Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd communications representative Suhailah (in white) explaining the company’s sustainable activities to Star Media Group chief business officer Lydia Wang (second left) and OCBC Bank’s Wholesale Banking managing director, Jeffrey Teoh (far right). — Photos by SHAARI CHEMAT and AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star
AS PART of the ESG Positive Impact Awards (ESG PIA) 2023 launch at Menara Star, 12 of the winners of the inaugural awards were invited to showcase their sustainable efforts.The inaugural ESG PIA 2022 was Vista Laser Eye Centre Sdn Bhd’s first participation in such events.
Its human resource chief Monica Wong said winning silver in the talent management category last year inspired Vista to join TalentCorp’s Life At Work Awards, where it won five more awards.
“It helped us realise we have a strong, positive company culture, as well as identify gaps for growth and improve on them.
“Moving forward, Vista will continuously learn from the gaps, take measures to innovate, set goals and enhance our processes in accordance with ESG principles,” she said.
Representatives from Ikano Corporation Sdn Bhd posing with a presentation of their efforts that won them gold in both waste management and transformation categories.
Solarvest Energy Sdn Bhd senior campaign marketing executive Joanne Lee said the award from SMG motivated the company to further foster innovation, strengthen existing ESG initiatives, and provide a platform to showcase its unwavering commitment to ESG principles.
“We’ve seen a notable increase in our brand’s visibility and a growing appreciation for the meaningful strides we have been taking in the ESG arena.”
She added that Solarvest, which won silver in the relations with local communities category last year, was prioritising developing innovative climate solutions in mitigating climate change.
It also assisted clients and businesses in creating a sustainable future by fostering a corporate culture focusing on ethics, diversity, and a greener, healthier world.
UPM Consultancy and Services Sdn Bhd general manager Prof Dr Azlizam Aziz said UPM was motivated to further enhance efforts in carbon offsetting projects using mangrove forests, in addition to teaching, training, conservation and greening work.
Solarvest Energy representatives in white briefing Teoh (middle) on its ESG activities while Wang (left) looks on.
“Future plans of UPM include more greening efforts in collaboration with local governments, state authorities, and non-governmental organisations.
“We have already set up a forest nursery in UPM’s forest area to support these greening programmes.”
He added that UPM, which won silver in the sustainable ecosystems category, was the only university which offered forestry related courses in Malaysia and had over 30 years of experience in green activities.
Meanwhile, things have been going smoothly for Sedania Innovator Berhad since winning gold in the energy efficiency category last year.
The company’s green technology manager Syafiq Shaidali said it had gotten a few more projects in renewable energy including solar and energy efficiency.
Future plans of UPM include more carbon offsetting projects using mangrove forests and greening efforts in collaboration with local governments, state authorities and non-governmental organisations.
“We have become more well-known in the market.
“Moving forward, Sedania is looking into micro hydro power turbines, renewable energy, as well as energy efficiency focussing in SMEs.”
He added that Sedania, in partnership with Alliance Bank, had launched a programme which focused on helping SMEs implement ESG compliant practices and processes.
Q3 Management Solutions Sdn Bhd research and development lead Aiman Aqeem Toreq said the company used the award as a benchmark to reach greater heights.
“We work to move forward and upwards. It gave us a sense of achievement, helping us recognise that our efforts are effective in making positive impacts.”
Choi from Samaiden (in white) explaining the company’s sustainability efforts to visitors. Behind her (in black, left) is Secret Recipe’s Sim. To the right is the booth for Q3 Management Solutions.
He added that the company, which won gold in the diversity, equity and inclusion category last year, was focusing on ESG consultation and knowledge transfer to spread awareness about ESG.
“We are placing emphasis on addressing the knowledge gap in the industry.
“Based on the UOB Business Outlook Study 2023, we discovered that more than 80% of businesses know the importance of ESG, but only less than half have started implementing sustainability practices.
“This is an opportunity for us to together realise that ESG is practical, sensible, profitable, and prepares businesses to be sustainable in the long run,” said Aiman.
