Page 4 - Berita-Sunway-Issue73

Features

THE REAL VALUE OF ORGANIC KEEPING THE To offset the increasingly

Sunway City Iskandar
e beauty of organic farming does not always lie in the bounties of its harvest or its nutritional index. CITY COOL frequent heatwaves,
Of all the buzzwords sweeping the food industry in recent years, “organic” ranks top in Puteri is getting new roots
popularity yet somehow remains ambiguous. anks partly to misinformed advertising, in the ground.
the primary message of the food movement to reach the broader public has not been
a call to arms, but a vaguely feel-good mantra. Today, “organic” is a multifaceted symbol
representing everything from artisan ideologies to trendy health practices, with an
individualistic emphasis on self-care. It is slowly deviating from its original values and
the stringent definitions laid out by regulatory bodies.
In order to qualify as organic, produce must first be grown without synthetic pesticides or
chemical fertilisers, among others. Pest control and crop nutrients are to be managed
through natural physical, mechanical, and biological methods as well. However, while the I skandar Malaysia is taking shape. 15 years since its inception, its skyline now glitters PAINTING THE TOWN GREEN
organic label certifies that products were produced using fewer modern inputs, it is not with glossy residential towers and sleek financial skyscrapers. World-class education
yet proven to be a guarantee of their nutritional values. Available studies abound but and medical facilities, and cultural attractions dot its landscape. e completion of Dismissing the idea of doing greening in an ad-hoc manner,
scientists have yet to decide if one is indeed more nutritionally superior to the other. As investment projects worth RM7.33 billion in the first quarter of this year amidst the part of Sunway's game plan includes the formulation of a landscape
the din of debate continues, a few critical elements risked getting lost in all the pandemic continues to prove its lasting appeal to investors, working professionals, house master plan for all its cities across the nation. Sunway City Kuala
cacophony: culture, context, and voices from the field, which all provide important hunters, and students alike. All signs are pointing to a booming city. Lumpur was the first to witness a successful transformation.
reasons beyond nutrition to choose organic food. Intentional planting of 30,000 trees and palms to date has elevated
But unlike some other city booms that have sprouted only high-rises, concrete, and asphalt,
green initiatives and low-carbon agenda are quick to take root on this urban soil, thanks to the city seated on a former tin mine into the green lung of Klang
a growing movement of developers, urban planners, landscape designers, and others who Valley. In much the same way, Sunway City Iskandar Puteri is
are actively responding to Iskandar Malaysia’s sustainability call. embracing the tree-hugging initiative. e world has lost trees to
contaminated food. Adding to the development faster than it could plant new ones. In a reforestation
A STANCE AGAINST effort, Sunway City Iskandar Puteri has nurtured more than
price tag is the acceleration of climate
ECOSYSTEM LOSS change. According to a report presented THE RISE 14,000 trees in its Sunway nursery, with 7,500 trees replanted thus
KEEPING Sunway City Ipoh organic farm by e Intergovernmental Panel on OF HEAT far to enhance the township landscape, on top of preserving the
172-acre mangrove along the 7km Pendas river. Combined with
THE HUMAN was born from Sunway’s deep Climate Change, agriculture accounts ISLANDS dedicated eco parks, green pockets, water bodies, and green
for 16 to 27% of human-caused
corridors, this sustainable city is designed to always flourish within
commitment to sustainable development.
TOUCH e Group’s founder and chairman global-warming emission. e heavy 40% nature.
use of synthetic fertilisers is one of the
Tan Sri Dr. Jeffrey Cheah long ago principal culprits.
created a blueprint for townships Researchers have long touted the ecological benefits of green space.
to run sustainably: green buildings, One thing the organic farm in Sunway In fact, a study by the Jeffrey Sachs Center on Sustainable
At Sunway City Ipoh organic farm, those noises seem to fade into solar energy, water treatment, waste City Ipoh is teaching us: humans need Development spotlights the importance of trees in urban areas:
the background. Stretching 20 acres among a forest of greenery at e diversion, everything recycled. Besides COMMERCIAL CITY URBAN RESIDENTIAL PARK good tree coverage can lower air temperatures in sweltering cities
Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat, a luxurious eco-retreat in Ipoh, the job creation, the organic movement to start learning to oblige the tenets of If you wander around Sunway City by up to 15°C. Considering
