Expert Opinions & Stories

Amid a sea of high-rises and blocks of concrete, taking a walk through Bangkok’s Lumphini park or New Delhi’s Sunder Nursery can give you a much-needed break to “touch the grass,” in the midst of…

The development paradigm has shifted to ‘digital by default’ as a norm, reshaping societies and economies. As a hub for digitally driven innovations, Asia and the Pacific is well positioned to…

Adaptation is rapidly emerging as a critical pathway to safeguard communities and ecosystems from the impacts of climate variability which creates unpredictable challenges that are hard to plan for…

In July 2024, cascading impacts of multiple landslides in Wayanad, Kerala—a state of India – have killed more than 400 people and resulted in colossal socio-economic impacts. The landslides were…

Tshering Wangchuk is no stranger to the challenges of living in a rural community in the mountainous parts of Bhutan. “My place is far away from the capital city Thimphu. There is no road access. We…

The rapid growth of digitalization has fundamentally altered commerce, impacting production and facilitating the movement of goods. The 2023 Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR), has…

The summer of 2024 has shattered heat records, starkly illustrating the harsh realities of our warming planet. In India alone, the heatwave has claimed over 100 lives and caused more than 40,000…

Scientific assessments reveal that the Third Pole (TP), encompassing the vast glaciated mountain systems of Asia, is warming at an alarming rate of over 0.3 ºC per decade, surpassing the global…

In a world grappling with climate change, innovative solutions are the need of the hour. BillionCarbon, an Indian climate tech start-up founded by siblings Ankita and Nikhil Vijayvergiya, is at the…

As countries in Asia and the Pacific strive to achieve sustainable development against mounting climate change challenges, engaging youth in digital innovation is recognized as one strategy for…

For Ou Sokphanna, who lost her leg to a landmine explosion when she was young, opportunities for income generation have always been limited, with widespread discrimination preventing her from…

The development of sustainable and resilient infrastructure is necessary to achieve the development outcomes envisaged by the Sustainable Development Goals, such as access to clean water and energy…

33-year-old Rina Akhtar, hailing from Dhaka, Bangladesh, found herself grappling with adversity when her husband deserted her, leaving her to raise their two daughters alone.

Undeterred by the…

In the Asia-Pacific region, due to urban sprawl and transport infrastructure characteristics, the distance from a location to a public transport node is often longer than the 500m mark to…

As cities in Asia and the Pacific continue to expand, the demand for transport services to accommodate commuters is increasingly challenging. Integration of public transport systems has emerged as a…

Following a casual conversation with a friend who happens to be a blind software engineer, Tran Khanh Dung was enlightened to the multiple obstacles to digital accessibility faced by individuals with…

This year sees a rise in mandatory Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) reporting regulations and requirements, extending to not just listed companies but also non-listed smaller companies. KPMG…

The ESCAP Asia-Pacific SDG Progress Report 2024 flagged the region’s regression on SDG 13, climate action. To reverse this trend, it is imperative that both mitigation and adaptation go hand in hand…

Maternity protection is a human right enshrined in Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Income security for newborn mothers ensures their mental and physical wellbeing and…

Globally, it is estimated that over 70 per cent of women-owned businesses are either financially underserved or unserved. This gender finance gap deprives women and women-led businesses of crucial…