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Malaysia’s ambition to be carbon neutral by 2050 was the focus of a high-profile event at Heriot-Watt University this week.
The Putrajaya Net Zero Emission Roundtable 2023 brought a range of stakeholders together at Heriot-Watt’s Malaysia campus in Putrajaya, south of Kuala Lumpur.
The event was organised with the British High Commission in Malaysia to help the country build leadership capacity to identify and implement pathways to carbon neutrality.
Datuk Dr. Aminuddin Hassim, Secretary General of Malaysia’s Ministry of Science, Technology & Innovation (MOSTI) was a guest of honour at the event, alongside His Excellency Charles Hay, British High Commissioner to Malaysia, who gave the opening address.
Four keynote speakers from Heriot-Watt University spoke on the topics of decarbonisation, green financing and purpose-driven leadership. These were Professor Richard A. Williams, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University; Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer, the University’s Deputy Principal for Global Sustainability and Director of the UK Industrial Decarbonisation Research and Innovation Centre (IDRIC) – a UK research and innovation hub for industrial decarbonisation – Professor Dame Heather McGregor, Provost of Heriot-Watt University Dubai, and Professor Mushtak Al-Atabi, Provost and Chief Executive Officer of Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.
The roundtable was focused on four parallel discussions on policy and strategy, science and technology, green finance, and talent development.
Among delegates attending the roundtable were representatives from Malaysia’s Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change (NRECC), the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister's Department, Malaysia’s national talent strategy agency – Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad – The British Council, Microsoft Malaysia, the Ministry of Science, Technology & Innovation (MOSTI), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) – the government’s digital transformation agency – Petronas Research, BMW Group Malaysia, Malaysia Aviation Group, American Chamber of Commerce, Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) and Academy of Sciences Malaysia.
The outcomes and recommendations of the roundtable discussions were presented to all stakeholders during the event and will be made available soon.
Heriot-Watt University Malaysia is proud to be a part of this initiative and hopes that this event will help to identify ideas and opportunities to support a green economy, sustainable markets, and a wider programme of decarbonisation towards a carbon-neutral Malaysia.