The Butterfly Effect – Towards a Greener Malaysia

“It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world”

– The Chaos Theory

Pause for a moment. Look up from your mobile phone. Have you ever wondered what the future of the energy might look like? It’s time we take a step back and reevaluate our energy management. At the recent Astana EXPO 2017, countries came together to do just that.

115 states and 22 international organizations came together at the gargantuan gathering held in Astana, Kazakhstan, which ran for 93 days.

To the theme of “Future Energy”, the Expo aimed to promote and discover sustainable, global energy solutions. Kazakhstan’s choice of the topic reflects the fact that eventually the country, and the rest of the world, will have to make the transition to alternative energy sources and greener economies.

Powering Awareness through a Pavilion

Malaysia’s participation was spearheaded by the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA) and coordinated by the Malaysian Green Technology Corporation (GreenTech Malaysia). With a strong front, Malaysia’s Pavillion at the Astana EXPO 2017 was backed up by their title sponsor Tenaga Nasional Berhad.

Carrying the theme of “Powering Green Growth”, the Malaysian delegation put their best foot forward with one of the largest pavilions at the Expo. Flaunting an immersive 3-D tropical rainforest and adorned with creative visuals of butterflies, the Malaysian Pavilion was also declared to be one of the top 10 most visited pavilions at the Astana EXPO 2017.

 

Image obtained from www.greenfuturemalaysia.com. Photo credit: Malaysian Green Technology Corporation

The Pavilion served to showcase the nation’s green agenda through five main sections, which highlighted Malaysia’s sustainable policies, agendas, and strategies. Malaysia’s Truly Asia side was also featured through various multicultural performances, displays, and demonstrations.

Driving awareness of the nation’s green agenda at the expo was also the Malaysia Energy Forum was titled “Tapping the Potential of the ASEAN Energy Market”. Led by Malaysia, the energy forum aimed to encourage conversation surrounding the future energy, with a focus on the ASEAN region.

Your Social Power is Malaysia’s Solar Power

#Wattif. A play on words or the start of a powerful motion?

With the aim of kickstarting a social movement, Malaysia revealed their “1 post = 1 Watt” Pledge at the Malaysia Energy Forum. The campaign, aptly called #MyButterflyEffect, was inspired by the principle that even the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Malaysia can affect change in another part of the world.

 

For every social media post supporting green growth in the three months of the Expo, the government agreed to implement more solar panels to generate electricity. Currently, Malaysia’s installed capacity for photovoltaic generation capacity, resulting from the Feed-in-Tariff mechanism, stands at 344.7 megawatts.

In posing the simple question of #Wattif, the campaign hoped to spur conversation on the future of green growth and energy – and hopefully inspiring youths to partake in the change that they wish to see in the world.

Opportunities lie ahead

In total, Malaysia received over 619,337 visitors at the Malaysia Pavilion and generated a whopping RM12.681 billion (~US$3 billion) worth of business leads with companies based in Kazakhstan, China, and Switzerland over the 13 weeks at the Expo. This surpassed the RM1billion initial trade and investment target that Malaysia had initially set.

Of the amount, RM5.05 billion was garnered from 14 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), and the remaining was secured through business matching sessions throughout the Expo.

 

With MoUs signed in various sustainable areas, a greener future for Malaysia is closer than we think. The Expo managed to serve as a platform for future opportunities, not only in the renewable energy sector, but also in areas such Islamic green financing, education, green technology, oil and gas, and innovation.

In true spirit of partnership, KeTTHA Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili also shared that by working together, Malaysia and Kazakhstan could be on track towards achieving both countries’ renewable energy generation mix target of 50 per cent by 2050.

To make this goal a reality, Maximus said Malaysia had rolled out its plans and programs such as the National Energy Efficiency Action Plan (NEEAP) 2016-2025 to jumpstart energy efficient culture in the country.

A Greener Future is closer than you think

With one of the largest pavilions in the whole of the Astana EXPO 2017, Malaysia’s theme “Powering Green Growth” truly stood out.  They have stamped their green mark for the world to see.

So what are you waiting for? #Wattif you could do the same?

Add your pledge here today: http://www.greenfuturemalaysia.com/1post1watt/