Inter-University Environmental Conference (IUEC) 2022 – Conversations for change beyond SGP2030 (Perspectives on Energy Reset & City in Nature)

On 9 October 2022 (Sunday), I attended the afternoon session of Day 2 of the Inter-University Environmental Conference 2022. It is the largest youth-led sustainability conference in Singapore, jointly organised by students from the 8 major universities of Singapore.

The 2-day conference features 5 panel dialogues with representatives from 5 ministries, academics, and youth leaders to advance conversations about SG Green Plan 2030. (Picture credit: IUEC2022 Partnerships Team)

The conference facilitates focus group discussions, open debates and exhibitions with government representatives, youth leaders from our favourite organisations, and fellow participants.

The Conference Partnerships Team has kindly provided their bite-size booklet on all we need to know about the SG Green Plan.

During the Energy Reset dialogue, over 40 questions were asked by members of the audience for the panel speakers to answer.

The questions asked at the Energy Reset dialogue include the following:

Anonymous
How will Singapore decarbonize the economy that’s so reliant on $ from fossil fuels while we’re shifting away from using them ourselves?

Anonymous
how can singapore take accountability for the emissions it facilitates but isnt directly responsible for (e.g. refineries, airport)?

Anonymous
Nuclear power has become exponentially more safe and, in the near future, can become more compact. Does/should it have a future in Singapore?

Anonymous
Cross Island Line will be built under Central Water Catchment? Thoughts?

Anonymous
Singapore is considering nuclear energy. Do you think the market will consider nuclear energy as an alternative to fossil fuels (which are cheaper)?

Anonymous
is there any way we can pursue electrification without increasing demand for extractive, harmful mining practices around cobalt, lithium etc?

Anonymous
Is there room for nuclear power in singapore?

Anonymous
Has Singapore figure a solution for recycling solar panels that are implemented in the solarnova project

Anonymous
Why is nuclear fusion not currently used in the electrical energy generation industry ?

Anonymous
With Singapore’s current reputation as a massive oil hub, how can we become a profitable renewable energy hub with quick reduction on fossil fuel dependence?

Anonymous
How is the research and development for fusion reactors in Singapore?

Anonymous
it seems like energy reset will cause a significant impact on marine life, is there a way to go about energy reset without impacting biodiversity?

Anonymous
Are there solid plans for Singapore to de-emphasize car-based transport infrastructurally?

Anonymous
What needs to be done to mine lesser minerals to prevent exploitaton of Least Developed Countries by Developed Countries to achieve their climate goals?

Anonymous
Are there enough actions to incorporate solar into our electricity mix (XT’s not-pofma slide showed 3%), and what more can we do?

Anonymous
Electric bus fares are rising with other public transports. How can we encourage less carbon when fewer people are willing and able to pay for public transport?

Anonymous
German policy of $9 a month for trains feasible for SG?

Anonymous
Will hydropower be used in Singapore?

Anonymous
If dont import energy then get from where hah

Anonymous
Apart from taking public transport, how can individuals make a difference?

Anonymous
Is there any other alternative to making electric batteries? Since it does have negative impacts on the environment too (ocean pollution)

Anonymous
What are some of the strategies for demand reduction of energy?

Anonymous
How is SG handling the waste generated from the lithium batteries of EVs?

Anonymous
Why dont we dig up landfills to extract materials

Anonymous
Should reduction of energy (on industrial levels especially) have a bigger role in this conversation?

Anonymous
Is SG’s efforts to make the air-con more efficient? Eg, the bldg is so cold today & temp can be adjusted so that less energy is used & everyone feels comfotable

Anonymous
How can the government push for industries to reduce their energy use since they contribute the most? (edited)

Anonymous
Do you think investing in asteroid mining for resources would be a good alternative to mining for resources?

Anonymous
Seems like usage of energy is also a matter of choosing the less evil. In your opinion, what is that ‘less evil’ we can pursue more aggressively?

Anonymous
What are some ways the public transportation sector can increase efficiency and lower emissions in SG?

Anonymous
Does reducing our energy demands mean that progress as a whole country will be stunted for a bit given that there will be a transition phase which takes time

Anonymous
Technology is used to improve energy efficiency, but technologies are also the culprit of carbon emissions e.g. Data Centre, how do we strike a balance?

Anonymous
how do we change social paradigms that value and encourage private car ownership?

