Sustainability for One Planet

According to the Guardian (March 15, 2018) the World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced a review into the potential risks of plastic in drinking water. This was in response to results of analysis of bottled water brands and that more than 90% contained tiny plastic pieces – microplastics. There were other studies which found the same problem with drinking water supply, rivers, marine and seafood. Recent studies into water contamination have found microplastics in 83% of tap water samples from major cities around the world.   We humans are exposed to microplastics / microfibers through air, water and food. Microplastics include broken-down plastic waste, synthetic fibres and beads found in personal hygiene products. They are known to harm marine life, which mistake them for food, and can be consumed by humans too via seafood, tap water or other aquatic food sources. Their impact of microplastics comes from their size and thus the ability to evade most filters and mayb

By Olivia Jensen: Olivia Jensen is a senior research fellow at the Institute of Water Policy, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.   15 March 2017 In the early 2000s, water supply was a looming problem for Malaysia. The country’s rapid development in the preceding two decades had driven an increase in the demand for water, especially in the main economic centres of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, and Johor in the south. Water supply and sanitation infrastructure, however, had failed to keep pace and restrictions on water supplies in the capital region were imminent. At the time, the water sector was an organisational, institutional and policy patchwork and financially unsustainable. Tariffs, efficiency and quality of service differed hugely across the country. The states had built up debts to the federal government which they were unable to service. Some states had also signed bulk water supply and concession contracts with private companies

August 2017, Kuala Lumpur: The United Nations Country Team has appointed the UN Global Compact Network Malaysia (GCMY) to develop the region’s first National SDG Portal – an enabling platform to map the SDG eco-system in Malaysia and a hub for stakeholders, drivers, policies, funding and learning. The platform will be activated in January 2018. The National SDG Portal will increase awareness of the SDGs and allow business and other stakeholders to make SDG commitments and report activities progressively. The platform will grow to include a marketplace for SDG proponents to match and exchange project ideas. “Sustainability is a complex process. The SDGs must be understood in the context of business. This platform can be used by business to show how they are making the SDGs happen in the real-world for Malaysia and Malaysians”, says Puvan J. Selvanathan, President of GCMY. GCMY is working closely with the United Nations Country Team, under the guidance of UNDP and the Government’s

Water pollution is a serious problem in Malaysia. It reduces total water availability considerably. Cost of treating polluted waters increases and some polluted waters are not treatable for human consumption. Urbanization within our river catchments gives rise to an increase in population and urban life activities.  Land development increases run-off  within  a  catchment,  which  in  turn  affects  the  water  quality  of  receiving  waters. Rainfall in urbanized areas washes down contaminants accumulated on land surfaces into storm water facilities.  The main point sources identified are household sullage, sewage treatment plant and industrial area. Besides these, there are other point sources polluting the river basin such as market, restaurant, workshop, resi-dential area, solid waste disposal sites, soil and sand sourcing, new development area, aquaculture, com-mercial lots, petrol station, livestock and others. The Department of Environment (DOE) maintains records of

According to many UN agency reports and research findings, the evidence is compelling that achieving the Sustainable Development Goals for water and sanitation would trigger a major leap forward in human development: Water and sanitation are essential in achieving all the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) Investment in water supply yields an average economic return of $4.4 to $1 Investment in sanitation yields an average economic return of $9.1 to $1 Human Development is more closely linked to access to water and sanitation than other development drivers UNDP has examined, including spending on health or education, and access to energy services. Availability of water is certainly a concern for some countries. It is, first and foremost, a crisis of governance and thus governance reform must be a key pillar of any strategic approach to addressing the water availability crisis. Water challenges will increase significantly in the coming years.  Continuing population gro

Farmer Field School (FFS)  is an approach based on people-centred learning. Participatory methods to create an environment conducive to learning: the participants can exchange knowledge and experience in a risk free setting. Practical field exercises using direct observation, discussion and decision making encourage learning-­by­-doing. The field is the space where local knowledge and outside scientific insights are tested, validated and integrated, in the context of local ecosystem and socio-economic settings. Community-based problem analysis is the entry point for a FFS group to develop a location specific curriculum. A growing range of technical topics are being addressed through FFS: soil, crop and water management, seeds multiplication and varietal testing, IPM, agropastoralism, aquaculture, agroforestry, nutrition, value chain, and link to markets, etc. FAO and other development organizations have been promoting FFS to address a broad range of problems and technical domains in