-  CHAH KAH TIM writing in Today Online

Exploring Bukit Brown

Bukit Brown is more than a cemetery. It is symbolic of so many things at so many levels. The fact that it is one of the last few remaining patches of wilderness in an island state of barely 710 sq km in area, should multiply its worth, especially with the documented biodiversity value, but economic decisions seem to override this, to make way for a 8-lane highway across it.  

To many, Bukit Brown is a memory of their ancestry – it lays to rest 100,000 forefathers, many of whom helped shaped the nation. For a young country like Singapore, visible reminders of history are critical for current and future generations to connect with their past, their culture and their collective memories. As James Burke said, ” If you don’t know where you come from, you don’t know where you are.”

This article has two parts. An introduction is made by Cuifen, a Singaporean who shares her thoughts and feelings about Bukit Brown as her awareness of its beauty and importance grew since she first saw it.  The second part by Erika of SOS Bukit Brown gives an overview of the factual arguments in support of retaining Bukit Brown, and petitions that you can sign in its favour.

What Bukit Brown means to me

By Cuifen 

Nature at Bukit Brown

My first visit to Bukit Brown was in May of last year.  Bukit Brown is a cemetery, and it took me quite a long time to overcome my inertia to check out the place.  I finally did, though I didn’t know what to expect. I tagged  along  with Nature Society Singapore (NSS)  on one of their guided walks.  The place was totally abandoned.  Then it struck me how amidst the buried dead, life was  teeming. Majestic rain trees stretched out on all sides, filled with activity- ferns, orchids, climbers, insects, bats and birds. We were pleasantly surprised to see horses strolling by.  I remember thinking, “This place is so beautiful, and so close to MacRitchie reservoir. Yet MacRitchie is full of people, and Bukit Brown is so quiet. This feels like our little secret garden.”

Just as my curiosity was getting piqued, it started pouring. I couldn’t explore much more that day. I wanted to come back…

And return I did, not once, not twice, but at least 10 times – sometimes with a guided tour, sometimes with a few friends exploring the place on our own.

Through various walks, I learnt that this is home to many uncommon plants and birds. Some are forest species or species that are only found in maturing secondary forest areas, indicating some colonisation of species from the neighbouring MacRitchie forest. Dr Ho, a bird expert of NSS shared with us that Bukit Brown, being a large patch of greenery just next to MacRitchie was a likely stepping stone for forest birds to fly to other forested areas of Southern Singapore, including the Southern Ridges and Labrador Nature Reserve.

Enjoying Bukit Brown

Each time I went to Bukit Brown, I’d observe how other ordinary people were enjoying the space.  Some came to enjoy the scenery.  At some places the view is simply breathtaking, with valleys in the foreground and the tall forest trees of MacRitchie in the background. Some came to jog or cycle with their family and friends.  Yet others came to appreciate the area’s historical, cultural and spiritual aspects. And there are others still, like Raymond and Claire (of All things Bukit Brown blog)  who dedicate their free time to locating and cleaning graves of pioneers unrelated to them, simply because of their passion for heritage.

I remember my shock on reading the news that the government had plans to build an 8-lane highway right across Bukit Brown, to ease the congestion off Lornie Road. The government had, out of goodwill, funded a documentation project headed by the Singapore Heritage Society, for graves that would be directly impacted by the construction.

Questions were racing through my mind. How could the government do this? Have they consulted the public? Have they considered all the environmental and societal issues before making the decision? Do we even need an additional highway? Surely there are alternatives. Can we allow something to disappear forever, when we are only just beginning to discover its value?

A sense of urgency overcame me. I had to do more. Time is short. But what can I do as an individual?

In January 2012, Raymond and Claire had organised an informal training session for guides, focusing on the historical and cultural aspects of Bukit Brown. It was  the most valuable course I had ever taken. I had difficulty reading Chinese characters on the graves, but with Raymond’s patient assistance, I improved. For once, I understood that there’s a lot one can learn about a place’s history by reading the tombs, and connecting the dots together.  It allowed me to get a clearer grasp of Singapore’s history in its early days. It helped me connect with it in a much more profound way than through my textbooks when I was at school. For example, I learnt there was a municipality next to Bukit Brown in the late 1910s. The town was filled with people of all backgrounds, and the municipality commissioners decided to buy over the area from the Hokkien clan, to ensure sufficient burial grounds for ordinary people.

