Sultan Ahmad Shah
Environment Trust (SASET):
Looking after the "Abode of Tranquility"
"I would like for us to be able to bring our
children to places like Taman Negara and
the Tioman Island and tell them, 'This is
yours. We've been looking after it for
you.'"
-His Highness Prince Fahad
Mu'adzam Shah of Pahang.
Go Green at Bera 2014
Balancing People
and Nature
SASET was founded in 2011 by
senior members of the Pahang
Royal family, as an expression of
their commitment to protect and
sustain Pahang's environment and
heritage. Since then, SASET has
worked to support both Pahang's
people and its highly diverse
habitats, wildlife, flora and fauna.
The SASET Trust does this
through a variety of initiatives, all
designed to "balance people and
nature."
"The real challenge rests in how to
help rural Malaysians develop
awareness and then turn this
awareness into action," the 22year old Prince told us. "While
recycling and environmental
sustainability are common themes
in America and Europe, back home
These words, spoken by His Highness
Prince Fahad Mu'adzam Shah of Pahang,
Founder and CEO of Sultan Ahmad Shah
Environment Trust (SASET), illustrate the
focus and vision that drives his ecological
work. Despite his youth, the Prince, who is
a member the ruling family of Pahang, is
establishing a strong reputation as an
advocate for the environment and education. In an exclusive interview, he discusses the progress and sustainability
being achieved in the State of Pahang,
Malaysia.
they are not always seen as such a
priority. I feel it is so important for
every individual to realize the
power they have to make a change
for the better. Yes, of course, there
is a responsibility for our elected
officials to help save our wildlife,
habitats and areas of outstanding
natural beauty for future generations. But we must also realize that
if we too are littering, polluting and
contributing to the problem in the
first place, then we can do a huge
amount to contribute to the
solution ourselves."
In order to facilitate this sort of
change, SASET places a huge focus
on sharing knowledge and empowering grass roots initiatives among
the people of Pahang.
"Education is at the heart of
SASET," Prince Fahad emphasizes, "because I honestly believe
most of the damage that is being
done, is not being done willfully. If
we educate the next generation to
be aware of how much they can
help, we can all contribute to
keeping Malaysia as beautiful and
amazing as it has always been."
By developing transparent KPIs
(Key Performance Indicators),
which target specific components
of an environmental issue, SASET
is steadily shifting the balance in
Pahang, but it is clearly a complicated situation. Prince Fahad
compares it to a chain of dominoes
with one issue inevitably leading to
another, so having a clear strategy
is core to approaching such a wide
challenge. Yet with the access and
influence of Pahang's Royal family,
SASET's work on environmental
preservation is gradually achieving results.
cont...
22 | ASEAN Life • MAY 2016