PSR, PTMP keys to unlocking Penang’s sustainable future
The Penang South Reclamation (PSR) and Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) have received much attention in the past week. Penangites, as well as those who are not from Penang, have voiced their concern as well as support for these two projects. Personally, I believe the PSR and PTMP hold the key to unlocking Penang’s sustainable future. When I use the word “sustainable”, I don’t mean it as ecological or environmental preservation, as how it is used by some civil society bodies. I understand “sustainable development” as the progression from the interactions of the economy, society and physical environment (Jeffrey Sachs, The Age of Sustainable Development , 2015). The key word is “interactions”. A meaningful interaction involves exchanges, not stagnation or status quo. In other words, the economy, society and environment cannot remain the same in the process of achieving sustainable development. Sole focus on any of the three without the other two is not sustainable developm...