Hacking is not in my dictionary

ABC Carbon celebrates 15th anniversary ABC Carbon will commemorate its 15th anniversary this year. Founded in Brisbane in July 2007 as a climate change consulting and publishing business, ABC Carbon was initially launched as a weekly e-newsletter in March 2008. It continues as a monthly online magazine, with an expanded readership in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Southeast Asia, along with three other titles – The Art of Travel, Focus on Forests and Ocean Outlook – which are incorporated into ABC Carbon. Managing Editor / Director, Ken Hickson, continues to focus on sustainability, climate change, energy and environment issues. Ken is also the Author of seven books, including The ABC of Carbon (2009) and Race for Sustainability (2013). Congratulate and work with Ken at kenhickson@abccarbon.com

By Ken Hickson

8 August 2022

Double Helix Tracking Technologies (DoubleHelix) is launching International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) to companies in Singapore, Indonesia, and the wider Asia-Pacific market. 

This follows a successful launch of ISCC in the United Kingdom and Europe, in partnership with EnviroSense, an established UK company specialising in technical audit, verification and due diligence services to the renewable energy and waste industry. Their work together has included the audit of three biomethane gas plants in the United Kingdom, enabling Ixora Energy to achieve International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) for the first time.

“Ixora Energy is a fine example of how well-structured anaerobic digestion (AD) supply chains underpin the circular economy and how they have integrated this for sustainable farming businesses,” Mr Darren Thomas, CEO of DoubleHelix said, as he explained what was involved in auditing the sourcing and production processes to achieve the ISCC certification. 

Read more on Double Helix News: DoubleHelix adds International Sustainability & Carbon Certification to its Global Range of Due Diligence & Verification Services — Double Helix Tracking Technologies

See the Case Study: Case Study – Ixora Energy — Double Helix Tracking Technologies

See it all on Linkedin: DoubleHelix adds International Sustainability & Carbon Certification to its Global Range of Due Diligence & Verification Services | LinkedIn

This article and case study were both produced by Ken Hickson for Double Helix, in collaboration with Ixora Energy, EnviroSense and ISCC.

By Ken Hickson

A highlight of the Clean Enviro Summit (CESG), held in conjunction with Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) 17-21 April was learning about the set-up of the Centre for Sustainability Excellence is being established in Singapore by the UK RSK Group.

Consolidating the expertise of over 130 environmental businesses, the RSK Centre for Sustainability Excellence will provide practical solutions for industries and governments from its new Singapore base. 

“The world has woken up to the realities of climate change and biodiversity loss. It is imperative that we act now to mitigate and adapt to our changing planet. Through the Centre, we will deliver services that bring tangible change and upskill the next generation of sustainability leaders,” Alan Ryder, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, RSK Group told us at the launch of CESG.

The Centre for Sustainability Excellence is built around four core themes covering fundamental aspects of sustainable development and will also house the RSK Research Institute for Climate Strategy. The themes are: Climate and Sustainability Strategy; Renewable Energy; Digital Water and Sustainable Agriculture.

RSK has already started on sustainable agriculture. In Singapore, the potential offered by vertical farming to green the national economy and supply food by sustainable and resilient means is being realised.

Currently, Singapore is highly dependent on imports, procuring around 90% of its food needs from neighbouring countries and farther international markets. To overcome this, the government has introduced a 30 by 30 initiative to enhance food security and fulfil 30% of nutritional needs domestically by 2030.

RSK is gearing up to meet this challenge in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

We also meet and interviewed Lucy Thomas who will head the new Centre: “RSK is a well-established and trusted service provider across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and through the Centre for Sustainability Excellence we hope to bring this wealth of experience to the Asia Pacific region.

“Underpinned by real-world knowledge and the leading-edge climate research that will be delivered by the RSK Research Institute for Climate Strategy, the Centre will help businesses move at pace towards a more sustainable future.”  

There will be much more to report from our conversation with Lucy Thomas and there’s more  coming up on the RSH Centre for Sustainability.

Here’s a little more from RSK on their notable presence at CESG and SIWW.

Media moments, meetings and madness

Published on February 2, 2022

The A-Z of January 2022

Media moments, meetings and madness in the first month of the calendar year and to see off the Year of the Ox. Alphabetically, our diary recognises stories planned, produced and/or promulgated, with much more to come. As a wordsmith – or word processor! – I’m surprised how often numbers crop up. Here’s 26 more:

A – Australia’s forests going through the renewal and regeneration process – exemplary work by Sustainable Timber Tasmania and Midway Tasmania –  was the Feature Article in January for PEFC and Responsible Wood.