Secret Recipe sustainability executive Sean Sim Zhe Han said the company had been further expanding in accordance with ESG principles since clinching silver in the responsible consumption and production category at last year’s ESG PIA.
Representatives of Sedania ready to inform visitors of their company’s upcoming projects especially in renewable energy.
“We make it a point not to remain stagnant. We have always been engaging in community programmes and collaborations with other organisations whenever the opportunity presents itself.”
Noting that the company is conducting further research and development, as well as undergoing training in ESG-related matters, Sim said Secret Recipe was expanding its social programme to foster closer ties to the local community through initiatives including its autistic children programme as well as conducting more activities with its partners Eco Garage, Lost Food Project, among others.
“On the environmental aspect, we are looking to adopt possibilities to propel the company in the ESG realm.”
Ikano Corporation Sdn Bhd, which heads the successful IPC Shopping Centre, won gold in both the waste management and transformation categories last year.
“Waste management has been part of our business since 2009, and we are still enhancing and upgrading the way that we manage our waste,” said general manager Karyn Lim.
Vista human resource chief Wong (middle) says winning silver in the talent management category is just a start to winning more awards.
“The award for transformation ties with our recycling and buy-back centre, which we have been operating since 2011.”
That system has been upgraded and digitalised, to make it easy and friendly for users to recycle.
She added that the company used its green platform to spread sustainability awareness among the community.
Geomax Rubber Innovative Products Sdn Bhd director Steven Ng shared that winning The Most Outstanding ESG Initiatives of The Year in the SME to Mid-tier award attributed the win to great exposure to the market and people.
“The award (helped us) create more awareness that ESG is something important and that everyone should do it.”
He said Geomax planned to create more eco-products with more impact, not only on the environment but for consumers, because the market still lacked green products.
Kenanga’s sustainability vice president Bavithira (right) stresses the importance of partnerships.
“In that way our consumers can enjoy quality green products that help save the environment for the future generations.”
Representing Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd was Suhailah Shamsudin from the company’s Selangor Maritime Gateway project who said winning the ESG PIA had given the company a lot of visibility among the local communities in Klang.
“Even though we have engaged with multiple groups, it has increased tremendously because of a local award garnered this year.”
“We aim to continue focusing on the community and have started engagement with the younger age groups from about eight years and above next year.
“We plan to have pupils engaging with fishermen, so that young people can learn more about the importance of preserving rivers while assisting the local communities as well.
Representatives from FGV, which won gold in Renewable Energy for the Large Company tier, engaging with a visitor at their booth.
Semaidan Sdn Bhd’s Strategic Development executive Choi Huey Yi said, “Following our recognition at the ESG PIA 2022 award where we won silver for renewable energy category for SMEs to Mid-Tier, we have been actively implementing sustainable processes within our operations and examining various areas across the organisation to reduce our environmental impact while simultaneously enhancing our social responsibility and governance practices.”
For the future, it plans to further integrate ESG principles into its business operations, to emphasise innovation in sustainable practices and products.
Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad Sustainability vice president Bavithira Chelvakumar stated that winning the silver award for Innovative Partnership showed that its partnerships with the United Nations Global Compact, Renikola, the Ant Group and others had brought on collective action in sustainability related initiatives.
“The sustainability factor has already been there. It’s just a matter of recognising those efforts and initiatives to build more partnerships going forward,” she said.
Geomax Rubber director Ng (left) showcasing some of his eco-products to Teoh (second left) and Wang (third left).
She also mentioned that Kenanga had developed a sustainability roadmap and that it planned to collaborate with clients and vendors in order to bring more value to the chain.
Also participating in the event were representatives from FGV, who won gold in Renewable Energy in the Large Companies tier.
The ESG Positive Impact Awards 2023 are organised by Star Media Group Bhd with OCBC Bank (Malaysia) Bhd as the main sponsor.
To register your interest in the awards programme, visit staresgawards.com.my.
