The Penang City Index 2016

Sinkeh is a guesthouse that resides in a repurposed heritage shophouse. Image courtesy sinkeh.com

 

The city of Georgetown in Penang, also known as the Pearl of the Orient, having received status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is quickly becoming the next most developed city in Malaysia. In 2016, while studying sustainable transportation in Penang, Think City began to delve into the sustainability levels of the city and published a report on the state of the environment and liveability in Penang.

Think City also looked at the broader aspects of liveability in Penang, such as — how easy is it to get from one place to another? Is housing affordable? Is there diversity in terms of jobs? Could citizens have fun in the city and could they afford to live comfortably in Penang? DUNCAN CAVE, Consultant at Think City tells us about the study and the different aspects by which liveability is measured in Penang.

Click Play to listen:

One of the best ways to gauge how liveable a city is, would be not only to speak to the inhabitants, but to those who serve the city.

Chee Sek Thim is a seasoned Malaysian theatre practitioner who now runs Sinkeh, a guest house, whose profits go towards funding the arts. He tells us about living in the capital of Penang, Georgetown.

Listen to our conversation with Sek Thim here:


This story was first published under the now-defunct “Think City Channel”.

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