You may have observed that our world is changing at an unprecedented rate. Global consumption of natural resources could almost triple to 140 billion tons a year by 2050 unless nations take drastic steps, as the United Nation issued a warning this year. Weather disasters in the poorest nations have trebled since the 1980s and carbon emissions have also reached highest ever levels, with unpublished estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA) revealing that the world economy's return to growth in 2010 coincided with a 1.6 gigatonne rise in carbon dioxide emissions, the highest ever recorded.

Recent headlines this year in 2011 also included the EU and US debt crises, oil prices reaching two-and-a-half year highs; Japan dealing with a nuclear power meltdown; the one-year anniversary of the Gulf Oil disaster; and the International Energy Agency (IEA) issuing a report calling for more aggressive build-out of clean energy to offset declining oil production and climate change. So we see climate change has become a real and very serious problem, but it's only one of a suite of problems the World is now facing - everything from peak oil to volatile markets to record-high food prices to the need to bring genuine development to half the world's people that live on less than US$2 a day, and to the frightening reality that we are and to the frightening reality that we are losing every major ecosystem on the planet.

So how are Businesses faring? Business is probably the only institution on the planet that can move fast enough and that is intelligently managed to be able to grasp opportunities despite the state the world is in. Experts point out that though corporations control the use of massive resources, by changing their habits, they can make a much bigger difference than any individual possibly can. The good news is that most business leaders are beginning to understand the importance of taking action to reduce their companies' carbon footprint on the environment. There is now proof from Wall Street and Goldman Sachs showing that companies that are leaders in environment, social and good governance policy have 25 percent higher stock value than their less sustainable competitors.

Research has also shown that even in the economic collapse since 2008, sustainability leaders have the fastest-growing stock value and are well protected from value erosion, even in a down economy with more sustainable companies having an average market capitalisation of US$650 million more than their less sustainable competitors.

Climate capitalism is therefore becoming good for the bottom line, with corporate spending on sustainability estimated to double in 2013 from current levels, sparking a massive market expansion as companies increasingly see the business value of investing in the Environment.

At its best, business can deliver the creative solutions that the world desperately needs - low carbon prosperity for a planet that will have an estimated nine billion inhabitants by 2050.

At YTL, I am pleased that we have adopted the "Four Cs" of corpora te envi ronmental stewardship:

(1) Conserve Energy
(2) Convert to Lower Carbon Energy
(3) Choose Quality Offsets
(4) Call for Action

Meanwhile, the concept of Sustainability is increasingly seen as a need-to-have by corporate Boards and CEOs, rather than a nice-to-have. Sustainability carries with it a range of quantifiable, bottomline benefits that enhance competitiveness and resource efficiency. I am pleased that within the YTL Group, we have established a committed "YTL Group Sustainability Committee" dedicated to looking at important environmental matters from energy efficiency to carbon mapping and overall stewardship of sustainability within our Organisation. The vision here is for Directors, Employees and Agents of the Group to conduct themselves in a manner that always meets and regularly exceeds expectations of sustainable practices through the mastering of three languages - the language of God, Man and Machine.

The policy applies to the entire YTL Group of Companies and has been formulated in order to streamline and unify the Group's Sustainability Policy across all business units.

I believe every company is an energy company - or will be one soon - as it may only be a matter of time until energy management programmes become the norm. The sooner companies have strategies and actively manage their energy use, the faster they will succeed in gaining a number of advantages including better savings, a better bottom line, greater customer loyalty, lower business risk, enhanced competitive advantage and company-wide awareness of sustainability. Executives now understand that not only can they afford to go green, they cannot afford not to. And this is our stance at YTL.

One of our innovative "Calls for Action" comes in the form of our flagship educational campaign, Climate Change Week, which we pioneered and have been hosting since 2007. Designed to educate and raise public awareness towards the critical issue of global warming, it aims to raise environmental consciousness amongst Malaysians, inspiring them to be part of the solution to the urgent issue of global warming.

