It was a privilege to take part in the Asia School of Business (ASB) Centre of Technology, Strategy & Sustainability (CTSS) Policy Brief Series—an insightful gathering that brought together minds from academia, industry and policy to tackle one of the most pressing frontiers of climate action: carbon markets.
Chaired by thought leaders such as:
- Ms. Ivy Wong Abdullah, CEO of Malaysia Permian Global
- Dr. Jeong Won Kim, Senior Research Fellow at the Energy Studies Institute, NUS
- Prof. Renato Lima De Oliveira, Facility Director, CTSS
- Dr. Pieter E. Stek, Senior Lecturer at ASB
- and our own Ts. R. Puvaneswari, Managing Director of Global Tunikara Sdn Bhd, who joined as a panelist —
— the session offered a deep dive into how Southeast Asia can shape a more credible, inclusive and scalable carbon market.
🔎 One of the core questions raised:
“What does integrity mean in the context of carbon markets—and how do we build trust?”
The answer was both sobering and inspiring.
In carbon markets, integrity means more than accounting for emissions. It means ensuring that each carbon credit:
✅ Delivers real, additional, and measurable climate benefits
✅ Is independently verified and traceable
✅ Avoids double counting or greenwashing
✅ Upholds social and environmental safeguards
🌱 Beyond integrity, the discussions extended to:
- Constructing carbon markets that serve both climate and communities
- Scaling nature-based solutions (NbS) like mangrove and peatland restoration
- Biodiversity conservation in parallel with emissions reductions
- and how policy diffusion across ASEAN is quietly shaping a new regional landscape
What made the session truly engaging was the depth of expertise across sectors—academics and industry practitioners exchanging practical ideas, candid challenges and collaborative solutions. It wasn’t just theoretical—it was actionable.
In carbon markets, the real currency isn’t the credit—it’s trust. And the only way to scale these markets responsibly is to embed integrity into every layer: from data to design, from community to compliance.
Thank you to Asia School of Business, CTSS and all the distinguished panelists and participants for creating a space where ideas are not only shared—but sharpened.
Let’s continue building markets that don’t just trade carbon—but earn climate credibility.