Heritage Guide Training

I found the courage to initiate walks. I invited various friends to Bukit Brown with me as their guide. It has been an amazing experience for me as most of my friends are unsure of what to expect, except what they see in my photos on facebook. They go away happy that they have seen another side of Singapore that is not on the tourist map.

I come back today feeling a sense of fulfilment after a morning of exploration at Bukit Brown. Armed with a GPS, I had assisted Von Bing, a plant expert with Nature Society Singapore (NSS) to mark the locations of interesting and rare plant species. Along the way, we occasionally ventured off the roads, to check out the tombs of prominent early pioneers, like Mr Cheang Hong Lim and Mr. Chew Boon Lay, after whom many public places are named in Singapore today.

As Jane Goodall once said, “Only if we understand can we care. Only if we care will we help. Only if we help shall they be saved.”

Can we save Bukit Brown? I think we can. I hope we can. But it means that we must all show we care for it enough. And to care, we must first understand what it means to all of us, inside our hearts.

Why Bukit Brown should be saved

By Erika of  SOS Bukit Brown

Located in the central part of Singapore off Lornie Road, Bukit Brown Cemetery is the largest Chinese cemetery outside of China. With a land area of 230 hectares, it is almost half the size of Sentosa Island (500 hectares).

Initially a burial ground for the Ong clan, the land was acquired by the government and officially opened in 1922 as a cemetery for the Chinese community. The oldest grave dates back to 1833 while the largest tomb covers an area equivalent to ten 3-bedroom Housing Development Board (HDB) flats.

Today, Bukit Brown has approximately 100,000 graves and is the last remaining cemetery of its kind in Singapore. Closed for burial since 1973, the area has become a verdant woodland much loved by hikers, runners, horse riders and bird watchers for its beauty and serenity.

Developments

In May 2011, the government announced that Bukit Brown would eventually make way for housing. In September 2011, they announced plans to build an 8-lane highway through the cemetery to alleviate the peak hour traffic congestion along nearby Lornie Road and the Pan Island Expressway (PIE). Meanwhile, anticipating future developments, a shell station for a future Bukit Brown train stop has been constructed at the edge of the cemetery.

Issues

Civil society groups that oppose the authorities’ plans stress that Bukit Brown’s destruction is unnecessary. They have raised several concerns, with the main ones as follows:

1. There are alternatives to easing the Lornie Road congestion without having to build a destructive new road. In its position paper on Bukit Brown, the Nature Society offers suggestions for dealing with the traffic problem, including the expansion of existing roads in the area. There are also concerns that the new road could inadvertently exacerbate traffic woes by creating additional bottlenecks along other sections of the PIE.
2. As part of its nation-building efforts, Singapore has to value and preserve important heritage sites, especially since many have already been lost. Bukit Brown, home to the remains of pioneer Singaporeans from all walks of life, can play a significant part in local efforts to evolve a unique Singapore Story.
3. In light of growing environmental awareness about climate change, Singapore should step up efforts to protect existing greenery. Singaporeans are already experiencing the effects of warmer temperatures and increased flooding, and the clearing of land in green areas like Bukit Brown could worsen these problems.

Conclusion

In addition to offering alternative solutions to the Lornie Road problem, civil society groups are recommending that Bukit Brown be gazetted as a heritage park for public enjoyment. And if Bukit Brown must be developed, then a comprehensive impact assessment ought to be conducted first. As the Nature Society puts it, “We should not be in a hurry to build the expressway – given that so much is at stake at Bukit Brown, which once destroyed cannot be resurrected.”

Action

To learn more about Bukit Brown Cemetery, visit Bukit Brown.com

Read the position papers of Nature Society and Singapore Heritage Society

Join Save Bukit Brown Cemetery – the roots of our nation on Facebook 

To download and sign a petition to save Bukit Brown, click here.

Pictures Courtesy: Cuifen 

Further links you may be interested in:

The Online Citizen:  Sorry to hear Tan Chuan Jin’s priorities

Wild Singapore: Hope springs eternal 

Today Online: Important not to trivialise Bukit Brown debate 

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Given the complex nature of various environmental issues, the solutions going forward require an increasingly cross-disciplinary approach that can weave together different perspectives. University education all over the world has to move in that direction.

