Penang targets non-traditional tourists
6 min read
Greg Caplan, the founder of Remote Year, was three seas and two continents away when I called him. His team of six was in Slovenia, with 75 Remote Year particip...
Old shops face new realities
5 min read
Pulau Tikus is one of the upmarket districts in Penang. A fair amount of bungalows, colonial buildings and highend condominiums is located in the area, alongsid...
Making Malaysia’s Literary Capital Work
9 min read
Organising a literary festival is no easy task, especially when you’ve only got five months to do it. But passion and determination drove one man and his team to pull it off – and very successfully.
An Art Exchange on Penang’s Walls and Streets
6 min read
Urban Xchange, Penang’s first international street art festival, divided the state’s art sphere between purists and those who dare to be different.
The New Wave of Malaysian Fixi-on
6 min read
Petaling Jaya-based independent publisher Fixi conquered Malaysia's bestsellers charts with a new wave of pulp fiction that dares to defy Islamic conservatism and the country’s alleged low-reading rates.
#jesuischarlie: Will the Real Charlie Please Stand Up?
9 min read
Within hours of the first terrorist attacks in Paris, the hash tag “#jesuischarlie” (I am Charlie) began to rapidly trend on Twitter. As the violence continued for two more days, the hash tag was retweeted more than three million times.
Assorted Measures Needed to Empower Women
8 min read
Five years away from 2020, Malaysia still showcases a dismally low number of women in positions of power. To improve this figure seriously, it is perhaps time to consider implementing gender quotas in politics.
Foreign Students Learning the Hard Way
6 min read
Increasingly restrictive policies related to the issuance of student visas have transformed Malaysia from a rising education hub to a foreign student’s worst nightmare.
Shelter For Those Who Seek Their Way Back
5 min read
From 2000 to 2008, as many as 126,000 cases of drug abuse were reported in Malaysia. Each year brings approximately 14,000 new cases. These drug abusers tend to be young – over 71% of them range from 25 to 29 years old.
Making Movies of the People, by the People and for the People
10 min read
With the great changes happening in electronic applications and networks, most things are, by definition, going through a transition. This is true for the film industry as well.
Capitalising on Innovation
4 min read
Mainstream innovation experts suggest that technological innovation in the R&D sector employing human capital and existing knowledge stock exerts a positive impact on per capita output in both emerging and advanced economies.
Is Malaysia Becoming A Welfare State?
7 min read
With cash payments to the poorer classes becoming standard policy in Malaysia, questions have been raised as to the efficacy of such measures. How do they help the needy, and how is the political economy affected?