Bracing for the great ESG talent wars

DEMAND for climate-friendly finance and investments is driving a massive need for ESG expertise. That, coupled with scarce talent, has laid bare an acute mismatch in Asia where sustainability issues are most recently concentrated and companies lag behind their Western peers. And this in turn is impeding the region's sustainable finance push.

In Brunch in The Business Times Weekend, we look at the great ESG talent crunch and how the financial sector in Singapore is working towards solutions.

Sustainability also comes to the fore in The Raffles Conversation this week. Carola Richter, regional president at BASF, shares how the German chemicals giant is focused on being an industry thought and action leader to drive sustainable solutions.

Carbon dioxide is hard to quantify as a cost to the planet. Voluntary markets for trading carbon are a start, but investors need universal rules on how carbon is measured as well as globally recognised climate accounting and investment standards, particularly for green bonds, writes our Investing With Impact columnist.

In Fit To Lead, BNP Paribas' Joris Dierckx shares how his passion for sailing has helped him stay the course, in the face of constantly changing winds, in his banking career.

As if falling sick with Covid-19 wasn't enough of a trial, some recovered patients suffer the ill effects of an accompanying disorder - discrimination. In The Winding Road, our columnist shares the unhappy experiences of those who were taken to task for testing positive.

What to do if you find yourself alone in the new Portofino M for a day, with the Tuscan hills nearby? You know what they say: In a Ferrari, all roads lead to roam. The Steering Column takes you there.

And in our Health page, why memory loss is not just "part of ageing" - it can be reduced and reversed.

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