One such example is The National University of Singapore’s Masters in Environmental Management (MEM) degree. It is the first interdisciplinary post-graduate program within the university (and perhaps one of the very few in Asia) that brings together various disciplines such as Arts and Social Sciences, NUS Business School, Engineering, Law, Medicine, Science and the School of Design and Management.

The 10th Anniversary celebrations of MEM on December 15th and 16th, 2011 were opened by Associate Prof Lye Lin Heng, Chair, MEM Programme Management Committee, with the welcome address by Prof Heng Chye Kiang, Dean, School of Design and Environment, and a speech by Prof. Tan Eng Chye, Provost, NUS. 

NUS MEM 10th Anniversary Celebrations Special Guests

1. Professor Heng Chye Kiang ,Dean,School of Design and Environment, NUS  2. Professor Nicholas Robinson, University Professor for the Environment with the School of Law, Pace University, and Adjunct Professor with the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University, US 3.Mr Kamal Malhotra, United Nations Resident Coordinator for Malaysia and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam 4.Associate Professor Lye Lin Heng, Chair, MEM Programme Management Committee (Faculty of Law), NUS  5.Professor Tommy Koh, Chair, MEM Advisory Committee, NUS  6.Professor Tan Eng Chye,Deputy President (Academic Affairs) and Provost, NUS 7.Professor George Ofori, Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, NUS

Prof Lye outlined the journey and the inspiration behind the MEM programme as a ‘bottom-up’ initiative from faculty members interested in environmental issues. This interest has been sustained and several faculty members are also part of the new Bachelors of Environmental Studies (BES) programme.

Mr Kamal Malhotra, who was the Guest of Honour lay his faith on Asia’s strength and resilience which was evident in the face of economic crisis. Climate change affects us all, and he hoped that Rio 20+ meeting would yield something more concrete than the COP17 climate conference at Durban. He also wished for Singapore to contribute to the Climate Development Fund.

Prof Nicholas Robinson

The keynote speech was delivered by Prof Nicholas Robinson, University Professor for the Environment, School of Law, Pace University, New York, and Adjunct Professor, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, Yale University, USA.

By 2025, South East Asian cities will hold 225 million people, about 60% of national populations.  While cities are centres of innovation, industry and commerce, they also lack elements of sustainable development, such as potable water, sanitation, housing, and even the measures to attain sustainability.  Prof Robinson urged the importance of “embracing sustainability as a holistic concept, not as one anti-thetical to development, but rather being the foundation of socio-economic wellbeing. Major companies have a sustainability manager next to the president or CEO, and mayors of cities needed to do likewise to take the leadership role in making cities sustainable.  Along with honest and open governance, insurance systems to protect from environmental damage, market reforms to support sustainability, Prof Robinson also touched on the need to further public education about sustainability. One way to do this was through formal education, such as the MEM or the BES programme of NUS.  Informal education, through public participation of environmental impact assessments were also important.

MEM’s 10th Anniversary Commemorative book was also launched on the day. Entitled “Environment and Climate Change in Asia” and compiled by Prof Victor R Savage and Prof Lye Lin Heng.  This was a welcome addition to a small but growing body of literature, both online and offline on environmental issues in Asia.

Environment and Climate Change in Asia: Book Launch

NUS Deputy President (Academic Affairs) and Provost Professor Tan Eng Chye, Associate Professor Lye Lin Heng from the NUS Faculty of Law, and Professor Victor Savage from the Department of Geography at the launch of the commemorative book titled “Environment and Climate Change in Asia: Ecological Footprints and Green Prospects” .

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The information (as obtained from their website and conference brochure) is published here:

The NUS Multi-disciplinary Masters in Environmental Management Programme (MEM) is celebrating its 10th Anniversary. The M.Sc.in Environmental Management (MEM) Programme, offered by the National University of Singapore (NUS) was launched in July 2001.

In celebration of the Programme’s 10th Anniversary, a conference on the theme, “Sustainable Environmental Management in Urban Asia”, will be held on 15-16 December 2011, at the Shaw Foundation Alumni House, NUS.

To download the full brochure with details of the conference speakers and topics, please click here.

Registration can be done online here. There is an early bird discount for those who register before Nov 30, 2011.  Teachers in educational institutions get the same as NUS staff, and all students only pay $130. 

