According to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Roadmap for Malaysia, as reported in 2023, declared phase II expedition for the country to take actionable measures, and aggressively follow through with effective initiatives implementation to instigate positive change. And part of conquering the five pillars channelled towards sustainable development is ensuring economic prosperity for Pillar 3: Planet. As the saying goes, or as preemptively implied, it takes a nation to collectively assemble and build a beautiful future that inherently illustrates Malaysia’s rich biodiversity — safeguarded and thriving.
That is the world we wish to pass down, one where innovation and sustainability drives stewardship, and humanity takes ownership for our ecological lifeforms.
From Concrete to Compassion: YTL Group’s Vision for Change
As Phase II nears its end and Malaysia’s sustainable development goals still demand significant progress, the private sector is mobilising its CSR arms to drive purposeful social impact—aligning business growth with environmental stewardship.
In its stead, Malaysia’s home-grown legacy, spanning 70 years of remarkable expansion, essentially orchestrated the country’s urban landscape and global footprint. Subsequently, for the industry titan, YTL Group — the enterprise’s commitment extends beyond its carbon neutrality borders, given the cornerstone of their principal operations. And in celebration of seven decades, the Group bridges the worlds of creativity, sustainability, and compassion with the Penyu Shell-Ter Project, an evocative campaign that transforms art into advocacy.
Behind The Penyu Shell-Ter Project
There is no denying the empathetic momentous driving artistic endeavours on a course equitable to impacting desirable change in the world. Inadvertently, art speaks from the soul’s consciousness, with its underlying anatomy becoming a source of inspiration and language form that communicates what is sometimes less effectively spoken, and words carry limited influence.
For over a decade now, YTL Hotels has embraced nature conservation, as a defining part of its hospitality — and this mission manifests through endeavours carried out at Tanjong Jara Resort, Terengganu — the restoration of a turtle’s life. Even so, combining formulas of art, culture and humanity’s acts of conservation, it becomes a monumental ground that creates a harmonious ecosystem, consequential in mediating conservation efforts.
Parallel to YTL’s initiative towards institutionalising greater impact across the planet, the group had teamed up with Turtle Conservation Society of Malaysia (TCS) and PULIHARA, to foster the protected-site, within the resort’s grounds. “Community awareness and action are essential in protecting Malaysia’s turtles,” said Dr Chen Pelf Nyok, Co-founder of Turtles Conservation (TCS).
And to further strengthen BUILDS, YTL has cultivated a platform for purposeful collaboration, supporting several home-grown local talent — bridging artists, creatives, and sportsmen towards The Penyu Shell-Ter Project. Through this creative collaboration, combined with the dutiful endorsement from National Art Gallery of Malaysia, the Group furthers its civic agenda via practice — transformative, inclusive, and rooted in community impact.
The project currently features an extraordinary art auction — running until 27 November 2025 — bringing together a constellation of Malaysia’s most inspiring figures. From all walks of life featuring intellectuals, artists, sportsmen, each participant lends a distinct voice and vision, outpacing their individual crafts to contribute towards purposeful art.
Nyok also adds,“The Penyu Shell-Ter Project not only raises critical funds for our conservation programmes, but also creates a creative, public platform that brings these issues into everyday conversations. We are grateful to YTL Cement, the participating artists and the public for joining us in this shared mission.” YTL Cement will contribute RM5,000 per artist, totalling RM255,000, to charities of their choice—broadening the project’s reach across social and environmental causes.
Empowering Corporate Legacy with Ecological Responsibility
Globally and transcending generations, humanity has had to grapple lessons of consequence for when society succumbs too reductively with harnessing natural resources – once in abundance. In the contemplative words of Theodore Roosevelt, “We have fallen heirs to the most glorious heritage a people ever received, and each one must do his part if we wish to show that the nation is worthy of its good fortune.” His words echoed conviction over the spillage of human activity that resulted in consequential degradation.
“As much as we are thinking about decades past, we are mindful of the future that we want to live in and the biodiversity that is integral to it. This project is rooted in our values and aims to support local talent whilst raising funds and awareness for environmental conservation and endemic turtle species,” said Executive Director of YTL Cement, Rachel Yeoh.
Rachel Yeoh, Executive Director of YTL Cement
“The Penyu Shell-Ter Project is an extension of our work and mission at BUILDS, which is guided by environmental stewardship, community engagement, and support for Malaysian talent. As each sculpture comes to life, we look forward to seeing the impact that they will make and the critical conversations around conservation that it will spark,” she added.
It is within this consciousness that YTL’s leadership continues to chart a purposeful path forward, guided by a vision that unites progress with preservation — such as The Penyu Shell-Ter Project, an initiative emerging as both creative expression and a call to action.
Yeoh Pei Xien, Vice President, Strategy and Transformation at YTL Hotels & Properties
And while action surpasses theory, it is empirically important to develop and empower new generations to take up the mantle of responsibility. “Our resorts have long been living classrooms for conservation,” said Yeoh Pei Xien, Vice President, Strategy and Transformation at YTL Hotels & Properties. Privy to its luxury preeminence, Tanjong Jara holds deeper devotion to not only nurturing the regrowth of the ocean’s ancient species but it is also a hub shaping aspiring custodians of conservationists.
Pei Xian further adds, “The Penyu Shell-Ter Project extends that ethos nationwide, inviting the public to join us in protecting fragile ecosystems.”
Rebuilding the Equilibrium Between Growth and Nature
The integral partnership with PULIHARA and TCS further highlights ongoing efforts in turtle rehabilitation and preservation, underscoring YTL’s deeper commitment to nurturing diverse turtle species and safeguarding their future populations.
Upon reflection today, we have inherited a legacy of imbalance that modern society now strives to correct. Today, this sentiment carries renewed urgency: to rebuild an equilibrium where economic growth and ecological integrity. This is inherently reflected within YTL Group’s preliminary ethos towards their sustainability narrative.
