Green data centers help increase green investment in Southeast Asia: Report

Conceptual image of green server room. Imaginima | Istock | Getty Images Southeast Asia saw a significant uptick in green investments in 2023, with a boost from green data center projects, though funding remains insufficient, according to a report released Monday.  The analysis, conducted by Bain & Company, GenZero, Standard Chartered and Temasek, found that … Read more

Singapore has ‘engineered’ a society that lives to 100 – here’s how

This Asian country has one of the longest-lived populations in the world. Koh Sze Kiat | E+ | Getty Images Singapore is the world’s latest “blue zone” — defined as a place where people live longer and healthier lives. “Singapore has … the highest health-adjusted life expectancy in the world. So whatever Singapore did, it … Read more

Prabowo leads in unofficial presidential vote count

Indonesia’s presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto gestures after he cast his ballot to vote in the country’s presidential and legislative elections at a polling station in Bogor on February 14, 2024. Indonesians began voting for a new president on February 14 with Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto the frontrunner to lead Southeast Asia’s biggest economy despite concerns … Read more

Indonesians are electing Jokowi’s successor

Presidential candidate and former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan, vice presidential candidate Muhaimin Iskandar, presidential candidate and Indonesia’s Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, vice presidential candidate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, presidential candidate and former Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo and vice presidential candidate Mahfud MD (from left to right) react on the stage during the last presidential election … Read more

Canada in a ‘bit of a bind’ amid chill in relations with India, China: experts  – National

Amid a chill in relations with both of Asia’s heavyweights, regional experts say it’s time Ottawa warms up to Southeast Asia, arguing Canada has an edge as a middle power with large institutional investors. The call comes after years of strain with Beijing, which included the detention of two Canadians in China for more than … Read more

Gen Zs lead the way in Singapore’s online shopping space

Logos of online social media and social networking sites displayed on a smartphone screen on August 01, 2023 in Bath, England. Matt Cardy | Getty Images News | Getty Images SINGAPORE — As more businesses turn to social media to sell their merchandise, online shoppers in Singapore are exploring new buying experiences — and Gen … Read more

Economy, Gaza war and China ties dominate

Presidential candidates Anies Baswedan, Prabowo Subianto, and Ganjar Pranowo, along with their vice presidential candidates, are posing for photos after the first presidential candidate debate at the General Election Commission (KPU) office in Jakarta, Indonesia, on December 12, 2023. Indonesia is preparing to hold general elections for president and vice president for the 2024-2029 period … Read more

Climate change has displaced millions in Pakistan, China and India

A girl sits on a cot as she crosses a flooded street in Pakistan on October 4, 2022. A record 32.6 million internal displacements were associated with disasters in 2022 — more than the 28.3 million with conflict and violence, according to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. Fida Hussain | Afp | Getty Images As … Read more

Who had it good — and who had it bad — in 2023

Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, is managing director of advisory firm RiverPeak Group. Jose B. Collazo is an analyst focusing on the Indo-Pacific region. Follow them on X at @CurtisSChin and @JoseBCollazo. As 2023 comes to a close, we take a look at the year that was in … Read more

A new luxury hotel with rooms made from buses opens in Singapore

The resort hotel has 20 rooms which will be open for stays from Dec. 1, 2023. Source: The Bus Collective It only costs a dollar to ride a Singapore bus — but 398 Singapore dollars to sleep in one. The Bus Collective is Southeast Asia’s first resort hotel to repurpose decommissioned public buses into luxury … Read more