ERTI Research Collective

We blend expertise in arts, law, and policy to deliver strategic insights on Malaysia’s creative economy.

ERTI is a research consultancy based in Southeast Asia, specialising in work that blends expertise in arts, law, and policy to deliver strategic insights on the regional creative economy.We uncover the potential of creative industries by asking sharper questions and challenging conventional thinking. Our work goes beyond surface-level analysis — we connect the dots between culture, governance, and strategy to help clients navigate change and lead with purpose.We work with cultural institutions, policymakers, international organisations, and civil society to shape creative economy strategies that are grounded, impactful, and future-facing.

Between our team, we have worked for clients such as:

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Ali Alasri

Ali Alasri is a Kuala Lumpur-based artist, researcher, and educator with a Master's degree in Arts from the University of Malaya as a Hubs for Good Scholar awarded by the British Council Malaysia. Since 2013, he has worked on various arts and cultural projects, including performances, installations, exhibitions, and community initiatives. His research primarily examines social resilience in Malaysia's creative and cultural ecosystem.As an advocate for the arts, Ali is involved in organisations such as the performing arts coalition, ReformARTsi, arts societies, Arts First Association (AFA), and an arts collective, Sans Collective. Prior to ERTI’s founding, his experience includes serving as the Industry Development Sector Executive at MyCreative Ventures Sdn. Bhd., where he contributed to the growth of the creative sector, and had guest lectured on Malaysian creative and cultural policy in Sunway University and Akademi Seni Budaya dan Warisan Kebangsaan (ASWARA).Currently, he holds the position of Senior Associate in Think City’s social resilience program Kita-Untuk-Kita(K2K) engaging 10 public housing communities across KL and Selangor. Through his multifaceted practice, Ali strives to bridge the gap between artistic expression and community development, aiming to foster a vibrant socio-cultural landscape in Malaysia.

Arief Hamizan

Arief Hamizan is a policymaker, researcher, and arts practitioner with over ten years of experience across the arts, law, and governance sectors. He currently leads research and advocacy at a national anti-corruption organisation, where he regularly advises on institutional reform in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.Arief’s work in the creative sector bridges grassroots practice and regulatory analysis. He has engaged with federal and state-level policymakers on issues relating to censorship, performance licensing, and entertainment tax, and recently co-authored a legal guidebook for staging performances in Kuala Lumpur in collaboration with LexisNexis. He is a co-founder of Panas Panas Theatre, an arts collective exploring political and feminist themes through performance and community programming, and previously served on the Executive Committee of ReformARTsi, a national arts policy reform coalition.Arief completed an MSc in Comparative Public Policy from the University of Edinburgh as a Chevening Scholar, and holds a law degree from the International Islamic University Malaysia.

Clarissa Lim

Clarissa Lim is a cultural worker based in between Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur via Penang. She is currently a PhD Candidate at the School of Architecture at CUHK and received the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme and the CUHK Vice-Chancellor’s PhD Scholarship. Working in the interstices of visual culture, arts and architecture, her research reveals the urban influence of arts collectives in Malaysia.Her practice involves producing, curating, and navigating the internet to manage art and cultural projects. As a cultural worker, she has curated projects with the Canadian Centre for Architecture, Hong Kong Arts Centre, project-managed installations for the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism (2021), Urban and Architecture Bi-city Biennale (2015) and designed exhibitions in Berlin, Hong Kong and Vienna. Her writing and editing can be read on Design Anthology, Lensa Seni, Lanai Zine, Suburbia Projects, Process Magazine and more.She has also lectured at The University of Hong Kong, Malaysian Institute of Art, and The Chinese University of Hong Kong.In arts and cultural policy, she was previously the Hubs for Good Scholar at the University of Malaya funded in conjunction with the British Council Malaysia to develop a report and database of over a hundred Creative Hubs in the region. She has written reports for Yao Collaborative, Hong Kong Arts Centre and CENDANA.