Welcoming Remarks by
Y.A.M. TUNKU TAN SRI IMRAN IBNI ALMARHUM TUANKU JA’AFAR
YSD CHAIRMAN

List of Attendees:

• Dato’ Jeffri Salim Davidson, YSD Governing Council Member and Group Chief Executive Officer of Sime Darby Berhad.
• Puan Sri Normah Hashim, YSD Governing Council Member.
• Senior Management and Employees of SD Guthrie Berhad, Sime Darby Berhad, and Sime Darby Property Berhad.
• Representatives from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability and other Government Agencies.
• GDRN (GLC Demi Rakyat dan Negara) members.
• YSD’s Project Partners.

Assalamualaikum and a very good afternoon to all.

1. Happy World Environment Day! While the global community celebrated earlier this month, at Yayasan Sime Darby, our commitment to the environment continues all year round. It is wonderful to see such a great turnout from employees, government agencies, project partners, and GDRN members. Thank you for being here with us today.
2. YSD complements government efforts in accelerating environmental impact and societal change, playing a key role within the GDRN, the network of GLCs and GLICs formed for national CSR purposes. As the philanthropic arm of SD Guthrie Berhad, Sime Darby Berhad, and Sime Darby Property Berhad, YSD has invested over RM206 million in environment protection and conservation since 2009.
3. Our theme for YSD World Environment Day this year is “Our Land, Our Future,’ which emphasises the importance of protecting the CFS. For more than a decade, YSD has invested close to RM27 million in the Central Forest Spine (or the “CFS”), working with all stakeholders including the government, and the local and indigenous communities.
4. When we asked around about the CFS, we received responses that it was a mountain range, a highway, or even a river flowing through the middle of Peninsular Malaysia. So, for those who don’t know, the CFS is actually an ecological network of forest complexes high in biodiversity, stretching from Kedah to Johor, and critical to the country!
5. While we premiere the final chapters of WildRoots today, our broader conversation about sustainable practices and community development continues. Aside from the work on the ground with human-wildlife coexistence management, anti-poaching efforts, and planting of trees (including endangered, rare, and threatened species), YSD focuses on advocacy and spreading important knowledge for us to learn how to do our part in saving the environment, with innovative initiatives. Earlier this month, we launched the “Trunk Tales” board game with the Management & Ecology of Malaysian Elephants (or MEME), designed to educate the public about elephant conservation and the importance of human-elephant coexistence, in a fun way!
6. YSD’s Eco Citizen employee volunteering programme continues with SD Guthrie Berhad and The Lost Food Project, to bring 80 SD Guthrie volunteers to find out more about our work rescuing nutritious surplus food from going to the landfill, which helps to reduce CO2 emissions. The rescued food items will be sorted and repacked to be distributed to poor and needy communities. In another YSD Eco Citizen initiative, Sime Darby Property’s WanderLab programme will see 720 participants, including children, engaged through a series of three (3) environmental education initiatives designed to raise awareness and appreciation for our natural environment.
7. In continuing with our World Environment Day spirit, we invite employees to register to volunteer and contribute to our environmental stewardship programme with Free Tree Society. We have a booth outside today.
8. Ladies and gentlemen, The CFS is a biodiversity powerhouse, home to species like the majestic Malayan Tigers, beautiful Hornbills, and iconic Malaysian Elephants, among many others – each integral to our conservation efforts. The WildRoots docuseries is YSD’s effort to spotlight what has been achieved, and what still needs to be done. We hope that WildRoots will help to convey the critical importance of forest and wildlife protection in the CFS to the rest of the world, Insya Allah.
9. Echoing recent global calls for unified action against climate change, YSD is doubling down on initiatives to enhance biodiversity, improve forest connectivity, and engage communities directly in conservation. We collaborate with many partners, whom we shall meet during the series screening and event today, to tackle environmental challenges.
10. Shortly, when you experience WildRoots, you will journey with our team across over 4,000 kilometres through the dense terrains of the CFS. Along the way, you will witness its breathtaking beauty and share in the spontaneous wildlife encounters that our crew experienced while bringing this vital conservation story to life. These moments mirror the daily realities faced by our partners working on the ground.  
11. Let what we encounter today inspire us to act for tomorrow. From what we have seen and experienced on the ground, protecting our natural heritage truly requires a collective effort – and it is a legacy we hope to maintain for our children and grandchildren. I am confident that collectively, we can turn the tide for our Central Forest Spine, Insya Allah.