Get inside someone’s daily life 

Sustainability and environmental issues can often feel cold or overwhelming, packed with jargon and stats that don’t connect with the average reader. Lee believes the key is anchoring these broad topics in familiar, relatable experiences. “People see climate change as just the weather—hot one day, rainy the next,” he explains. “Our job is to dig deeper and show them how it affects their lives.”

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Take the example of his story on Uncle Andrew, a “sidewalk gardener” dedicated to reclaiming urban green spaces in Malaysia. "Uncle Andrew isn’t a scientist or an activist; he's just a guy with a mission," says Lee. “But his work speaks volumes about the loss of green spaces due to urbanisation.” Through Lee’s storytelling, Andrew becomes a poster person—a regular citizen fighting to reconnect his community with nature. It’s a story that makes the abstract concept of urban sustainability accessible and emotionally resonant.

“Once you connect the issue to someone’s daily life, you’ve already won half the battle,” Lee asserts. By grounding global issues in everyday experiences, he turns complex environmental and social issues into stories that readers can easily understand and care about.

Find the human in the problem

“The best way to make a story compelling is to find a human angle,” Lee advises. From featuring guerrilla gardeners to highlighting the lives of endangered species conservationists, this approach has been central to Lee’s work. “The ingredients of a good story come from many factors, but usually, it has to do with people,” Lee asserts. “People always make for great stories.”

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When recounting his coverage of deforestation, Lee describes how he searched for a person who could represent the issue. “I remember my editor telling me, ‘Where’s the person in this story?’ That’s when it clicked,” he shares. Lee eventually found an Orang Asli man who had witnessed his forest home disappear. “It’s one thing to say that forests are being chopped down. But when you meet someone who can no longer find food in his own backyard because of deforestation, it hits differently,” he explains.

Lee’s method of humanising issues allows readers to engage on a personal level. He knows that data alone won’t make people care, but showing the faces and telling the stories of those impacted can break through even the most indifferent hearts. “Everyone has a story,” he says, “you just have to find it.”

Ask “Why should anyone care?”

“People still read long-form articles, but only if they’re worth reading,” Lee says, debunking the notion that attention spans are too short for meaningful content. In his view, the difference today is that audiences have choices—they’ll only invest time if a story matters to them. 

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In an article he wrote for Al Jazeera on the sustainability of Malaysia's shopping malls, Lee uncovered layers of emotion and urgency by addressing both the environmental impact and the cultural shift these structures represent. “I didn’t just write about empty malls; I wrote about the underlying causes and what it says about where our society is headed,” he explains. Readers responded not only to the facts but to the existential questions his story posed. “It’s about taking a step back and asking, ‘Why does this matter, and why should anyone care?’”

Lee gets comfortable with uncomfortable truths, and by addressing difficult questions, he can craft layered stories. Sometimes a good story ruffles feathers and that’s how it sparks dialogue. “The point isn’t to be controversial; it’s to start conversations that people wouldn’t otherwise have,” he says.

Embrace multi-platform storytelling

In today’s digital age, Lee recognises the power of diverse media formats. His Instagram feed is a testament to this philosophy, featuring a variety of video content ranging from “There’s a Kapcai” to “Malaysia’s Turtles May Disappear.”

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The key to successful communication campaigns, he argues, is to tailor your content to the platform while maintaining the core of your message. A story about turtle conservation might be a long-form article for Al Jazeera, a short video for Deutsche Welle, and a series of Instagram reels for a broader audience.

“Do people still read?” Lee ponders. “I think people still read. I think people still watch things that are more than one minute. And people will actually look, watch something for an hour, and they will not take their eyes off.”

This article is part of Business of Good, the series that explores how global leaders use their wealth and influence to drive change through philanthropy and positive action.

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