THE Global Tipping Points Conference 2026 (GTP 2026) will be held at Sunway University from Oct 12 to 15.
The four-day conference, which is taking place in Asia for the first time, will bring together scientists, policymakers, health leaders, financiers, business leaders and youth advocates from around the world to explore how positive change can be accelerated at a moment when many of the planet’s systems are approaching critical thresholds.
The Global Tipping Points initiative – led by Prof Tim Lenton, chair in climate change and earth system science and founding director of the Global Systems Institute at the University of Exeter – is a global research and policy programme that identifies critical thresholds in Earth systems and translates science into actionable solutions to accelerate climate action, clean energy adoption and ecosystem restoration.
Prof Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood, co-chair of GTP 2026 and executive director of Sunway Centre for Planetary Health (SCPH) at Sunway University, said she hoped to send one important message via the conference: tipping points happen in both directions.
“Just as you have negative tipping points, there are positive tipping points too. If you look at the Global Tipping Points Report delivered in 2025, most of the examples are from Asia. “
Particularly, when you look at China, (you would see) the way it has electrified and the way it has handled pollution.
“Experts who are smack in the middle of those pivotal, game-changing moments will be here at the GTP 2026 to share with us what they have done, how we can learn from their experience and how we can empower ourselves. We need to find solutions to move forward,” she said.
The theme "From Understanding to Imagination to Action: Crossing Thresholds for a Thriving Planet” calls on people to let go of their biases and old thinking and reimagine how the world could be, she added.
Four-day narrative progression
GTP 2026 is anchored on three cross-cutting pillars: understanding the shift, igniting imagination and accelerating action.
It will open with remarks by Sunway University president Prof Sibrandes Poppema, followed by a special keynote address by Perak Ruler Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah.
The programme will feature 20 action workshops and a special screening of How to Live on Earth, produced by Open Planet Studios and narrated by award-winning actor Benedict Cumberbatch.
Co-chaired by SCPH at Sunway University, the Global Systems Institute at the University of Exeter and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the conference follows a four-day narrative progression:
> Day 1: Foundations and Leadership: Establishes the scientific foundations of positive tipping points and the leadership challenges they present;
> Day 2: Human Dimensions: Examines the human conditions that drive societal transformation, including communication, nature, values and health.
> Day 3: Mechanisms of Change: Focuses on the mechanisms that make change lasting and self-reinforcing, exploring themes such as finance, law, social cohesion and the clean energy implications of the Strait of Hormuz disruption and the global AI race.
> Day 4: Synthesis and Action: Synthesises key insights from plenaries, action workshops, fireside chats and lightning talks, culminating in a closing session focused on pathways to collective action and the launch of an outcome declaration.
Faith toolkit
A faith toolkit will be launched at the conference, building a platform where different faiths unite against a common problem.
“It’s a universal sermon kit, if you’d like,” Prof Jemilah said. “You can imagine Christian priests, Hindu priests, Jewish rabbis and Muslim imams reading from the same book on how they are going to communicate with their congregation about climate change and health.”
She elaborated that faith leaders are trusted community figures who play an important role in communicating climate facts to counter misinformation and disinformation.
She added that the team did a deep dive into religious texts such as the Quran, the Bible, the Torah and the Vedas and discovered that all faiths have a united message around environmental protection.
“It really makes me smile when I think about our faith toolkit that is going to be used by all denominations, looking at the same information and interpreting it with their own faith to their communities and congregations. It’s fantastic,” Prof Jemilah said.
GTP 2026 marks the third edition of the Global Tipping Points Conference, following two previous conferences hosted at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom in 2023 and 2025.
Sunway University pro vice-chancellor (education, employability and alumni) Prof Chai Lay Ching said the university is proud and excited to host GTP 2026.
“It is a rare privilege to bring the world's leading minds on planetary health to our campus and we know our students, faculty and wider community will benefit enormously from the exchange of ideas, new collaborations and the chance to help shape solutions to some of the most pressing challenges of our time,” she said.
For details, visit https://www.sunwayplanetaryhealth.com.my/events/gtp-2026/
