A multi-year collaboration to study what motivates smallholder farmers to adopt sustainable palm oil practices, and how such behaviours can spread across farming communities in Indonesia.

SINGAPORE, Feb. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Musim Mas Group and scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have embarked on a multi-year research collaboration to understand what motivates independent smallholder farmers to adopt sustainable palm oil practices — and how these behaviours can spread within farming communities.

Led by Associate Professor Janice Ser Huay Lee from the Asian School of the Environment, NTU Singapore, the research will focus on independent smallholders in Riau Province, Indonesia, including those within and outside the Asosiasi Perkebun Swadaya Kelapa Sawit Pelalawan Siak (APSKS-PS), a Musim Mas–supported smallholder association. The study will explore the behavioural, social, and spatial factors that shape how sustainable practices are learned, shared, and adopted.

While the palm oil industry has made progress in promoting sustainability among smallholders, adoption rates remain uneven. Training programs alone often fail to translate into lasting behavioural change. Factors such as trust, peer networks, perceived benefits, and access to reliable information play crucial roles in influencing farmers’ decisions. To scale sustainability effectively, the sector must understand how and why farmers choose to change their practices.

The NTU researchers will combine spatial analysis, social network mapping, and large-scale farmer surveys to study smallholder communities. The project aims to identify the factors that best predict the spread of sustainable behaviours, offering evidence-based insights to guide companies and policymakers in promoting sustainability among independent smallholders.

Musim Mas runs Indonesia’s largest independent smallholder program, having trained over 40,000 farmers since 2015. The Group has made smallholder training a cornerstone of its sustainability efforts—even though independent smallholders do not directly supply to the company—recognizing that helping farmers plant and replant sustainably is key to the long-term health of the palm oil industry.

This collaboration supports Musim Mas’s commitment to science-based sustainability and builds on partnerships with leading research institutions such as ETH Zurich, the University of Cambridge, and IPB University.

“For sustainability to take root, we need to understand what truly motivates farmers to change—and how those changes spread through communities,” said Rob Nicholls, General Manager of Programs and Projects at Musim Mas. “This collaboration with NTU scientists will help us move from teaching sustainability to understanding it, so that our programs can be more effective, inclusive, and self-sustaining.”

Musim Mas will facilitate field access and data collection for the study, which will be independently led by the NTU team.

The collaboration aligns with ASE’s strengths in interdisciplinary environmental research, particularly its focus on the social dimensions of sustainability in Southeast Asia.

“Independent smallholders play a vital role in the palm oil landscape, yet their decision-making and social networks are often overlooked,” said NTU Associate Professor Janice Ser Huay Lee, Asian School of the Environment. “Through this partnership, we hope to uncover how knowledge, trust, and influence shape the adoption of sustainable palm oil practices—insights that can help design more effective and equitable interventions across the region.”

The project runs for about 2 years and 9 months from June 2025 and ends on March 2028, with field visits to the districts of Pelalawan and Siak, Riau. NTU works collaboratively with three other Indonesian universities, including North Sumatra University, IPB-University and The University of Riau. The findings will inform future smallholder program design and engagement strategies, with potential applications beyond palm oil to other smallholder-based agricultural sectors in Southeast Asia.

Contact: 
media@musimmas.com 

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SINGAPORE, Feb. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced the ROG Strix Aiolos SSD Enclosure, a premium external SSD enclosure built for gamers and creators who demand top-tier performance, seamless device management. Engineered for next-generation NVMe^® M.2 storage, the ROG Strix Aiolos delivers lightning-fast transfer speeds, enhanced thermal efficiency, and an exclusive ROG SSD Dashboard, which provides real-time drive status updates. Designed for life on the move, it also incorporates a durable metal hook with a fabric tag to ensure convenient and secure portability.

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• Adyen and Uber expand their relationship to support Uber’s payment processing across more key geographies
• Uber will leverage Adyen’s Checkout API to offer additional payment methods
• Uber launched kiosks at venues powered by Adyen terminals

NEW YORK, Feb. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Adyen, the global financial technology platform of choice for leading businesses, and Uber (NYSE: UBER), the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform, today announced the renewal and expansion of their global partnership. Building on more than a decade of successful collaboration first starting in 2012, Adyen continues to serve as a key payments engine supporting Uber’s global footprint, which now spans over 70 countries across six continents.

The expanded partnership reflects Uber’s growing use of Adyen’s global payments platform to enhance performance and offer more alternative payment methods, to support Uber’s continued international growth. Notable new territories where Uber is leveraging Adyen’s services are United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, and the Caribbean, along with the expansion of local acquiring in key regions like Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, and Australia, and the adoption of high-growth local payment methods such as Pix in Brazil, AfterPay in Australia and WeChat Pay globally to serve travelers ordering Uber through the WeChat mini app. Looking ahead, Uber and Adyen will continue to partner on payment  innovation, which includes new payment method integrations and support for new business lines such as Uber kiosks in airports, hotels, and venues globally.

“The expansion of our partnership with Uber underscores a shared commitment to achieving global scale together, which has continued for well over a decade,” commented Trevor Nies, SVP Global Head of Digital at Adyen. “Having already supported strong volume acceleration in 40 key markets over the last year, including the US, UK, and Brazil, we remain focused on enhancing Uber’s payments experience, from offering new payment methods to pioneering new business lines.”