From the conference brochure:

2007 a milestone was attained in demographic history. The world became officially ‘urban’ – 50 percent of the global population was classified as living in urban areas. This is significant in two ways:

• Firstly the speed at which urbanization has become the norm of living globally. The first cities in human history were only formed some 8,000 to 10,000 years ago and the first urban country, Britain, was a recent phenomenon in 1900.
• Secondly, the global population is expanding rapidly and this means a significant demographic shift. In 2011, the global population hit 7 billion, so over 3.5 billion people are now living in urban areas.

The MEM is a multi-disciplinary integrated programme, which provides education in environmental management to senior and mid-level managers and officers in corporations, institutions and government, and non-governmental organizations. The programme equips graduates with the necessary knowledge to properly manage the environment and to deal with the challenges of an environmentally conscious society and international market. It enables them to assume responsible and influential roles to make sound decisions that support sustainable development. The programme is jointly offered by seven faculties and schools in the NUS, demonstrating its broad-based approach to education in the field of the environment. These are: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences; Faculty of Engineering; Faculty of Law; Faculty of Science; NUS Business School; Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine; and School of Design and Environment (host faculty). The programme has links with Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences.

The main component of the MEM programme is a group of seven Core Modules: Business and Environment; Environmental Economics and Public Policy; Environmental Law; Environmental Management and Assessment; Environmental Planning; Environmental Science; and Environmental Technology. Candidates must also complete either: (i) a Dissertation; or (ii) a Study Report and an Elective Module. The third component of the MEM programme is the Seminar Series. Candidates must attend a minimum of ten specially arranged seminars, and complete a report on the series.

The MEM programme can be undertaken either Full-Time or Part-Time. Full-time students can complete the programme in one academic year; and Part-time students can complete it in two academic years. The students of the MEM programme come from a variety of disciplines and from both the public and private sectors. They include architects, engineers, scientists, veterinary surgeons, lawyers, teachers, health workers, journalists, and forest and park managers. About half of each year’s cohorts are Singaporeans, permanent residents or foreigners working in Singapore, while the rest are from abroad. The countries include: Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Mauritius, Myanmar, Nepal, Norway, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States and Vietnam.

To register for the Conference, please click here.

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One of the things I noticed during my recent visit to Sydney was the lane markings for bicycles. Markings such as the ones that I am about to share below would really make riding a bicycle safe and convenient in a place like Singapore, where the roads are already well laid out and maintained.

Picture 1: Two way lanes for cyclists merging from a pedestrian pavement

Picture 2: Narrow green lane for cyclists planning to ride straight on, where other vehicles may want to turn left.

Video: A bike box, like the one here in the city of Toronto, is a safe zone for cyclists to stand ahead of other vehicles at the traffic lights, to get an early start.

Video link here

The public transport infrastructure in Singapore is quite comprehensive, serviced by buses and underground tube trains, better known as Mass Rapid Transport (MRT). Developing cycling as a complementary and alternative means of transport would greatly improve the quality of life for many – enhancing good health through exercise and reduced air pollution. It would also help lower the country’s carbon emissions.

The city state has total land area of 712.4 sq km and one end to the other  from east to west in the mainland is only 48.2 kms.  Distance wise, it’s a perfect place for cycling.

However, it isn’t such a safe thing to do. At the moment, there are very few separate lanes for cycling, and it can be quite dangerous for cyclists to share roads with cars and buses.  Sometimes cyclists use pavements meant for pedestrians, but that is not officially encouraged.

The only exception is in parks and the area of Tampines East Zone in eastern Singapore, where a pilot programme is being carried out. Cyclists are legally allowed to share the pavement with pedestrians at least during a transition period till separate cycling paths are carved out. There’s even a special Bicycle Patrol to catch errant cyclists.

The solution to safer cycling lies in public education (Tampines promotes cycling talks and clinics in community clubs), but also in allowing for more cycling space directly on the roads.

Though cyclists in Singapore are allowed to use bus lanes, separate lane markings on roads shared with cars would make life simpler and easier for them. Some argue that this will clog up already narrow lanes and slow down vehicular traffic during peak times. Not a bad thing, if you ask me, if this encourages more people to take up cycling instead!

It’s not yet clear if demarcation of separate cyclist lanes on roads is on the Land Transport Authority(LTA)’s agenda. What has been planned for however are cycling paths to be created by extending footpaths.