Jimmy
How will we prioritise forest conservation since extracting minerals for making electric vehicles etc via mining has environmental and human rights concerns?

Anonymous
are there any corporate governing bodies that could set net zero targets for shipping or energy usage?

Anonymous
Another environmental impact of EVS is the battery recycling. Does Singapore have a plan for that?

Anonymous
What can MOT do to encourage cycling as a mode of transport, like in some European countries?

Anonymous
What Singapore have done in energy reset? what can the youth do to make It better way for Singapore

Anonymous
What about tidal energy?

Anonymous
There are studies being conducted for the cross island line, on how it would affect the nature there, and it seems like it wouldn’t as it would be built deeper

Up next is a series of talks by panel speakers, Dr Shawn Lum, Mr Syazwan Majid and Mr Tan Kiat How, who offered various perspectives about Singapore as a City in Nature.

“City in Nature – The Orang Pulau Perspective” shared by indigenous islander Mr Syazwan Majid, Wan’s Ubin Journal

For example, we learnt that Singapore is more than just an island nation, for we are a nation of islands.

We also learnt about the plan by the Ministry of National Development (MND) for transforming Singapore into a City in Nature, with the help of community stewardship.

During the open debates at the foyer, the participants wrote their answers to pertinent questions about nuclear energy, forest conservation, and so on.

One of the questions at the open debates is:

“Should Singapore immediately halt all clearing of forests and large expanses of land (eg Dover forest/western catchment)?”

I wrote one of my answers as follows:

“Quality of green spaces matters, in terms of ecosystem services, biodiversity, ecological connectivity, etc (not just quantity), so forest conservation must be done in tandem with the one million tree planting programme.”

During the City in Nature dialogue, over 50 questions were asked by members of the audience for the panel speakers to answer. These questions include:

Anonymous
what are the various panelists’ opinions on otters and what actions should we take in response to the increasing prevalence of otters related interactions?

Anonymous
The key targets of the SG green plan mostly focuses on green spaces. Will there be more commitment to protect our blue spaces as well?

Anonymous
How do you negotiate between building new green spaces (e.g. the parks you mentioned) and keeping existing spaces (e.g. Dover Forest)?

Anonymous
How can cultural preservation work hand-in-hand with the city in nature movement?

Anonymous
Biophillia is great but what about making this functional i.e. biodiversity value of the space, ecosystem service valuation?

Anonymous
Do you think culture can be a double edged sword, and we should denounce certain activities we deem unsustainable, or should we trust it throughout ?

Anonymous
Hello! Do you think that planting multi-tier roadside verges will increase the chances of roadkill/wildlife-vehicle collisions?

Anonymous
what are consequences of focusing too much on tangible benefits of nature and ecosystem services? good for humans =/= good for wildlife

Anonymous
Is there space for indigenous people in Singapore?

Anonymous
Why don’t we talk about indigenous practises more in mainstream narratives of sustainability and living harmoniously with nature

Anonymous
How is “nature” being defined in City of Nature?

Anonymous
What can urban designers/ planners learn from indigenous ecological knowledge?

Anonymous
Are strips of park connectors, high-rise bound urban parks, and limited ecological complexity suffice in the greater plan of ecological connectivity?

Anonymous
What’s the definition of a park? Some “parks” are just one tree one bench one path

Anonymous
Is de-urbanization possible? Why look for nature based solutions instead of stopping the problem…

Anonymous
how can we bring singaporean to be more appreciate /self awareness more nature around us.

Anonymous
I work with architects, when they plan for nature areas, they ask ‘why care about the animals? They add no value to people’? How will we change this mindset?

Anonymous
What is your definition of nature? (edited)

Anonymous
will history/social studies in school change to teach young sgeans abt our indigenous roots?

Anonymous
Many of the forested areas are cleared for developmental purposes(e.g. punggol for housing) How can these tree cover be brought back in the now developed areas?

Anonymous
what plans are there for older buildings to integrate into nature (not just new-build ones to have green walls)?

Anonymous
Is there more or less native species in Singapore over the years?

Anonymous
Why not instead of greenery only, we can include farms ?

Anonymous
There is a concern for animals being extinct in the near future due to climate change and it’s effects. What work can we do to prevent this from happening?

Anonymous
Are we going to continue exterminating bees when green corridors attracting more bees to build hives closer to residents. Bee are Keystone species to ecosystem.

