Methane is the second-largest contributor to global warming after Carbon Dioxide and reducing methane emissions is crucial due to its significant impact on short-term global warming. Recognising this importance is often hindered by unclear information, but scientists are working hard to increase awareness on the issue, as methane emission reductions are considered a readily achievable and cost-effective solution, making them a low-hanging fruit in the quest for overall emission reduction. Malaysia signed the Global Methane Pledge (GMP) in November 2021 along with around 100 other countries - what progress have we seen from our country in that area since then? In 2022, civil society organisation CERAH formed a partnership with the University of Malaya, the University of Nottingham Malaysia, and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to promote transparency, public engagement, and progress on methane emissions reduction in Malaysia, through the CERAH-EDF Project. The project which recently concluded offers some key findings and recommendations, including the need to clearly articulate a national direction for methane action. We find out more from Dr. Helena Varkkey (Associate Professor of Environmental Politics and Governance, Universiti Malaya) and Dr. Matthew Ashfold (Atmospheric Scientist and Assoc Prof, University of  Nottingham Malaysia), who were both involved in the research project.


Image Credit: Shutterstock

Methane is the second-largest contributor to global warming after Carbon Dioxide and reducing methane emissions is crucial due to its significant impact on short-term global warming. Recognising this importance is often hindered by unclear information, but scientists are working hard to increase awareness on the issue, as methane emission reductions are considered a readily achievable and cost-effective solution, making them a low-hanging fruit in the quest for overall emission reduction. Malaysia signed the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.globalmethanepledge.org/">Global Methane Pledge</a> (GMP) in November 2021 along with around 100 other countries - what progress have we seen from our country in that area since then? In 2022, civil society organisation <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://cerah-my.org/">CERAH</a> formed a partnership with the University of Malaya, the University of Nottingham Malaysia, and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) to promote transparency, public engagement, and progress on methane emissions reduction in Malaysia, through the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://cerah-my.org/cerah-edf/">CERAH-EDF Project</a>. The project which recently concluded offers some key findings and recommendations, including the need to clearly articulate a national direction for methane action. We find out more from Dr. Helena Varkkey (Associate Professor of Environmental Politics and Governance, Universiti Malaya) and Dr. Matthew Ashfold (Atmospheric Scientist and Assoc Prof, University of&nbsp; Nottingham Malaysia), who were both involved in the research project. Image Credit: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cow-grazing-on-pasture-ch4-text-1973351183">Shutterstock</a>

Climate change, ferocious weather and ‘the haze’ are now part our everyday lives. How are our lifestyles connected to them, and what can we do about it? What does the economy have to do with it? Earth Matters engages with activists and experts to explore our changing relationship with the planet that we only borrow from our children.

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