B – Buckminster Fuller, the brilliant American visionary designer and scientist, comes back to life in an amazing exhibition at the Art Science Museum, which runs until 10 July.  Introduced to us at a media preview on 20 January by Honor Harger. More to come from us. 

C – Carbon Capture, Utilisation, Storage & Shipping.  A mouthful to digest and a new acronym – CCUSS! We interviewed DNV Maritime’s Cristina Saenz de Santa Maria on the subject for an article due to appear in the near future. We contributed to another Opinion Piece by Cristina, which appeared in Manifold Times in January.

D – Double Helix Tracking Technologies and Darren Thomas appeared in a scheduled Zoom meeting on 7 January  – along with Jomaine Tang – to review past content produced and posted, and to plan future targeted storytelling around the DoubleHelix Purpose Statement 2021-22.

E – Envizi & IBM get together for good, it was announced on 11 January. As we’ve known and worked with David Solsky, Envizi’s CEO and Co-Founder, for some years, we are happy to continue to support the environmental performance management platform in any way we can through its Singapore business Envizi Asia.  

F – Focus on Forests continued into 2022 with our first Media News Bulletin for PEFC for the year, carrying stories about natural rubber,  eco-labelling, furniture, and even tress outside forests in India. We even noted that Cork, Oils, Food & Medical Products are now Included in the expanded range of categories for Chain of Custody Certification.

G – GCMD & Ammonia was headlined on 27 January when the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation announced that a DNV consortium was awarded the safety study for the use of ammonia as a bunkering fuel in Singapore. Here’s how ABC Carbon Express reported it on Linkedin.

H – Huggs and Horses caught our attention as we published “All about books: 10 + 10 + 1 = 21 Going on 22” on 2 January in The Art of Travel. Huggs Epigram Coffee Bookshop is back in business and two featured books – “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse” by  Charlie Mackesy and “Horse” by Geraldine Brooks – were reviewed and/or previewed. 

I – India and LVL. That’s Laminated Veneer Lumber, which Venturer Timberwork is exploring to produce from locally sourced timber in the Indian sub-continent.  We talked to Hams Tino in Chennai about this engineered wood product, so expect to read and see more soon. 

J – Jeryl & Sam Ran. Finally met up with the Semula pair over an Indian meal in Racecourse Road to hand over the Panels and Furniture Asia magazine, which featured their table top produced from plastic waste – with a little bit of help from Roger&Sons – plus we discussed what more we could  do together to promote recycling and upcycling. 

K – Kiwis abroad during covid cropped up in conversation when we met with Hal Serudin at January’s Rolls Royce event. We showed him “This is us”,  the book by Pete Carter, which included a photo from a Rolls event at Raffles Hotel we both attended two years ago. 

L – Liveability Challenge for 2022: We attended the launch by Temasek and Eco-Business on 14 January,  starting the search for “disruptive, game-changing solutions” that will help cities accelerate decarbonisation, meet increasing demand for food, and conserve our planet’s natural ecosystems. The Prize? S$1 million dollars!

M – MBS on the Rise: We tasted the delights of the new local buffet menu at Rise Restaurant with regional flavours, enjoying Malay and Thai dishes the most. Impressed by the excellent service and meeting executive chef Colin Thumboo. We discussed a former MBS executive chef Christopher Christie, who sadly passed away in June 2017. 

N – National Gallery and The Art of Sustainability seem to be a very good match. When meeting Chua Swee Leen, she told us of her hopes and plans to make the historic buildings of the National Gallery Singapore more sustainable.  In more ways than one. We haven’t visited for a while, so planning to check what the gallery has to show. We can still catch the Light to Night Festival until 3 February. 

O – Orchids on a Rolls: Bespoke craftmanship lies at the very heart of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. We experienced this first hand with the unveiling of a ‘one of one’ Phantom Orchid on 27 January, which has been specially designed for a Singapore buyer. The design features of the latest Rolls are decidedly tropical, as lead designer Michael Bryden told us. 

P – Panels & Furniture: Started to work on the next article for this magazine, around PEFC’s campaign to promote responsible sourcing and sustainable supply chains for wooden furniture in the ASEAN region.  