Earth Hour 2011 @ Orchard Road, Singapore

On 26 March 2011, YTL also celebrated its third Earth Hour, which saw 36 of our subsidiaries and properties switching off their lights for more than an hour in respect of this global movement. Our Group's iconic landmarks and establishments, including several in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bali, Phuket and Japan, switched off their lights from 8.00 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. (keeping to the theme of " 60+" and going beyond the Hour) in a move that underlines our belief in the collective power of individuals in reversing the tide of climate change. In Kuala Lumpur, celebrations were held at Lot 10's "Forest in the City" Rooftop and over in Singapore, the popular shopping district of Orchard Road was transformed into a "sea of candles" during the inaugural "Celebrate Earth Hour @ Orchard 2011",

where YTL Corporation was the Presenter Sponsor of the inaugural event, along with the Organiser, Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Here, members of the public were treated to an evening of street celebrations in a bid to raise public awareness on environmental conservation. In response to the devastating earthquake in Japan and ensuing tsunami, staff and volunteers from YTL and Starhill Global REIT also worked together to accept donations on behalf of the Singapore Red Cross for the Japan Disaster 2011 Fund, strengthening the significance of "going beyond the hour" this year.

In 2011, mi les tones of YTL's corporat e responsibility and sustainability achievements include YTL Corporation, Starhill Global REIT & Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA) receiving the "Special Award for the Best Party" at the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Earth Hour Singapore 2011 Participation Awards, and YTL-SV Carbon winning the Award for "Best Carbon Markets Brokerages, Asia" at the World Finance Carbon Market Awards 2011. YTL Corporation and YTL Cement also won the Silver Award for "SR Leadership Excellence" and Bronze Award for "Best Product Excellence", respectively, at the Global CSR Awards 2011. In addition, YTL Corporation was awarded the "Corporate Platinum Award" by Singapore's Community Chest Awards 2011* saluting individuals, companies and organisations with a selfless propensity to help those in need.

YTL has also signed up to support and be part of both the Copenhagen Communiqué on Climate Change, the Cancun Communiqué on Climate Change, and the 2°C Challenge Communique, widely recognised as the definitive progressive statements from the international business community. The Copenhagen Communiqué - issued ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in December 2010 by business leaders of over 950 companies from over 60 countries - calls for an ambitious, robust, an equitable global deal on climate change that responds credibly to the scale and urgency of the crises facing the world today.

The Cancun Communiqué on Climate Change built on the significant momentum created by the Copenhagen Communiqué, making it clear that the case for a comprehensive international framework to tackle climate change still stands and is increasingly urgent, and urging governments to both redouble their efforts to achieve this framework and also take necessary and appropriate mitigation actions in parallel with such efforts. The signing of the Cancun Communiqué demonstrates the progressive consensus within the international business community in support of an ambitious, robust and equitable deal on climate change survives Copenhagen, which was taken a step further with the signing of the 2°C Challenge Communiqué.

These statements are initiatives of The Prince of Wales's Corporate Leaders' Group on Climate Change which is run by The University of Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership, and collectively reinforce that world leaders need to redouble their efforts to agree on such a deal and also take appropriate measures to tackle climate change today.

Over a decade ago, YTL began innovating ways to use clean technology, realising the implications of uncontrolled carbon emissions into the atmosphere, as well as exploring renewable energy sources, due to the heavy energy demands of the utilities and construction industries. For example, as a leading utilities player, we insist that our equipment suppliers continuously work to improve their technologies, not just because we demand it, but also due to the big consumer push for it.

At YTL, we have seen first-hand how sustainability programmes and policies have reaped outstanding results. Our strategy is two-fold. Firstly, we have a strong monitoring system put into place to measure and track energy usage, and secondly, we are pursuing and steadily increasing renewable energy usage, wherever possible. This strategy applies to all our businesses within our Group.

Businesses are increasingly taking steps to safeguard their future energy security by investing in their own renewable generation capacity and at YTL, we are pleased that we have not only established an in-house Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) consultancy - we are also innovating.