Separate bicycle paths on pedestrian space in Tampines

Besides Tampines, six other towns – Yishun, Sembawang, Taman Jurong, Pasir Ris, Changi-Simei and Bedok - as well as Marina Bay will be given such cycling paths to link cyclists up to transport nodes and key local amenities.

Works for 7.5km of cycling paths in Yishun have also begun earlier this year.

Construction of the paths in the first five towns – except Changi-Simei and Bedok – will be completed by the third quarter of 2012, while that in Marina Bay will wrap up in 2014. Plans for Changi-Simei and Bedok are still being discussed.

The Government has set aside $43 million to construct the cycling paths in the first five heartland areas, and $26 million to build the 16km stretch in Marina Bay.

I visited Tampines recently, and was pleasantly surprised that a simple policy change such as allowing cyclists a shared space with pedestrians had actually created a cycling culture within the town. For a moment, I found it hard it believe that this was Singapore – mums and dads with children, the old and young alike – all on two wheels happily riding away to their destinations.

There is some hope then, in the future of cycling in Singapore, even though cycling paths may be restricted to pavements, rather being extended to roads which is the desirable for more long distance travel.

What are your thoughts? We’d like to hear of your experiences about cycling whether within or outside Singapore.  If you have pictures of lane markings or signposts, do share them with us on facebook  or here in the comments section, so we can in turn share with our readers.

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About the writer:

Bhavani Prakash is the Founder of Eco WALK the Talk.com and enjoys walking and riding bicycles, especially when she doesn’t have to look over her shoulders too much. She can be contacted at bhavani[at] ecowalkthetalk.com .  Join EWTT on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

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Further links you may be interested in:

1. EWTT: Bike the Talk: The green solution to urban transport contains a lot of interesting videos on how cycling has been promoted and made safer in many cities.

2.  Cycling in Singapore : A blog dedicated to ” Issues, views, solutions and opportunities for transport and urban cycling in Singapore.”

3.  Join Everyday Traffic, a facebook group and “discussion portal and a resource portal for all things transport and traffic.”

3. Wikipedia on “Shared Space”

The concept of “shared space” has a lot of nuances, and I would encourage you to read this excellent wikipedia entry on the topic. In particular, it is interesting to see the different approaches, with some towns like Makkinga and Drachten in the Netherlands doing away with lane markings altogether, under the premise that this would make all road users more conscious of each other.

4. YouTube: Cycling Friendly Cities

Video link here

5. Straits Times: Tampines deters bicycle thiefs with unique identification lables

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URA Building, Singapore

Singapore brings out a Concept Plan every 10 years to map out the long term directions for the city’s land use and transportation plans over the next 40 to 50 years. The next Concept Plan is scheduled for 2011. With this in mind, one of the focus groups that Singapore’s urban planner, the “ Urban Redevelopment Authority” (URA) set up was on the issue of “Sustainability and Identity.”  

The focus group has come up with recommendations that they will be making to the URA. Yesterday, May 6th, 2010 was the Public Forum where the group sought feedback from the public on its draft proposals.

One of the two main thrust areas according to the focus group is :

BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE CITY: “For Singapore to be a highly liveable city, the focus group felt that we need to build a sustainable city where we are all geared up for sustainable living.”  The recommendations (shown in block) and public feedback are as follows:

“1. Strengthening our green infrastructure

1a) ‘Greening the building lifecycle’

• ‘Green’ the entire lifecycle of a building from planning and design, resources used, to operations and maintenance.
• Have more policies and incentives to encourage the ‘greening’ of building lifecycles.
• Include sustainability building considerations as criteria for award in land tenders.
• Encourage more owners to retrofit their existing buildings with green features.” 

Feedback & Comments:

A Panel member noted that all new buildings in Singapore subscribe to the BCA Green Mark standard, but there was scope for improving the standard by incorporating the entire lifecycle of a building.

One audience member questioned the presence of so many glass panelled buildings in the city and the subsequent use of airconditioning. The idea of Green roofs came up in the slides shown by the panelists, and encouragement of urban farming was suggested by the audience. Mr. Shawn Lum, President of the Nature Society of Singapore hopes to see such concepts become a reality in Singapore.

“1b) Promoting ‘green’ mobility

• Public transport, walking or cycling should be our default means to get around.
• Encourage greater use of public transport by making it even more convenient, frequent, and comfortable, along with cheaper fares and season passes.
• Discourage private transport by reviewing car parking policies, such as reducing parking lots, or charging higher parking fees in the city and town centres.
• Provide a dedicated network of cycling lanes and complimentary facilities.”