“A reliable and innovative payment platform is a fundamental requirement for Uber’s global growth. Continuing and expanding our partnership with Adyen is key to that, enabling us to support our growth and quickly integrate new methods,” said Karl Hébert, Vice President of Global Commerce at Uber. “We are excited to leverage their technology to realize the full potential of our ongoing innovation and expansion into new business areas.”

Pioneering New Mobility: Uber Launches kiosks with Adyen
Uber has launched kiosks, powered by Adyen terminals, providing a new, phone-free way to book an Uber—perfect for international visitors arriving without a local data plan. Uber kiosk gives travelers a simple way to request a ride, even if they don’t have the Uber app.

Simply walk up to the kiosk, enter your destination, then select your ride type. The kiosk prints a paper receipt with your trip details, making the experience as straightforward as possible. The first kiosk debuted at LaGuardia Airport (LGA) Terminal C, with additional rollouts planned for hotels, ports, & international airports in the coming months.

About Adyen
Adyen (AMS: ADYEN) is the financial technology platform of choice for leading companies. By providing end-to-end payment capabilities, data-driven insights, and financial products in a single global solution, Adyen helps businesses achieve their ambitions faster. With offices around the world, Adyen works with companies such as Meta, Uber, H&M, eBay, and Microsoft. The collaboration with Uber, described in this press release, underlines Adyen’s continuous growth with existing and new customers over the years.

About Uber
Uber’s mission is to create opportunity through movement. We started in 2010 to solve a simple problem: how do you get access to a ride at the touch of a button? More than 72 billion trips later, we’re building products to get people closer to where they want to be. By changing how people, food, and things move through cities, Uber is a platform that opens up the world to new possibilities.

SINGAPORE, Feb. 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Organised by Experia Events Pte Ltd, Space Summit 2026 concluded yesterday in Singapore following two days of dialogue that brought together government leaders, space agencies, industry executives, researchers and investors to examine the priorities shaping an increasingly interconnected global space ecosystem.

Held at the Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre, the inaugural Summit drew over 2,000 attendees, featured more than 300 participating companies & organisations, and convened more than 60 speakers, including representatives from 20 national space agencies and delegations from 43 countries and regions. Discussions reflected the growing importance of space technologies across economic development, national resilience, sustainability and everyday life.

Participants included senior leadership from government agencies, space agencies, established industry players and emerging companies, enabling exchanges that spanned policy, commercial strategy and technology development. Sessions were structured to encourage dialogue across different parts of the sector, reflecting the increasingly interconnected nature of space activity and the need for alignment across multiple stakeholders.

“Space systems are now fundamental to how economies function and societies operate,” said Leck Chet Lam, Managing Director of Experia Events. “Over the past two days, Space Summit 2026 provided a platform for open and practical discussions on how governments, industry and partners can align approaches as space activity continues to scale and intersect with critical infrastructure, sustainability and security considerations.”

Key Takeaways from Space Summit 2026

Across plenary sessions and panel discussions, several common themes emerged over the course of the Summit, reflecting areas of focus and debate across the global space ecosystem. These included:

• Asia-Pacific’s growing role in the global space economy
  Discussions reflected the rapid growth of space activity across Asia-Pacific, alongside a shift from experimental projects towards operational capabilities that support real-world needs. Panel speakers highlighted the importance of clear policies, scalable supply chains and strong regional and international partnerships to support sustainable growth and attract private investment.
• The need for stronger coordination across national programmes and stakeholders
  Panel speakers emphasised the importance of aligning national space priorities and strengthening collaboration between governments, industry and research institutions. There was broad agreement that shared standards, interoperable systems and long-term partnership models are essential to avoid duplication, improve efficiency and ensure the safe and responsible use of space.
• Moving from data collection to real-world impact through Earth observation
  Discussions underscored the transition from simply collecting data to delivering actionable insights that inform decision-making. Panel speakers highlighted the role of Earth observation in areas such as environmental monitoring, climate resilience and infrastructure planning, and the need for data-sharing frameworks and collaboration to maximise impact.

Overall, conversations throughout the Summit highlighted the importance of alignment — across policy, technology and partnerships — to translate space capabilities into tangible benefits for economies, societies and the environment.

Building on the discussions, connections and partnerships formed at the inaugural edition, Space Summit will return on 25 and 26 February 2027 and continue to serve as a platform for international engagement on the opportunities and responsibilities shaping the future of the global space sector.

About Experia Events Pte Ltd
Specialist in conceptualising, creating and curating trade events of strategic interest that spur industry development, Experia brings together captains of industries from all over the world to inspire ideas and influence decisions that move the needle in strategic issues for global, national and societal needs and progress. With its genesis in the Singapore Airshow, one of the most influential airshows globally, Experia’s portfolio of events has expanded to span aerospace, defence, government, lifestyle and space sectors today. Experia is certified with a Data Protection Trustmark issued by the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore, ISO27001 Information Security Management System and the MICE Sustainability Certification. For more information, visit http://www.experiaevents.com 

About Space Summit
Space Summit is a premier international conference and exhibition dedicated to advancing global dialogue and collaboration in the space industry. The Summit will bring together leaders, innovators and policymakers to explore the technologies, partnerships and business models driving the next phase of space exploration and commercialisation. For more information on Space Summit, visit https://spacesummit.singaporeairshow.com/