Q – Qestor in Club Street has been a regular haunt for us for 12 years. Not a F&B outfit like a lot of its neighbours in a wonderful street, but a place to  do Finance and Business (also F&B), like signing documents, as I had to do in January for Envizi Asia, or in the past for SASA, when I set up the consultancy in Singapore in 2010. 

R – Rubber & Refrigerants: We continue to promote PEFC certified natural rubber and rubber wood from Southeast Asia to markets all over the world. (See F above). Looking to see how we can help Adrian Bukmanis – who we engaged with in January – to tell a convincing story on how to best deal with planet-damaging gases from refrigerants.

S – SMEs and Sustainability. Met online with Euclid and Co at the SME Centre to finalise content for the SME Capability Workshop on “Profitable Sustainability for SMEs” coming up 24 February, where we play a leading role.  Allan Lim of Alpha Biofuels got us started on this.

T – Textiles and Fashion. Met with the Textile and Fashion Federation (TaFF) twice in January to explore ways we can help produce relevant content for media and drive the sustainability agenda for members and the industry in Singapore/Southeast Asia. 

U – Unicorns for Countdown. Good to hear from Steve Melhuish of Wavemaker/Property Guru at the Countdown to 2030 event organised by Adam Lyle and Padang & co. With one of the fastest growing unicorns in Asia, Steve has also come up with a carbon mapping platform for Southeast Asia. We also heard from Temasek and Corteva on what they’re up to sustainability-wise.

V – Venice & Marco Polo: That’s how we started on our journey of discovery when we met in January with Dr Andrea Nanetti, Associate Professor at the NTU Singapore, School of Art, Design and Media – thanks to publisher Barry Clarke – but we continued to unearth maps, media, memories historical and much more. More media to come. 

W – Webinars Come and Go. And they seemingly go on forever. But definitely one of the best so far was DNV’s ‘Live from Singapore’ on decarbonisation for the shipping industry. We filed a report about it on 28 January, which was posted and shared widely with media and connections. According to one reader: “I felt like I was there!”

X – X Marks the Spot: Where I finally found Rosaly Puthucheary – after a walk up a hill in the pouring rain – and talked to her for more than an hour about her wonderful books, including her novel “The Tessellated Path” and the autobiographical “My Father’s Untold Story”.  Her literary works have already been mentioned in “Poetry in Parenthesis” in connection with Sanjay Kuttan – who happens to be her son –  and his books. Look out for more on Rosaly, as her books deserve much more recognition and reading.  

Y – Year of the Tiger is upon us and on 28 January we visited our favourite printer – Fast Cheetahs – to get them started on M’s latest tiger painting for business cards and limited edition prints. We also thinking of getting a few copies printed of our “2021 annual report”, as we did a year ago with “Year of Wonders:2020 by 52”.  

Z – Zerowaste & Net Zero. Both occupied our minds in January. Our eight page feature article on Net Zero and related issues appeared in print and online in the Singapore Institute of Directors Bulletin for first quarter 2022. Just as Zerowaste has appeared in some of our 2021 articles, we figure it will drive a lot of content coming up, whether it’s for PEFC , Semula, TaFF, NEA or any other organisation  driving change.

Produced by Ken Hickson and included as an item in “77 Not Out!”, his annual report on The Year of the Ox.

Carbon and climate on a collision course

Introduction extracted from The ABC of Carbon by Ken Hickson. Published in 2009.

Perfect Problem Maybe it was all because this represented ‘a perfect problem’ — one that crosses all scientific boundaries and geographic borders. This point was made and dealt with by Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies when in 2005 it brought together 110 scientists, journalists, politicians and activists. Read the rest in the pdf of the Introduction: https://sustain-ability-showcase.com/wp-content/uploads/The-ABC-of-Carbon-Introduction-by-Ken-Hickson-3.pdf

By Ken Hickson for The Art of Travel 

2 January 2022 

Books have been important for our mental health – even our survival – over the last 365 days. Let alone our literary nourishment. 

I think I can honestly say I’ve received, bought, opened, read, reviewed and/or shared, at least one book every day of this past year. So I was determined to end the year – and get off to a good start in the New Year – by writing about books. 

While my life revolves around words – putting them in their rightful place! – for some reason numbers keep cropping up, too. So what follows, I hope,  will explain the headline numbers. 

So let’s begin with the very important part of the process of producing, promoting, buying and selling books. Here’s ten items of interest which came to my attention, mostly by reading the local newspaper, in print! Or by way of book events in which I was somehow involved. 

