ESG is increasingly being embedded into core business models, shifting away from standalone corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts.
This was a key observation from the judging panel of the second Asia ESG Positive Impact Awards (PIA) 2026, a regional award celebrating leading companies with exceptional ESG practices.
The Asia ESG PIA is an initiative of the Asia ESG Positive Impact Consortium, which brings together Star Media Group from Malaysia, Inquirer Group of Companies from the Philippines and Media Group of Kompas Gramedia from Indonesia.
This year, 52 gold winners from the respective national ESG awards – Star Media Group’s ESG Positive Impact Awards, Inquirer Group of Companies’ ESG Edge Impact Awards and Media Group of Kompas Gramedia’s Lestari Awards – advanced to the regional stage.
The entries, divided into large companies as well as small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-tier companies, were evaluated by an international panel of eight judges in September.
Center for Conservation Innovations president and chief scientist Dr Neil Aldrin Mallari, said he was cautiously hopeful of the shift towards more meaningful sustainability efforts after reviewing entries in biodiversity conservation, waste management and corporate transformation
“The best entries I have read were not just CSR projects. They were proofs of concept, showing that environmental stewardship can be built into how a business is run,” he said.
“Most encouragingly, they came with credible long-term plans to grow. This nuance matters to me. A CSR activity can end when the budget cycle does. An initiative built into governance and culture tends to outlast the executive who launched it. It is the difference between a donation and a business model.”
For Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation ESG unit head Haris Abdul Latiff, the strongest submissions were those that used the organisation’s own capabilities, technology or business model to create impact that could potentially be sustained and scaled.
“Some initiatives connected rural communities to export markets, embedded inclusion into digital platforms, transformed idle assets into productive low-carbon activities or created structured pathways for vulnerable groups to participate in the economy.”
To improve an organisation’s ESG performance, he said greater emphasis is needed on long-term outcome measurement, credible data and, where possible, independent verification.
“It is increasingly important to demonstrate not only what was done or how many people participated, but what meaningfully changed over time and whether those benefits can continue beyond the initial programme period.”
Echoing this point, Indonesian Society of Sustainability Professionals chairman Satrio Prakoso noted that there remains room to strengthen how organisations measure and demonstrate the longer-term outcomes and impact of their initiatives.
He was, however, impressed by the growing maturity of the social aspect of ESG across Asia as displayed by entries he judged, which covered employee wellbeing, diversity and inclusion, and talent development.
“I was particularly interested to see how social initiatives are increasingly being connected with environmental objectives. Rather than treating the two aspects of ESG separately, organisations are starting to consider their combined impact on employees, communities and other stakeholders.”
The award winners across 12 categories will be announced at the Asia ESG PIA gala night on Nov 4 at KLGCC Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur.
Ahead of the winners’ announcement, an exclusive pre-gala networking session will bring together award participants and sustainability leaders from Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia to foster regional connections and facilitate knowledge-sharing.
A hands-on, tool-led masterclass titled “AI for Practical ESG Execution: Turning Data into Actionable Insights” will take place the next day.
Led by artificial intelligence (AI) engineer and chief data scientist Dr Lau Cher Han, participants will learn how to use everyday AI tools to automate ESG-related workflows, including data collection, cleaning, drafting, checking and reporting.
It is HRD Corp claimable. For registration, visit https://bit.ly/aem26_li
