KUALA LUMPUR (March 9): The effects of climate change are becoming increasingly noticeable in Malaysia which has been experiencing extreme weather events in recent times, the latest being the floods in Johor caused by continuous heavy rain and affecting over 50,000 people.

Awareness of climate change

What is the level of awareness among Malaysians on the effects of climate change and what are they doing to address the issue?

Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub (MCCCRH) Malaysia Node postdoctoral research fellow Dr Azliyana Azhari said a survey carried out by MCCCRH between July and August 2022 found that most of the respondents are keen on reducing greenhouse gas emissions but lack faith in what they can do to mitigate climate change and its impacts. The survey, involving 1,063 respondents aged 18 and above, was aimed at gauging their awareness and concern regarding climate change as well as related behaviour in response to climate concerns.

Data accessing

While a sound understanding of climate change is vital for everyone, it is, however, challenging for the public to access weather alerts and prepare for climate risks.

It is with this in mind that Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) launched MyIKLIM Database on Jan 23 – a first-of-its-kind one-stop portal providing a database on climate change with technical and layman-friendly information readily available to the public, academia, industry and policymakers.

According to MyIKLIM Database project leader Dr Maggie Ooi Chel Gee, localised data gathering is crucial for climate projections for the next 50 to 100 years.

Click here for more info.