Feedback & Comments:

It was encouraging to note the emphasis on public transport, and the importance of making it convenient and cost effective.  The panel members noted that we need improved cycling lanes and covered areas for cycling - considering the city is hot and humid. Public education is also required to ensure the successful use of this means of public transport. 

Reducing the number of cars on the road is also the way to make the city greener, and that entails a possible reduction of car park spaces.

“1c)‘Greening’ our habits

• All should become  ‘green’ citizens and make recycling and reducing waste part of our daily lives.
• Deploy an island-wide recycling infrastructure at community level to make recycling convenient
• Strengthen programmes to inculcate a ‘green’ mindset and raise public awareness about recycling and reducing waste.”

Feedback & Comments:

Panelists noted that green behaviour has to be a community wide action, with top-down and bottom-up initiatives supporting this.  Green behaviour is more likely to evolve if it is convenient, and people are given both incentives and disincentives. 

EWTT pointed out to the panelists that there are some practical issues in reducing plastic bag consumption. People still need to use it to put things down the building chute.  However much we try to reduce waste, in addition to recycling bins, there needs to be a community provision for composting.  Another audience member mentioned that having chutes in buildings makes people lazy when it comes to recycling.

The panel suggested that higher waste disposal fees depending upon the amount of garbage collected from households could reduce wastage. Recycling could be encouraged by placing recycling bins closer to public transport points like MRT stations.

On the issue of green behaviour, EWTT noticed that the URA had to start green behaviour at home, and pointed that there was no veggie food as refreshments, which were served on plastic disposables. Bottled water was provided at the forum. A request was made for introducing one Meat Free Day a week in Singapore.  

One audience member mentioned there is way too much packaging in many products, and that companies should also take responsibility for reducing the packaging.  The Semakau landfill that houses the incineration ash from Singapore is likely to be filled up by 2030.

 ”2. Foster more sharing and ownership of  ‘green’ practices

Empowering the community to go green

• Empower residents to take ownership and improve our living environment
• Grow demand for green products and cleaner or renewable energy
• Have a reliable accreditation system for ‘green’ products to encourage ‘green’ consumerism
• Share ‘green’ knowledge and tools amongst grassroots, non-government organisations, schools and businesses.
• Recognise our ‘green’ heroes.”

Feedback & Comments:

EWTT quoted to panelists, a recent study by University of Adelaide and National University of Singapore, which mentions the high ecological footprint of Singapore. It’s necessary to think of sustainability not only in terms of what it means for the island, but also the footprint elsewhere in the region and on the planet. The panel agreed, and said that better labelling for products, such as organic and fairtrade would help with this.

The other thrust area is MAKING SINGAPORE AN ENDEARING HOME , a place to “work, live and play.” It includes preserving our natural and architectural heritage, and enliven places that enhance our personal and collective memories of this city.     Some topics that came up for discussion were : providing more areas for children to play like the Jacob Bhalla’s Garden in Singapore, and increasing the current 5-6% land area reserved for Nature Parks to at least 10% which is the IUCN recommendation for conservation of biodiversity.

Some of these issues are new, and some have been raised before with the Government of Singapore.  The issues are very broad in scope, and many of the details, such as plans for green transport, renewable energy, or green labelling, for example, are not known.  It will be interesting to see which of these recommendations make it into the Concept Plan and to what degree and detail. 

The focus group has given a 3 week time window to take in more feedback from the public. So leave your comments on the Concept Plan 2011 website and see if you can shape Singapore’s future as a Sustainable City.

The 6 Panelists were:

Shawn Lum, Nature Society Singpore ; Tiew Chew Meng, South-West CDC ; Ganesh Kalynanam, Republic Polytechnic; Amb Ong Keng Yong, Institute of Policy Studies,  Lee Tzu Yang, Chairman of Shell Companies, Shirlena Huang, National University of Singapore.

Further links you may be interested in:

1. URA concept Plan 2011 Public Consultation Process

2.  Study ranks Singapore highest in relative Environmental Impact

3. Kawasaki Eco-Town (Mentioned by Shawn Lum, President of Nature Society as an example of a Zero Emissions, Zero Waste model, which we in Singapore must strive to better)

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