September 2026

The September Issue Is Out Now! Penang Monthly’s September issue explores the vibrant world of Penang’s pasar malam, highlighting their food, culture, community, traditions, and evolving role in island life.

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A publication of Penang Institute, Penang Monthly is the voice of Penang - an inspiring read for the curious Malaysian, featuring stories about the people, ideas, and issues shaping the state's well-being. Sign up for a free account to enjoy unlimited access to all our articles.

Penang’s Tourism Players Needing All the Resourcefulness They Can Muster

4 min read

“PIVOT” is a fashionable term in tourism these days. It suggests a need for recalibration as local players scramble to appeal to a different market...

by Regina Hoo

Hungry Ghost Celebrations Hugely Downsized

4 min read

THE SEVENTH MONTH of the Lunar calendar is often referred to as the month of the “Hungry Ghost”. Believers hold rituals and ceremonies to pay respec...

by Pan Yi Chieh

Jeju and Penang: Two Islands, But Two So Very Different Bus Rides

7 min read

JEJU, PRESENT DAY: The electronic readout at the chrome and glass sheltered bus stop tells me my bus is two minutes away. The bus stop provides free Wi-Fi, so I...

by Marc de Faoite

Marc de Faoite

Building an App for a Crisis

3 min read

TO BUILD A properly functioning app for urgent public use is no small feat. Take for example the now defunct Penang Contact Tracer application, or PGCare for sh...

by Enzo Sim

Malaysians Move from Game-playing to Game-making

6 min read

GONE ARE THE days of the parent-child barter trade: “Score Straight As in your exams, and you’ll get that Gameboy Yellow you wanted.” Today, t...

by Alexander Fernandez

ASEAN’s Appeal Watered and Coloured

7 min read

Chow Chin Chuan's (Malaysia) The Unfading Past II.IN THE MIDST of the Covid-19 pandemic, an international watercolour exhibition has surprisingly attracte...

by Ooi Kok Chuen

Discovering Penang through Its Rich Biodiversity

4 min read

A study in 2012 revealed that this Banded Bent-toed Gecko (Cyrtodactylus pulchellus) is a new species, unrelated to the banded geckos found in other parts of...

by Justine Vaz & Allen Tan

Justine Vaz

A Broad Socio-economic Impact on Penang is to be Expected from Climate Change

7 min read

MULTIPLE CLIMATE HAZARD indices have categorised Malaysia’s Northern Region – Penang, Perlis, Kedah and Perak – as “middle” for it...

by Naventhan Ahrasan

Naventhan Ahrasan

Youths and Climate Change: “We Didn’t Start the Fire”

13 min read

IT IS ANTICIPATED that Millennials will bear the full brunt of climate change in their lifetime. We live in the Anthropocene era, an age during which human acti...

by Kim Evers

Kim Evers

Is Penang Truly Inclusive for Persons with Disabilities?

6 min read

Ernest, Jia Hui and their eight-month-old daughter. Photo: Ooi Tze Xiong.LIVEABILITY IS VERY much a layered concept. Since the 1960s, discourse on city pl...

by Ooi Tze Xiong

Penang through the Eyes of Young Resident Foreigners

6 min read

HAILED A RETIREE’S paradise, Penang welcomes expatriates from all over the world to call the state their home. But curiously – and excitingly &ndash...

by Cheah Mi Chelle

What is it Like Living in Penang’s Southwest?

12 min read

What does it mean really when we say that a city is liveable? What factors come into play? Generally, this covers the usual suspects of: access to education, health and safety; economic prosperity; the ease of getting around; and the availability of recreational facilities.

by Jonathan Thong

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