Dear Members and Friends

I’ve chosen the title of this issue because yesterday I attended the launch of CDL’s latest exhibition in its “We love our planet” series at the CDL Green Gallery at the Singapore Botanic Gardens (access via the Tanglin Gate.) The exhibition runs until June 2025 and I encourage you to visit it.

World population has more than doubled since 1980. We have lost so much biodiversity as a result. Human plundering of our planet’s resources has caused a 50% increase in hurricanes and other forms of extreme weather. We need to change our behavior and restore the natural world in our own best interests and those of our planet.

The private sector needs to act. More businesses like CDL need to take the lead. That’s why the Chamber is a founding partner of The Asia Pacific Green Alliance (APGA) which was officially launched last month. APGA is a collaborative platform focused on driving sustainability efforts across the Asia-Pacific region. It aims to provide simplified and actionable sustainability tools to support businesses across the region in their sustainability transformations, while advocating for Asia-Pacific sustainability priorities on the global stage. Other founding partners are CACCI, SMF, SBF, ISCA, and GS1.

I invite you and every businessperson in Asia-Pacific who reads this e-newsletter to complete the attached survey, co-developed by APGA in collaboration with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), to help achieve the above twin goals. Click on the QR code now. I look forward to sharing the aggregated input from the survey next year.

With my thanks and best regards.

Yours faithfully
Victor Mills
Advisor to the Board & Interim Chief Executive