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Why SOWING THE SEEDS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

sustainability be overstated. is is especially true for Sunway Group Founder and
e importance of education in achieving sustainable development cannot
Chairman Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah, whose conviction is to make quality
education available to all through Sunway Group and the Jeffrey Cheah
Foundation.

childhood friends lose out on advancement opportunities due to their
must continue Growing up in his hometown of Pusing in Perak, Cheah witnessed his
families’ financial challenges and realised that education is the best route
The devastation left out of poverty and misery.
in the wake of the Recognising the crucial role of education in achieving the SDGs, Cheah
pandemic means that in a pandemic joined His Holiness Pope Francis, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki
sustainable Moon, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, and world leaders to
launch Mission 4.7 at the start of the annual Vatican Youth Symposium
development is on 16 December last year.
needed more than e global initiative is co-founded by Global Schools and the SDG
ever – not just for In February this year, Sunway Bhd, Academy – flagship programmes of the United Nations Sustainable
Sunway Construction Group Bhd
recovery e orts but and Sunway REIT have joined Development Solutions Network (UN-SDSN) – in partnership with
UNESCO, the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens, and the Center
to build a more global efforts to support the for Sustainable Development at Columbia University in the US.
recommendations of the Task Force
resilient future. on Climate-Related Financial
Mission 4.7, is set to accelerate the implementation of SDG Target 4.7,
Disclosures (TCFD).
which calls upon governments to ensure that learners acquire the
knowledge, skills, values, and attributes needed to achieve the SDGs, by
e three PLCs were among the first
e COVID-19 pandemic has upended the A year of lockdowns have resulted in school World Economic Forum (WEF) President Borge Brende, who Moving forward, prioritising companies in Malaysia to join 1,700 bringing together leaders from the government, academia, civil society,
world as we know it, worsening existing closures affecting 1.25 billion students was quoted in a Reuters article on 20 January, said that the vast sustainability will be a necessity for organisations worldwide in supporting and business.
inequalities in society and derailing decades worldwide and 86% of primary school amount of money in stimulus spending is “unlikely to make a businesses, as investors increasingly TCFD’s recommendations on Drawing upon UNESCO’s global leadership in education for sustainable
of progress made towards achieving the children in developing countries have lasting difference”, unless it is spent on “building future look for sustainable business models climate-related financial disclosures, development and global citizenship education, Mission 4.7 will be
United Nations Sustainable Development missed out on education – majority of resilience, including measures to develop green, low-carbon that demonstrate resilience and are able which comprise four areas –
Goals (UN-SDGs) by 2030. which is due to the digital divide, according economies, and broaden digital access”. to stand the test of unprecedented governance, strategy, risk management, responsible to monitor SDG Target 4.7, ensuring alignment with
to the United Nations Development market risks. as well as metrics and targets. UNESCO’s global frameworks and conceptualisations, and complement
existing programmes.
While ‘infectious diseases’ was ranked as the Programme (UNDP). Investments into areas such as healthcare, housing, digitalisa-
top global risk facing the world in the next tion, and the environment will lay the foundation for a more ESG has been gaining traction in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur has officially been selected as one of the
decade in the World Economic Forum’s As governments intervene with stimulus resilient and inclusive economy moving forward, said the Malaysia, evidenced by the number of “We have aligned our
Global Risks Report 2021, other global packages to keep their economies afloat International Monetary Fund (IMF). FTSE4Good Bursa Malaysia Index overarching United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network
risks such as climate-related ones (extreme amid a global recession, resources cannot be constituents as of December last year, material ESG issues to the (UN-SDSN) centres, alongside New York City and Paris, to coordinate
continent-wide sustainability initiatives for Asia, the Americas and
weather, climate action failure, human-led shifted away from SDGs. “ e recovery from the COVID-19 crisis must lead to a which has tripled since its launch in UN-SDGs as part of our Europe/ Africa respectively.
environmental damage), jobs crisis, digital different economy. Everything we do during and after this crisis 2014. Starting out with 24 companies, strategy for long-term success
inequality and cybersecurity, are just as In fact, in crises like now, the SDGs are must be with a strong focus on building more equal, inclusive the FTSE4Good Bursa Malaysia Index and economic value. With the
pertinent. Left unchecked, these threats will especially relevant. and sustainable economies and societies that are more resilient – which measures the performance of TCFD, we have a strategic e UN-SDSN centre in Sunway University will host the head office of
have equally devastating and far-reaching in the face of pandemics, climate change, and the many other public-listed companies (PLCs) that tool for engagement between the SDG Academy and lead programmes of the SDSN in Asia.
consequences, and even hinder pandemic “Achieving the SDGs will put us on a solid global challenges we face,” said UN Secretary-General António demonstrate ESG practices – now has Currently, the SDG Academy is drawing up a curriculum on sustainable
recovery efforts. foundation and a firm path to dealing with Guterres in a virtual press conference last March. 75 PLCs on board, e Edge reported. our companies and investors. development to be introduced as a compulsory subject at the K-12 level
global health risks and emerging infectious Sunway will continue to
According to the World Bank’s ‘Poverty diseases. Achieving Goal 3 of ‘Good Health ALIGNING BUSINESS WITH SUSTAINABILITY Embracing sustainability at the core of accelerate its sustainability worldwide.
and Shared Prosperity’ Report, global and Wellbeing’ will mean strengthening e silver lining to the pandemic is that a year marked with its business is Sunway Group, which strategy towards our “Mission 4.7 is being undertaken at a critical moment in the history of this
extreme poverty is expected to rise for the the capacity of countries for early warning, uncertainty and disruptions has accelerated investor interest in has adopted the SDGs as a framework continued growth, and to planet. Unless we act, and act now to educate our younger generation,
first time in over 20 years, with the crisis risk reduction and management of national companies with strong environmental, social, and corporate on which core business strategies are attract capital for continuous I fear for their future and the world they will inherit,” said Cheah at the

putting an estimated 150 million people at and global health risks,” said the governance (ESG) practices. built to promote the needs of the
risk of extreme poverty. Co-Chairperson of the United Nations surrounding communities. Sunway low-carbon innovation while launch.
Secretary-General’s Eminent Group of Citing a Financial Times article from August 2020, e Edge Group’s public-listed entities Sunway driving to deliver a “For a country to prosper, it is not enough just to have education.
e International Labour Organization Advocates for the SDGs, Republic of had on 20 January reported that investors invested record sums Bhd and Sunway REIT have sustainable future for all.” It should also be of high quality and made affordable and accessible.
projected 305 million job losses worldwide, Ghana President Nana Addo Dankwa into sustainable investment funds that are based on ESG maintained their presence in the e fundamental building blocks of nation-building are to first develop

while the global economy suffered a US$28 Akufo-Addo, and Norwegian Prime principles during the pandemic, with net inflows of US$71.1 FTSE4GOOD Bursa Malaysia Index
trillion in lost output, according to the Minister Erna Solberg, in a joint op-ed billion globally between April and June last year, and assets since 2014. Sunway Group President our people towards building a progressive future together. Which is why

International Monetary Fund estimates – article for the UN. under management in sustainable investment passing US$1 Tan Sri Chew Chee Kin I do this through quality education and research — without knowledge
there will be no progress,” said Cheah in a recent interview with e Edge
due to the pandemic. trillion for the first time. this year.
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