extensive ground plays home to rows of organically grown herbs and would be a return to ecological health. the land. Otherwise the consequences Iskandar Puteri, you will find trees from how a small tree of not more
vegetables. eir varieties could rival the local farmers’ market. for ecosystem security could not be more than 60 species tucked in nooks all than four meters tall is able to
bigger. Organic food may or may not
Every day, a team of growers go out into the field to mow and sow Organic production systems do not try be more nutritious. But that is beside over: some dotting the sidewalks, lawns, supply about 6 kW of cooling,
in those beds. ey weed, mulch, and apply all-natural fertilisers; to dominate the landscapes. It is widely and gardens; clusters of mature ones lining Sunway City Kuala Lumpur has
irrigate the crops with water from the mountain; and spend many accepted among the community that the point. the banks of its lakes and pristine water the combined force of 60,000
interminable mornings transplanting seedlings in sunstroke heat or nature, unlike a factory, could not be bodies; and many splashes of green natural air-conditioners keeping
harvesting root crops in torrential rain. Regular crop diversification dissected and reassembled to maximise covering in and around its commercial the city cool. Sunway City
and rotations are instituted following the changing of the seasons. productivity. Blotting out one element precincts. Kuala Lumpur and Sunway City
is system keeps the farm and its soil vibrant year after year, with of wildlife, even a pest, will cause severe Iskandar Puteri’s collective
little waste. disruption to the food chain. Instead, It is all part of a deliberate, idealistic plan. Since its inception, Sunway Group has been at green movement is thus expected
to continue yielding bountiful
organic producers respect and mimic the forefront using urban forestry to not only advance its own sustainability goals, but to prospects, be it in saved
e flurry of horticultural activities documents the pastoral realities the systems already present in the beautify neighbourhoods, improve air quality and reduce street-level temperatures as the
of organic farming. at and its need for human skill and greater natural ecosystems. is is ecological region gets hotter due to climate change. According to independent assessments of global energy costs, green business
opportunities, or the 47,001
knowledge. e Green Revolution that broke out post-World War II integrity. temperature changes by the United States, Europe and Japan, rising temperatures last year
has transformed what was essentially a human profession into an industry. capped the world’s warmest decade in modern times, driven by surging levels of tonnes of CO2e emissions
avoided since 2015. More than
By embracing chemicals and machines, the approach to growing food Industrial agriculture may be able to heat-trapping greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane. And they are not the that, however, are valuable lessons on how to responsibly manage
has veered sharply away from human stewardship. To grow organically produce massive quantities of crops at only regions grappling with these challenges. Research conducted by local city-making urban planning and how to reverse the repercussion of urbanisation
is to directly oppose the excesses of industrialisation. e Sunway remarkably cheap prices. But it does so organisation ink City last March reveals that the urban heat-island effect is rapidly that has been eroding the fabric of our cities over many decades –
City Ipoh organic farm has proven it to be an economic advantage. at a prohibitive cost to the environment invading Malaysian cities too. Johor Bahru, for instance, recorded a peak temperature knowledge the Group plans to export to other cities.
For one, it creates employment in developing countries like Malaysia and living beings, hidden in the increase of 6.7°C within 13 years between 2005 and 2018.
where underemployment is on the rise, and demographic growth creeping degradation of our fertile Cities have long been hurtful to the environment. While there is
stays high. Combined with the right digital technologies, the farmland, residual pollution in our It is clearer now that we need to speed up in addressing climate risks, incentivise green still time to get this critical situation under control, we do not have
elaborate labours make harvest of good food and good quality of life water courses and the scary rise of Sunway City Ipoh organic farm lending, and scale up institutions tackling social and environmental goals. In an echo of the much left to lose. As the saying goes, the best time to plant a tree
for all – possible. golden age of capitalism – the period after 1945 when Western nations began to steer their was 20 years ago. e second-best time is now.
finance toward the right parts of the economy – Sunway has been among the first in the
nation to rouse itself to action.
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