The heart of Southeast Asia’s economy beats to the rhythm of agriculture, as Asia Fund Manager’s Namrata Sen Chanda puts it, contributing 10 percent of the region’s GDP and more than 30 percent of jobs in some countries. Those benefits are, however, threatened by climate change. And, equally alarming, agriculture is one of the top causes of carbon and methane emissions that cause climate change in the first place. Agtech start-ups are leveraging IoT, sensors, drones and more to create solutions to reduce emissions and help farmers adapt.

While high-quality at-scale production of biochar is new in Southeast Asia, there is massive potential in uses ranging from agriculture to – surprisingly – water treatment. Thai Carbon is looking to become a leader in biochar in Thailand and around the world.

While inverters clearly do not get the attention solar panels do, and they’re often almost unknown to solar energy users, they are critical to system performance and even grid reliability. New technologies are enabling far better performance.

In visits to the countryside after she moved from Vietnam to Myanmar in 2015, Village Link CEO Quyen McGrath was surprised to see rice plant heights and crop yields varying tremendously. After seeing a rapid increase in mobile phone users in the country, she and her collaborators developed an app and extra services to support farmers, increase their agricultural yields and help newly arrived investors.

More than 90 percent of the population in Singapore is not vegetarian or vegan, so expecting a mass shift to vegan lifestyles is unrealistic. By making small changes to eat less meat, though, people who do eat meat can improve their health and also reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Published first in Living in Singapore at https://issuu.com/singaporeamerican/docs/lis_mar-apr_24, starting on page 40.

When he was looking for his next role in 2021, WasteX CEO Pawel Kuznicki said, “I wanted to make an impact.” And that led him to set up WasteX, to turn agricultural waste into biochar. Biochar is the residue remaining after the pyrolysis - burning - of biomass such as agricultural waste. Biochar is a solution for both climate mitigation and climate adaptation, Pawel noted. “For mitigation, you remove carbon. For adaptation, you're making agriculture much more resilient, improving soil health, increasing yields, and reducing fertiliser usage. Given the climate crisis and how agriculture is affected by it, and how fertiliser prices affect farmers, we are creating mind-blowing value for them.” Farmers get higher yields and more income, and rice, corn or sawmill operators turn waste into cash.

The agriculture industry is responsible for nearly 25 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, so its impact on climate change is huge. At the same time, though, farmers are experiencing devastating impacts from climate change. A multitude of start-ups in Southeast Asia are helping them produce more efficiently, reduce emissions and overcome effects of climate change.

A key reason why buildings are so important for decarbonization is that, according to the Washington Department of Commerce, “buildings represent approximately one-fifth of Washington’s greenhouse gas emissions. Washington is consistently among the top states for energy efficiency policies and programs that save energy, advance equity, and produce environmental and economic benefits.

More and more payments providers globally are gaining a competitive advantage by rolling out products that mitigate the climate impact of customers’ purchases so they can meet the needs of consumers who are concerned about the effects of their purchases on climate change.

Rising demand for electricity due to EVs as well as other devices and shortages of additional capacity threaten electricity reliability across the United Stages. Utilities in Washington State and across the nation are developing Distributed Energy Resources (DER) to solve the issues.

Walk past a construction site, office building, home or factory and it might not seem like they’re spewing out any carbon dioxide at all. In reality, those buildings account for nearly 40 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions and more than a third of energy usage. To reduce their impact on climate change, leading-edge startups in Southeast Asia and globally are at the forefront of developing innovative solutions to reduce emissions from buildings.

After traveling around the world for work with global giants such as PWC and Proctor & Gamble, Covid stopped Telaship founder Amrita Haralalka in her tracks. Seeking more meaning in her work and wanting to support artisans in India who produce sustainable fabric, she decided to develop an online platform to help them scale up.

Donating to a worthy cause seems easy. Many people simply give to a charity that asks, give where they gave before or talk with friends. By being more strategic with your money, though, you can make sure your donation has more impact, regardless of whether it is small or large. Published at https://issuu.com/singaporeamerican/docs/lis_nov-dec_23

Solving the pain point for consumers who want to shop for products from small sustainability-oriented companies was the reason for founding Looqal, said founder Joyce Teh. The problem consumers have, Joyce added, is that “Supply is fragmented. They chance upon them. The quality and authenticity are not verified. It’s made worse with greenwashing.” Looqal offers a single site for consumers to find quality products from small impactful businesses that support their communities and the environment.

While many people may only think of EVs as cars, in Southeast Asia EVs are more often motorbikes. From tiny startups to corporate giants such as Honda, companies are gearing up to replace the 235 million motorbikes in the region and massively reduce carbon emissions. (Published in Impact Entrepreneur at https://impactentrepreneur.com/electric-motorbikes-not-cars-mitigate-climate-change-in-se-asia/)

To help solve one of the most pressing problems humanity faces, said Xinterra CEO Patrick Teyssonneyre, Xinterra focuses on developing materials such as textiles to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air. “We know materials can help solve the problem. We started with textiles to make an impact,” he said. “Textiles can be bedding, tablecloths, towels or even national day flags.” The same concept can also be used in paint and other materials.

A Start-up Story: Moreloop, Thailand As he looked at how to reduce industrial waste in Thailand, Moreloop co-founder Amorpol Huvanandana found that the garment industry is one of the biggest problems. More than 2,000 garment factories in Thailand have anywhere from 3 to 10 percent of their fabric left over after production, leading to industrial waste. He co-founded Moreloop to reduce the waste.

A Start-up Story: ECOSOI, Vietnam While seeing farmers burn pineapple leaves might leave many people in despair, the sight inspired Vu Thi Lieu to create new fabrics. Her invention of a machine that turns leaves into pineapple yarn creates new fabrics, mitigates climate change and raises farmers’ incomes.

While development of solar power in Washington state continues to grow, the biggest need for electricity is in the more populous western half of the state and much of the development is on large solar farms in the sunnier eastern half. Solar farms are becoming increasingly difficult to site. Highly attractive locations can be home to endangered species and critical habitat, or they can be very attractive for farming, residential development or recreation. It turns out that there are a variety of alternatives to deserts or croplands.

When we put on our clothes in the morning, we probably don’t think about their environmental impact. It’s enormous, as the clothing industry causes 10 percent of global greenhouse gasses and 20 percent of water pollution. Start-ups in Southeast Asia have sustainable solutions.