Coaching Makes Effective Leaders
3 min read
IN THE CORPORATE world, the traditional authoritarian leadership model has given way to more collaborative and people-centric approaches, and requires that lead...
September 2025
This September, we explore Seberang Perai Selatan. Our stories cover Nibong Tebal’s Teochew heritage and sugar legacy, Batu Kawan’s evolution into a township, Penang’s waste challenges at Pulau Burung, the brackish rivers of the south, and the communities that shape the district today.
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Menu Rahmah Has Been Helpful, But What’s Next?
3 min read
Menu Rahmah offers RM5 meals to ease living costs for B40 Malaysians. While it helps families access nutritious food, rising costs threaten its sustainability. A proposed app could track impact and support vendors, ensuring no one is left behind.
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The Post-Covid Crisis: Rising Food Prices
10 min read
Cooking used to be a fun passion project, but with rising food costs, it’s now a careful act of budgeting. This piece explores how inflation is reshaping how Malaysians eat, shop and survive.
Fight for Your Man Caves and Your Comfort Foods
3 min read
You have your favourite places—rooms where you feel safe, where you can let go. These are your retreats, your reset zones. Equally vital are the comfort foods that soothe your soul. In a crowded, overstimulated world, such sanctuaries—physical and emotional—are more essential than ever.
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New Migrants Bring New Meals to Malaysia
9 min read
Many food recipes that present-day migrants bring with them are now our favourites. Below is a selection of meals and desserts often prepared by migrant workers and refugees in Malaysia, chosen because they each tell a story about another part of the world.
How Food Price Increases Are Affecting Malaysians
1 min read
Footnotes:[1] According to UN Food and Agriculture Organizations (FAO), undernourishment is defined as not consuming enough calories to maintain a normal, activ...
When Penang Was an Axis Submarine Base
11 min read
The I-29’s mission to rendezvous with the U-180 was one of a series of long and dangerous missions to Nazi-controlled Europe, dubbed the Yanagi missions, for the exchange of technology, skills and military material.
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Breaking Down Budget 2024: Malaysia’s Path to Fiscal Consolidation, Economic Growth and Social Wellbeing
9 min read
Budget 2024, themed "Economic Reform, Empowering People", charts Malaysia’s largest-ever fiscal plan at RM393.8bil. It emphasises fiscal consolidation, targeted subsidies, revenue diversification, and growth through human capital, digitalisation and SME support.
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Going Vegetarian
4 min read
First published by Pulau Pinang Magazine, a celebrated bi-monthly magazine that covered the culture, history, traditions and lifestyle of Penang. Edited by Khoo...
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Let’s Talk About Men’s Mental Health
5 min read
A survey conducted by the Ministry of Health in Malaysia shows that the national prevalence of depression in Malaysian adults is 2.3%—this translates to about half a million people. Men are generally less likely to seek help compared to women, and tend less to talk about their emotional distress.
The Vibrancy, Variety—and Silent Endurance—of Indian Cultures on Show
3 min read
“Spice and Curry”, staged from 4 to 5 November 2023, was a showcase of Indian artistic fare. The cosy and compact space at iBox Theatre was fitted with garlands, saree fabrics, glittering peacock features and burning incense.
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Notional Treasures Hidden in Oral Traditions
5 min read
What I discovered is that traditional performing arts in Malaysia offer more than just music, dance, intricate costumes and kenduri (ritual offerings), but also poetry—or rather “spoken poetry” in the form of doa, mantra, incantations and jampi.
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