Building Foundations for a More Sustainable Future: Dr Matthias Irger shares insights at Malaysian Diaspora
[Above] Matthias Irger with City of Melbourne and Consulate-General of Malaysia officials and fellow speaker Ravi Krishnan, CEO of MRCB International
The City of Melbourne has recently refreshed its approach to international engagement, with a greater focus on Malaysia for cross-border trade, collaboration and people to people exchange. Melbourne is home to more than 18,845 Malaysia-born persons in Victoria and 9151 Malaysian students who live, work and study in the city.
On 12 June, the City of Melbourne and Consulate-General of Malaysia in Melbourne co-hosted an event for property and urban development professionals to further understand and uncover opportunities to work together and support shared endeavours.
The theme for Melbourne’s Malaysian Diaspora, ‘Building Foundations for a More Sustainable Future’, shaped conversations in support of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly 11 ‘sustainable cities and communities’ and 13 ‘climate action’, while highlighting capabilities in areas like climate adaption, decarbonisation and city resilience.
Dr Matthias Irger, COX National Head of Sustainability
As climate change accelerates, so does the need for climate action. Together, we have the power to redefine urban living, to create climate-positive cities that are not only resilient and adaptable but also regenerative and thriving.
L-R: Consul-General of Malaysia Nik Muhammad Nasyron Syah bin Nik Daud, City of Melbourne Councillor Jamal Hakim and Matthias Irger
COX National Head of Sustainability, Dr Matthias Irger, was invited to present at historic Melbourne Town Hall to the community of property developers, business owners, academics, entrepreneurs, innovators, students and university alumni.
Exploring the challenges and opportunities for climate positive and resilient cities, Matthias spoke about reducing the carbon footprint of buildings and bringing nature back into our cities to increase resilience against heat and floods.
L-R: COX’s David Henderson, Philip Rowe and Matthias Irger with Carrier Director Felix Wong
Helen Brown, journalist and founder of Bisnis Asia was host of the event, with Ravi Krishnan, CEO of Malaysian Resources Corporation Berhad (MRCB) International, also presenting on the night about his organisation’s focus on climate adaption, decarbonisation and city resilience.
As COX’s national sustainability head, Matthias oversees the practice’s sustainable design and planning agenda, creating national strategies, objectives and actions that reduce and mitigate the embodied and operational carbon emissions across our services – ensuring best-practice design. He’s actively engaged in bridging science and design practice through his role as Senior Research Fellow and Industry Adviser at the University of New South Wales (UNSW).
