Another round of successful International Collaboration Forum (ICF) was held on 8 April 2022 via Zoom. The fifth forum, also known as ICF 5.0 was co-organised by UTAR Division of Community and International Networking (DCInterNet) along with partner universities, namely Universitas Multimedia Nusantara (UMN), Indonesia; University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, China.

Themed The Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) Trends and its Action, the forum kick-started with an opening remark by Vice President for Student Development and Alumni Relations Prof Dr Choong Chee Keong.

“ESG highlights sustainability, and to define sustainability in a simple manner, it is the idea of meeting our needs, without compromising the needs of the future generations. Today, the demands to address sustainability and other pressing issues like climate change, equality and inclusivity are growing more. Sustainability can only be achieved if all parties work together because E, S, and G are not separate categories, but rather, are all interconnected. When we consider climate issues, we do not only assess an organisation’s environmental impact, but we also study the effects of climate change on low-income populations, and the governances involved to tackle this issue,” said Prof Choong.

He continued, “As a university, our role has evolved to more than just educating people. In this century, educational institutions are now becoming one of the most important platforms to drive social change by enabling the opportunity for people to get involved in initiatives and activities, through collaborations, that will help create new and better social and economic systems. In UTAR’s efforts to contribute towards ESG, we have set up the UTAR Green Campus Committee in 2017 to raise the environmental awareness among students and staff through understanding environmental issues, sharing information and continuous education, engaging in environmental stewardship; promote sustainable use of the earth’s resources by adopting socially and ecologically responsible practices; and instil environmental responsibility as a corporate goal. Under this committee, we have also outlined several policies and action plans to strengthen our efforts to promote a greener campus. These include Energy Management Policy Statement, Responsible Resource Management Policy, Sustainable Procurement Policy, UTAR Climate Action Plan, and Guidelines for Energy Conservation Infringement. Ultimately, these policies, action plans and guidelines are meant to create campus culture with sustainable and inclusive behaviour, as well as to develop cutting-edge sustainability research and education.”

The first session on “Rethinking Economic Analysis with ESG” was conducted by UTAR Faculty of Business and Finance (FBF) academic Prof Dr Wong Chin Yoong. He started with a little history on the free market manifesto that changed the business world in 1970, highlighting the Friedman doctrine that the social responsibility of business is to increase its profit. He also mentioned that maximising shareholders’ values is entrenched in every aspect of the business, and that issues like climate change, pollution, fair trade, energy consumption, workplace hazard, gender equality, board diversity, humanity and justice, and sustainability have all impact the way businesses are now operated. He emphasised that social awareness about ESG has changed the business landscape.

The second session with General Country Manager of H3C Technology Solutions Malaysia Sdn Bhd saw participants learning about ESG practices in the corporate world. He spoke on “Shaping the Digital Future for a Better Life”, and elucidated on H3C’s ESG focus areas. On the aspect of Environment, Ma explained that H3C aims to build an intelligent and green world, which looks into environmental protection powered by technology, responsible production and green office. On the Social aspect, Ma explained that the company looks into creating a bright future with digitalisation by contributing in social areas that will enable a digital society and bring continuous value; build a warm society; and care for employees. Lastly, on the Governance aspect, H3C aims to help in leading higher-quality development, with efforts including, establishing a sound compliance management system; adhering to integrity management and fair competition, and building a healthy internal environment.

Session three was led by Director of DcInterNet Assoc Prof Dr Lai Soon Onn, who also provided updates on the discussions made in the previous forum, while session four set an arena for the discussion on “Virtual Study Tour on ESG”.

ICF 5.0 ended with a closing remark by Deputy Director of DcInterNet Dr Chen, I-Chi. She said, “Today’s forum has taught us the concept of ESG and on ways to implement ESG in an organisation, focusing especially on the sustainable practices and obligations in the near future. We are grateful to both esteemed speakers for sharing their insights and experience. Special thanks to our partner universities for this successful forum and we look forward to our continuous collaboration on sustainable practice. Thanks to your participants for their support and attendance as well.”