The Bio-Bug, developed by Wessex Water subsidiary GENeco, runs on biogas generated from the sewage treatment process

Our subsidiary in the UK, Wessex Water, and its subsidiary GENeco Limited, for example, has developed a VW Beetle vehicle that is powered by methane gas derived from human waste, the first such test done in the United Kingdom (UK). Named the "Bio-Bug", the vehicle runs on methane gas generated during the sewage treatment process. Waste from just 70 homes in Bristol is enough to power the Bio-Bug for a year, based on an annual mileage of 10,000 miles. The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) claims the launch of the Bio-Bug proved that biomethane from sewage sludge could be used as an alternative fuel for vehicles.

This bodes well for us, given that renewable energy sources are expected to contribute up to 80 percent of global energy supply by 2050, according to a new report published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Climate change is also featuring prominently on the legislative agenda across the 16 major world economies, hence the need to look seriously at alternative energy technologies such as biogas.

Over the previous decades, we can observe that the relationship between companies and NGOs have steadily evolved from conflict to cooperation. So in addition to investing in green technology, we are also continuing our ongoing support towards our long-term conservation partners. As stewards of our good earth, YTL has long supported conservation throug international groups like The Nature Conservancy and Rare Conservation, as well as local environmental organisations including WWF-Malaysia, Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) and Treat Every Environmental Special (TrEES).

This year is recognised as the United Nations Environment Programme's "International Year of Forests 2011" and we are proud to continue our support for these environmental organisations which we have been long-term supporters of and whom are doing great work in preserving our world's forests and carbon sinks. Studies have shown that forests soak up a third of fossil fuel emissions, playing a larger role in the Earth's climate system than previously suspected for both the risks from deforestation and potential gains from regrowth. Estimates reveal that tropical forest regrowth is removing an average of 1.6 billion tonnes of carbon each year, with all the world's forests combined acting as a net sink or sponge for 1.1 billion tonnes of carbon, which is the equivalent of 13 percent of all the coal, oil and gas burned across the planet annually.

In June 2010, we gifted Rare Conservation with US$2 million to establish the "YTL Fellowship for a Rare Planet", with a focus on educating "Rare Pride" Campaign Managers all around the world to champion conservation in local communities, globally and beyond. In the first year of the fouryear grant, YTL Fellows and the Pride Campaigns they lead have already impacted over 20% of 205 Pride Campaigns launched since the early 1980s, making significant strides towards lasting conservation impact in China, Indoneia, Timor Leste, and the Philippines. Rare estimates the YTL Fellowship will directly impact approximately 2,000,000 of the world's most underprivileged that are most vulnerable to climate change and depletion of the natural resources upon which they depend.

Our support for Reef Check Malaysia also continues with marine conservation work focused on both the East and West coasts of Malaysia. With climate change and rising temperatures causing increasing levels of coral bleaching on the reefs in coastal areas of Malaysia, we believe it is our duty to protect the reefs and its biodiversity the best we can despite the harrowing news and reports on the state of our reefs.

Personally, I am also proud to serve in several non-profit organisations that make leadership in sustainability possible, namely The Nature Conservancy (TNC), The Institute of corporate Responsibility Malaysia (ICRM) and the World Economic Forum (WEF). As a long-time member of TNC, one of the largest conservation groups in the world committed to protecting nature's most precious ecosystems, I have the privilege of working alongside world leaders to strategise, build partnerships and projects, as well as open doors to resources.

At the rapid rate at which forests are disappearing, I am glad to have fostered a long-term partnership with TNC, who help protect forests globally through various schemes. In the past, YTL has donated to TNC a substantial amount of US$500,000 to support conservation efforts inforest protection and coral reef conservation within South East Asia, primarily in Indonesia. I am also the Chairman at YTL-SV Carbon, YTL's in-house carbon credit and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Consultancy, which advises companies on processes involved in becoming clean and green.