Building resilient cities — communities that can absorb, recuperate, and prepare for climate-related shocks while also promoting sustainable development — is critical to achieving a climate-resilient Malaysia. says Kieran Li Nair, a researcher at Research for Social Advancement (REFSA)
In REFSA's most recent study brief, he analyses how climate change affects Malaysian cities and how sustainable urbanisation policies that incorporate a whole-of-society perspective might improve the cities' resilience.
He said that sustainable urbanisation attempts to address equitable economic development, social advancement, and environmental responsibility to ensure the long-term viability of cities as well as to improve the well-being of both cities and their inhabitants.
"With the increasing urgency of the climate crisis, it is all the more important to ensure our country is adequately equipped to handle its impacts and reduce its causes. This is especially true for the urban lens, which ongoing climate change policy cannot afford to ignore, given that Malaysia is increasingly urbanised," he said.
According to Nair, the issues Malaysian cities confront as a result of climate change can be broadly classified as temperature increases and extreme weather.
Temperature increases contribute to the urban heat island effect and sea level rise in coastal cities, while extreme weather causes catastrophic flooding and other natural disasters.
Nair said that when tackling these issues, extra consideration must be given to the most socioeconomically challenged communities, as they are disproportionately affected.
"To rationalise and complement its myriad existing climate action plans, Malaysia's strategies for honing resilient cities should be formulated from the three basic frameworks of climate mitigation, climate adaptation, and financialisation," he said.
Climate mitigation techniques, such as resilience planning for new development or infrastructure projects utilising risk assessment frameworks, as well as administering green rating systems/certification, have been recommended.
Green rating systems, according to Nair, should be harmonised across the country, and development projects should be re-assessed regularly to assure quality.
Renewable energy, such as solar, should be promoted and made more accessible to homes and urban developers, he said.
He proposed realistically upgrading existing infrastructure as a climate adaptation strategy to ensure that it can handle changing climate conditions.
"This ranges from utilising nature-based solutions, such as sponge cities, improving infrastructure to support sustainable mobility."
Finally, ideas for financing Malaysia's green policies include carbon taxes and a linked carbon pricing scheme, both of which are undergoing feasibility studies.
"Ambitious, thorough, and actionable plans are needed to ensure not only that Malaysia will meet its climate targets, such as becoming a carbon neutral nation by 2050, but more importantly to secure the long-term sustainability of its cities and their population," he said.