• Needless to say, I was surprised and disturbed to read the other day about Turkey and its serious problems relating to book publishing/printing, and the selling and buying of books. The Straits Times headline read “Economic crisis in Turkey spells disaster for book industry”, but I also found a video news report from DW (Germany), which sets out the story. First, I was thinking that censorship had something to do with it. I was then horrified to learn that the supply chain disruptions of 2021 had not only raised the price of pulp and paper, but led to Turkey’s paper mills shutting  down. Thereby depriving printers and publishers of the necessary materials needed to make books.                                                                                            
• A more heartening book story came my way – also first in the Straits Times – about “Selling used books to help schools in Nepal”. Randall Chong was inspired on a trip to the Himalayas to set up Books Beyond Borders, which sells second hand books, donated in Singapore, to raise funds for the education of Nepalese children. I’ve already checked out the website and started going through my book collection to see what I can readily part with. You should, too. 
• Great to hear directly from Edmund Wee – and read in the newspaper – that Huggs Epigram Coffee Bookshop will re-open in the first week of 2022. Good that he’s been able to keep supplying Singapore published books at a physical “pop-up” outlet in Beach Road for a few months before he returns to Maxwell Road. Look forward to more book events now, which is what earned a lot of early kudos for Huggs Epigram. Remember the packed night for PN Balji’s Reluctant Editor launch? And then there was Pico Iyer’s visit to talk about his Raffles Hotel book. 
• Guilty Pleasures? Great that Singapore Writers Festival went ahead last year (3 – 14 November), albeit in a hybrid form, which meant far too few live sessions and too few opportunities to meet real authors face-to-face and buy books. But we made the most of it. Did you see my preview in The Art of Travel when I interviewed Pooja Nansi, the Festival Director about the theme and the challenges? It’s here if you missed it.  Read below about one of the author’s I unearthed at SWF and his book Mist Bound. And I won’t forget the Magic Book Bus. Excellent idea which I stepped up and into more than once. Photo above by courtesy of Closetful of Books.
• Which reminds us of bookstores which seems to be struggling to hold their own.   Times at Plaza Singapura– one of the few remaining of what was once a big chain – where I’ve happily found what I was looking for a few times this year.  I joined the book club where I get very good discount deals. All helps when you can’t stop acquiring books. 
• And then there was the very public “fiasco” this year past – another word for “an overblown big fuss” – over Kenny Leck and Books Actually. Here’s a link to one of Olivia Ho’s early reports in the Straits Times. Kenny was someone who did more to promote local writing and reading – by effectively publishing and marketing books – than almost anyone else I can think of in recent years. I’ve visited Books Actually a lot and bought quite a few books there, even since Kenny closed the real store and went online. Book promotion par excellence.  I hope the staff who’ve inherited the store can do half as good a job as Kenny did.  I used to get daily news from Books Actually, but nothing for a long time.  
• Went along to one of many bookstores in Bras Basah Road to see if I could find at least one book by Wilbur Smith, the prolific South African author, who sadly passed away on 13 November 2021. I met the author a few years ago when he visited and spoke at a book event in Australia. While I had a signed copy of River God in my possession once,  it went the way of other books from my “free lending library”. Anyway, I did manage to get two of his hefty tomes, Monsoon and The Quest. More to read in 2022. 
• I’m a big fan of Straits Times writer Rohit Brijnath, who normally covers sporting subjects, but every week or so he produces something far more thought-provoking, like his latest headlined Learning, living in bookshops. I have the excellent eight-page feature in the Life section (dated 12 December 2021) in my hands, but see if you can  get hold of it, in print or online. 
• The same paper devoted two pages to Lovely Libraries by Chantal Sagan, who usually gets a lot of space to report on local design, arts and crafts. The home library of Meira Chand was included, as she obviously needs a lot of shelf space even for her own  works. She is one of Singapore’s best writers and I do have a couple of her books in my not-so-impressive home library. 
• The one book launch I remember best from 2021 was the award-winning event for “Celebrating Forty Years of Transforming Lives”. If you missed it, see the May report by Floyd Cowan in Asian Journeys. Thanks to Loupe Design, Lions Home for the Elders and Marina Bay Sands, the first ever book launch at the specially-designed Hybrid Broadcast Studio, won three Marketing Event Awards, given out in November by Marketing Interactive Magazine at the ShangriLa Hotel. Pictured (below) are designers Donovan Tan and Amanda Ting, with yours truly, who just happened to be author and publisher of the book. To see the e-book go to Lions Home.

