Selangor’s Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari has announced that the state is expected to introduce a circular economy framework within the next two years. We speak to Praveena Nair Sivasankaran, senior lecturer at the School of Engineering, Faculty of Innovation & Technology at Taylor’s University about what a circular economy framework would look like in its implementation.

Other stories we covered:

• Trump Ups Tariffs: US President Donald Trump has revealed higher tariffs for several countries including Malaysia, in a push for new trade deals before tariffs are imposed on August 1st. He has also threatened additional 10% tariffs on countries aligning themselves with BRICS nations. We talk to Jaideep Singh, a research analyst at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) about the implication of this.

• Growing demand for onions: Research has found that Malaysians consume close to 750,000 tonnes of onions a year. Since onion demands are increasing , the government has suggested we grow 30% of our shallots locally. We speak to Dr Norsida Man, associate professor at the Department of Agribusiness and Bioresources Economics at UPM about the realities of this cultivation idea and whether it's feasible.

• Concern over badminton player: National badminton player, Lee Zii Jia posted a series of grim, stylised sketches featuring stitched figures and blood-streaked implements, drawing concerns about his mental health. While it has been confirmed the athlete is fine, this episode has resurfaced conversations around athletes' mental health. We speak to Dr Ang Kim Teng, past president of the Malaysian Mental Health Association about this.

•Space-saving parking: Tandem parking, a method where two or more cars are parked in single file in an elongated space, has been proposed to increase parking capacity at serviced apartments. We discuss how it would work in practice.

Image Credit: Dato' Seri Amirudin Shari's Facebook