This policy brief and a report demonstrate that there does not have to be a trade-off between economic and environmental objectives in Southeast Asia and specifically the five focus countries of this study: Cambodia, Indonesia, Philippines, Myanmar, and Thailand.
Without concerted action to address the environmental crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, long-term growth prospects in the region could be constrained, extreme weather events, and other environmental challenges associated with climate change and biodiversity will continue to impact lives and livelihoods.
While recent policy measures in the focus countries contain some environmentally positive focuses (such as investments in green infrastructure), there are also areas of concern (e.g., fossil fuel subsidies and environmental de-regulation).