Then there’s my selection of the best books I’ve encountered and/or rediscovered, read and/or reviewed,  in 2021: 

Number 1. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox & the Horse by Charlie Mackesy (HarperOne). I was first attracted to its cover and thought – mistakenly – that it was produced for children. When I picked it up at Times Bookstore – when it was on the Straits Times bestseller list – I was quickly convinced that it is for all ages. As the author/artist says himself, it’s for everyone “whether you are eighty or eight”. I bought the book first to send to grandsons in Australia. But so impressed was I with the well-chosen words and the exquisitely executed drawings – some in colour – that I’ve gone back to Times for more. We’re not only recommending it to all our friends and family abroad, we’ve given it as a present to the lovely Singapore family who hosted us for a Christmas dinner. 

Number 2. Rewriting My Happily Ever After by Dr Ranjani Rao (Story Artesan Press).  “One would think it’s not so easy to write a memoir of divorce and discovery, but Ranjani Rao has done it with grace, sensitivity and honesty.”  That’s what I said in my review of the book in The Art of Travel. Read all about it and get the book for yourself, whatever that state of your marriage! It’s also appeared on Asian Books Blog.

Number 3. A Promised Land by Barack Obama (Crown 2020). I ordered this book well in advance from Books Actually and it’s been a slow, if purposeful, read. It’s not designed to be a quick, light read. It’s so heavy in weight – 772 pages with hard cover – so I’ve been using it as part of my physio-prescribed exercises for many months! Not heavy-going reading-wise, even though President Obama does go into great detail on his campaigning and running the White House. (Also reviewed in The Art of Travel.) He’s very good with words and it’s a great companion book to go along with his 1995 book Dreams from my Father, which I also thoroughly enjoyed. 

Number 4. Mist Bound by Daryl Kho (Penguin Books). This was one of four books launched at the Singapore Writers Festival, which I attended and/or met the authors. While I’ve read this important book, it’s yet to get the full review it deserves from me in The Art of Travel and Asian Books Blog. Still to come. But I think it truly deserves to be among my ten favoured reads of 2021. While it’s written mainly for children so they can understand more about death and dementia – hence the sub-title “how to glue back grandpa” – it’s told in such an engaging fashion that all ages should dip into it. Supernatural, yes. Fairy tales, maybe. But Daryl writes like a seasoned storyteller. So now he’s well and truly qualified at that. Put this down as one of Singapore’s best books of 2021.   Go to Times Reads for more.

Number 5. Before the coffee gets cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi (Picador). While it’s all about a fascinating café in Tokyo where you can take a particular seat and go back in time – or Back to the Future, if you like – I also learnt there’s a real-life Japanese event called the Tanabata Festival, which seems to be all about worshipping bamboo and paper. There is fact in fiction! Reviewed by The Art of Travel.

Number 6. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (Canongate Books). This might well be the first of his books I’ve attempted, but now there will be more. This is an amazing story and while this library is definitely out-of-this-world, he produces some amazing characters and situations. I ordered this from Book Depository many months’ ago and due to a postal address error, it took a long time to arrive. But it was well worth the wait. Read more in my review here. 

Number 7. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (Harper Collins). The title attracted me first. As some of you may be aware, I tore my Achilles tendon more than a year ago, so the word has been very much on my mind, as has the myth – or legend – around the Greek god/man and his one big weakness. It’s been on the bestseller lists for a while, so I thought I better acquire it for more insight into Achilles, as my classical Greek education was severely lacking. Madeline Miller turns out to be an excellent creator of historical fiction. Considering this is her first novel, it puts her ahead of many others who have attempted this genre, but end up wallowing in muddy (or muddled) historical detail. She comes close to my favourite author of historical fiction, Geraldine Brooks, who’s book on King David, The Silver Chord,  could well have influenced Ms Miller. 

Number 8. Shakespearean by Robert McCrum (Picador). I’m only half way through this, but I have the urge to tell all other Shakespeare lovers, to get it. Just ask Anthony at Booktique for any book you want and he’ll get it for you, as he did for me with this treasure trove on what it is to be Shakespearean.  If you think you know enough already about the Bard, his plays and poetry, think again. You’ll collect a lot more insight and gems here, plus learn something about the Shakespeare Club, of which the author is a select member. Maybe we should start a club of Shakespeare lovers in Singapore.  

