcomes. 

Another panel featured Tunku Alizakri Alias, Chairman of Penjana Kapital Sdn. Bhd.,, Dr. Robert Pozen, Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management, Eugene Wong, CEO of SFIA, and Datin Azalina Adham, Executive Director of ValueCap. They stressed the necessity of reporting firms and institutional investors in sustainable finance for future-proofing economies. 

Professor Renato Lima de Oliveira of ASB moderated a session on emerging sustainability trends with Nicholas Khaw, Head of Research at Khazanah Nasional, Bursa Malaysia CEO Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift, and PETRONAS Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer Charlotte Wolff-Bye. They concluded that staying ahead in sustainability requires leveraging new research and insights on standardizing ESG metrics, aligning shareholder expectations with long-term sustainable growth, fostering public-private collaboration, building organizational capacity, and enhancing transparency and regulatory frameworks. 

The conference concluded with Professor Sanjay Sarma, CEO, President, and Dean of ASB, discussing AI and digitization’s impact on sustainability. Highlighting ClimateGPT, he said, “Advanced technologies are revolutionizing our approach to sustainability, offering unprecedented tools to track and mitigate climate impact.” 

The event fostered collaboration between regulators, industry leaders, and academics, shaping effective policies and frameworks. Key takeaways included more insights for corporations in terms of integrating sustainability into their business models, while academic perspectives were enriched from the exchange of ideas that could trigger innovative research and solutions to sustainability challenges.