Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean said on Tuesday ( May 6 ) that Asia is essential to addressing the climate crisis and that it should work together regionally to achieve a low-carbon future.
At the beginning of Ecosperity Week 2025 at the Marina Bay Sands , Expo and Convention Center, Mr. Teo, who is also Guiding Minister for National Security and president of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change, made the remarks.
The annual Temasek conservation function, which will take place from May 5 through May 8, may have a theme centered on Asia’s contribution to combating climate change.  ,
In his keynote address, Mr. Teo outlined the growing world confusion.  ,
The foreign trading system has been altered, the statement read. Redrawing of supply stores is ongoing. A more subjective, interventionist, and dangerous world is emerging as a result of changing global leadership.
As a result, nations are reevaluating their interests, putting a new focus on financial endurance, self-sufficiency, and proper freedom, according to Mr. Teo, adding that it was not surprising for climate interests to take a backseat in such circumstances.  ,
According to Mr. Teo, citing an Asian Development Bank report, Asia could experience losses of up to 41 % of its gross domestic product by 2100.  ,
Extreme weather is expected to cause significant disruptions to food items and other organizations in Southeast Asia, he added.  ,
The fight against climate change may be won or lost, but it is also happening around, in Asia. Not only prone to the problems, our area is. We are essential to resolving it.
Although Asia currently accounts for more than half of the world’s carbon pollution, he said, its emissions per person are also lower than those of the US and Europe.  ,
So, while Asia is anticipated to account for 90 % of the world’s future growth in energy demand, this growth is a necessary consequence of improving people’s lives, reducing poverty, and making sure that underserved communities get access to – for example – , reliable electricity.
” Not only our own path, but the entire world will be shaped by how we decarbonize, and how we source energy, whether from fossil fuels or renewables,” said Professor X.