Number 9. In One Breath by Sanjay C. Kuttan (Partridge). I’ve written a lot about Sanjay and his poetry recently – see Poetry in Parenthesis in the latest issue of The Art of Travel – so there’s not a lot more I can say accept that Sanjay deserves recognition as a “writer of worth”. As with his first book of poetry, Sanjay doesn’t avoid controversial subjects. His pithy poetry tackles, among other subjects: abuse, 9/ll, George Floyd, dormitories, suicidal, depression and lockdown.  When my friend, Professor Kirpal Singh – poet extraordinary himself and literary critic – speaks so highly of Sanjay’s work and agrees to put some wise words of wisdom as an introduction to his latest work, I sit up and take notice. Kirpal describes Sanjay’s pseudohaiku in the book as “a glorious success of the written word”. 

Number 10. The Man Who Listens by Taylor Caldwell (Collins, 1960). I found this in one of my crammed bookshelves. It’s been there a while. It has my mother’s name inside the cover. I recall reading it years ago, so I decided to delve into this intriguing story again. While it obviously has religious overtones – my mother was a devout Christain – I found it to be a breath of fresh air in these dark pandemic-drenched days. Listening is something we all need to devote more effort to,  and we certainly need to avail ourselves of good listeners. We hear there’s been an rapid increase in mental health issues everywhere this last year or two and probably much of it could be relieved (or released) if there was someone, somewhere who would listen to our woes.  Where we could be listened to. Without judgement. With empathy. Whether a real human listener – or a spiritual presence – or just a safe and comfortable place where we can quietly speak our mind. Because as this book clearly tells us, by sharing our troubles to a listening ear, we can often come up with the solutions. Note: When searching for this book online today, you’ll find it on Amazon and Abebooks, but you’ll also come across The Listener by the same author, with a more politically-correct title! 

What to look forward to for 2022? Here’s one for starters: 

“Horse” by Geraldine Brooks (Viking Penguin Random House).    “A discarded painting in a junk pile, a skeleton in an attic, and the greatest racehorse in American history: from these strands, a Pulitzer Prize winner braids a sweeping story of spirit, obsession, and injustice across American history”. That’s what we get from the publisher.  We have to hold off for a few more months for this long-awaited book by the best-selling author of Year of Wonders, People of the Book and March   – until June 2022, I’m told – but read what I had to say about it mid-2021 in a preview in The Art of Travel. Of course, you can order it in advance from any of your usual book sources, but I’m still hoping I’ll get a review copy in the post.  Go here for more about Horse.

Happy reading, writing and collecting in 2022.

In The Art of Travel 24 December 2021

Poetry in Parenthesis

Ken Hickson reviews of “Where Fires Rage” and “In One Breath” by Sanjay C. Kuttan

I’ve found a word which, in my mind, suggests a creative partnership, where a parent (or other relative) influences a child to pursue an artistic endeavour,  similar to his/her own. Ideally, they create some work together, or even inspire each other to launch forth into the unknown universe of the arts. 

To play. To write. To draw. To conceive. To produce.  

I call it parenthesis.  To me it near perfectly describes the poetic partnership between Sanjay Kuttan and his mother Rosaly Puthucheary.

It was only recently when I discovered that Sanjay had such an literary bent. I had to ask where this came from, as his work in the world of energy and shipping was hardly expected to ever inspire poetry – in motion or otherwise!  

So when you realise that his mother is a well-known poet, published author and teacher, that helps to solve the poetry puzzle.  He admits that he started writing at the age of 15, after being inspired by his mother.

But that still doesn’t explain how he’s found the time and inclination to fit this sort of writing into his busy routine, when working for global organisations, like Exxon Mobil and McKinsey. Or in Singapore for GCMD and many other organisations better known by their acronym: EMA, SMI, NTU and DNV. 

So I reconsidered the word parenthesis and discovered in my old faithful Roget’s Thesaurus that it can also be associated with discontinuity, interruption, episode, rhapsody, gap, and even broken thread. 

Sounds and words that suggest artistic expression to me, and also clues as to how Sanjay could willingly tear himself away from day to day drudgery – or devotion to duty – to allow his creative energy to flow. 

That’s enough of a preamble. What about the poetry he produces?

