Studio EB A closer look at how these ‘energy transition’ deals are backed reveals gaps in the lending policies of banks in the Mekong subregion. A 1,460-MW dam, now under construction near the Luang Prabang UNESCO World Heritage Site, will see all its electricity sold to Thailand, but critics have pointed out that the nation is facing an oversupply of energy.

Dr Theresa Mundita Lim concludes her six-year tenure as the centre’s first female executive director, where she championed a regional biodiversity fund, among other initiatives.

The initiative is philanthropy-led and will extend beyond traditional Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to cover conservation of more existing ocean ecosystems. Less than 3 per cent of the region's national waters are under formal protection but a deadline to meet a global conservation target looms.

Ahead of COP29, a study by International Institute for Environment and Development shows that Asia's least developed countries have debt growing at a faster rate than climate support.