In 2015, nations agreed on the groundbreaking Paris Accord whereby Parties pledged to reduce their national greenhouse gas emissions in a bid to limit global temperature rise to below 2C. But for Global South countries such as Malaysia, ramping up mitigation efforts may be too little too late. Faced with the inevitable affects of climate change, find out what Malaysia is doing to ensure its survival in a rapidly warming world.

About Our Speaker 

Vishanthini Kanasan an Administrative and Diplomatic Officer with the Malaysian Government, has been in the civil service serving Penang State in various federal and state government agencies since 2005: Chief Assistant Director in Penang Works Department (JKR), Chief Assistant District Officer, North East District and Land Office (PDTL) and her last posting as head of the Local Government Division of the Penang State Secretary Office (SUK). Her role involves planning and implementing policies and strategic development with regards to Local Government, Mobility and Connectivity, Green, Smart and Resilient City initiatives.

A strong believer in ‘Being The Change SHE Wants To See’, she has initiated bottom up approaches focusing on People, Public and Private partnership to ensure implementation of impactful projects. Her roles covered driving change besides overseeing performance of both Local Governments in Penang; the Penang City Council and the Seberang Perai City Council; as well as the implementation of the Penang Transport Master Plan, Penang Solid Waste Management and the Penang Smart Cities Initiatives. She has also been appointed as the Penang2030 and Penang Green Agenda’s Advisory Committee member.

She was awarded a scholarship by the Malaysian Government in 2017 to pursue her PhD in Centre for Global Sustainable Studies (CGSS) Universiti Sains Malaysia, on Sustainable Development focus on climate resilient, urban planning and governance.