As a writer, editor and author (of 7 books of non-fiction), I have to admit that I’m not at all skilled in the art of poetry criticism. I am often called on to review books of all sorts, for all ages. As a book lover, I do this willingly.

But as I agreed to look at and review Sanjay’s books, I thought it wise turn to other authorities, better equipped than me to assess his poetry.

When my friend Professor Kirpal Singh – poet extraordinary himself and literary critic – speaks so highly of Sanjay’s work and agrees to put some wise words of wisdom as an introduction to his latest work, I sit up and take notice.

Kirpal describes Sanjay’s pseudohaiku in the book ‘In One Breath’ as “a glorious success of the written word”. 

He goes on to comment on at least ten of Sanjay’s short haiku-like pieces.

What’s good enough for Kirpal and Sanjay is good enough for me, so I will tempt fate and my literary reputation, to make some personal observations.

In “Where Fires Rage” – first published in 2010 – Sanjay writes about anger, we read frustration, we sense loneliness, we feel hope and we see light. Often we hear a voice which cries out “listen to me for I have something to say. You’ve not heard it from me before”.

That rings true of Sanjay, as I’ve not read that into his writing before. And now I know why he inscribed in the front of the book he gave me to review: “I hope something in here resonates”.

Yes, a lot does resonate. His poetry hits the mark. It make me think about life on earth and its imperfections. Love and hope. Dreams. And about writing. The point of it. The hidden depths of feeling. The purpose of it all.

Sanjay’s poetry certainly doesn’t come across as the work of novice on a new literary excursion. It has maturity. It has depth. It has feeling. It reads like he means what he says. 

Far removed from the world of energy, shipping and other mundane day to day tasks – important as they are – Sanjay’s words definitely resonate, as he reflects on the realities of life. And his words give us hope, even though he doesn’t refrain from expressing his disgust at some of the the injustices he sees in the world.

This is particularly evident in his two Tiananmen poems which appear in ‘Where Fires Rage’

But let me select one short – less edgy – piece from this collection which resonates with me, as someone who watches the weather and writes about climate: 

Clouds

Hovering above, below the heavens

in shades of white and grey,

loafing along empty skies,

with silver linings everyday,

an occasional tear, a spot of shade,

amorphous forms for mental play.

There’s another twelve lines to absorb and then he finishes with:

For heaven nonchalantly gazes back,

from a distance sees an embroidery

of decadence and tears. 

That’s enough to give a good impression of Sanjay’s first published/printed book of poetry.

But what about the latest? His first attempt at the Japanese art of haiku – or what he chooses to call pseudohaiku.

This is all new to me, however I‘ve now read every word and every piece, short as they are. 

For a new haiku reader like me, the introductions and explanations from Sanjay himself, as well as from knowledgeable others, like Kirpal, go a long way to enhance the work. 

Sanjay explains: “I have pre-ambled each section with a poem to try to set the scene for the collection of haiku within each theme, to give a sense of my mindset and prepare your mindset as you discover and uncover each haiku”.

That’s helpful. But you can also – as a newcomer to this very disciplined form of poetry – just read it as you like. Sample the tasty morsels. And maybe wish for more.

As with his first book of poetry, Sanjay doesn’t avoid controversial subjects ‘In One Breath’.

The pithy poetry tackles, among other subjects: abuse, 9/ll, George Floyd, dormitories, suicidal, depression and lockdown. 

But while we might regularly read these words in newspaper headlines, Sanjay’s not all about angst or upsetting current affairs.

In his final section, headlined The World, he has produced eighteen pieces, covering all sorts of natural phenomena.  

Let me conclude, as Sanjay does, with: 

Wishing star

Still shining in death,

across the darkened night sky,

stars keep us hopeful.

Sanjay Kuttan, the poet, certainly gets us thinking. But we can also just quietly absorb his words and his way with words.

We can also enjoy the experience as a reader, for Sanjay gives us hope. And whether you’re a mature reader (or writer) or not, he shows what’s possible. 

None of us should feel constrained by work, by environment, by daily pressures, by lack of confidence in our ability. Let our dreams come to life.

For Sanjay shows what’s possible. He also shows that there’s more than one side to everyone. 

This multi-faceted professional is a poet at heart.  

Note: I’m also looking forward to getting my hands and eyes onto his mother’s latest book ‘My Father’s Untold Story’, since Sanjay introduced me to ‘The Call to Poetry’ by Rosaly Puthucheary. I will attempt to review and/or report on both in The Art of Travel in the near future.