Anonymous
Otter populations will self regulate, pls otter-proof your house if you want to keep koi or other fishes

Anonymous
This building is an example of so much Aircon. Are we making any progress in this regard?

Anonymous
How can we encourage biophilia and expand parks while developing and our remaining secondary forests? How can we negotiate this tension?

Anonymous
Can we relocate beehive instead of exterminate by releasing toxic chemicals? How can we manage wild bees in a more sustainable way?

Anonymous
Will we consider reduced or negative economic growth to reduce the land use pressures?

Anonymous
Is there a possibility of mandating private developers and HDB to educate potential buyers of possible wildlife conflict in the area?

Anonymous
Are there any plans for food forests?

Anonymous
beyond gardens and parks, what interactions w nature will singaporeans have in the future?

Anonymous
How big of a priority do you think it is to maintain local biodiversity in its development journey? Considering land use for energy, defence, industrial etc

Anonymous
Some spaces are slated for development in a long time, but these secondary forests become homes for many wildlife. How do we mitigate the loss of these wildlife

Anonymous
Is there any available effort for sustainable fishing and harvesting practices?

Anonymous
Why do we need to exterminate bees when we can humanely rehoming them? They are important to our ecosystem?

Anonymous
Can we focus on conserving forests instead of just planting trees, as research shows 10 ha of forests can cool over 300 m, while rooftop gardens only up to 4 m?

Anonymous
How do you prepare people to live in our city in nature, including certain lifestyle adjustments they may have to make.

Anonymous
Does Singapore can achieve 100% greenery country in earth?

Anonymous
Can more people be taken through green spaces and nature on their commute to work or school? For example, MRT lines or shuttle routes going through them, quietly

Anonymous
what can sg’s current aquaculture R&D efforts learn from orang laut/other indigenous fishing practices?

Anonymous
Why is the EMMP tossed out the window when the development phase reaches landscapers and architects?

Anonymous
Other than ecosystem services, can we shift to value the biodiversity in a less-human centric manner?

Anonymous
As we become a city in nature, there will be many more encounters with wildlife. How can we manage potential human wildlife conflicts? (edited)

Anonymous
Why we cannot stick to nature rather than investing new technologies? By reducing, we can rather not use the technologies like before.

Anonymous
Would you consider more co-living typologies to reduce the need to develop land for residential buildings?

Anonymous
Is there any recent examples of Singapore heritage construction techniques embedded in modern real estate projects?

Anonymous
how do Singapore implement more VIA project or activities to spreading awareness of importance of city in nature

Anonymous
But bringng about green takes a lot of time. Eg, to grow trees. Is there anything that can be done?

Anonymous
By 2023 will there be more planting over the HDB flats? What can we expect by 2023 for City of Nature?

Anonymous
how to Singapore bring closer to children to let them know what’s is the important of greenery country.

Anonymous
With more natural green spaces, can there be more danger posed to people passing through, especially at night?

Anonymous
Can we conserve 50% of Tengah forest as it connects western and central catchment areas & has critically endangered species like pangolins, so to avoid ecocide?

Anonymous
How may we discern between real housing “needs” (eg long term homes) and superficial housing “wants” (eg selling BTO upon meeting 5-year MOP for quick profits)?

Kudos to the youths for organising and participating in this landmark environmental conference. May it inspire many positive changes to be made for our environment, flora and fauna, and ultimately our well-being.

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Plant rescue at Dover Forest East

29 September 2022 felt like one of the longest days in my life.

I attended a plant rescue programme at Dover Forest East in the morning, which was organised by Nature Society Singapore (NSS), in collaboration with National Parks Board (NParks) and Housing & Development Board (HDB).

The event was supervised by NSS reforestation officer Chua Chin Tat.

I witnessed how the dedicated volunteers dug up saplings and placed them in bags for transplanting.

After the event, I had lunch with some of the volunteers and learnt much from their sharing of knowledge and experiences in various fields –

from hiking to recycling to scavenging to food security to nature conservation.

Then I cycled to Alexandra Woods for a recce via Green Rail Corridor before starting my dinner delivery shift at Bukit Merah area.

After the shift, I decided to make my way back via the Green Corridor in the dark of the night.

I was glad for the bright front lights for my bicycle and the improved surface of the greenway, which help to ensure safety.

Somehow, I am reminded that when it is darkest, we shine the brightest, even though things around us may look bleak, in view of the existential crises facing us.

“Our planet has been wounded by our actions. Those wounds won’t be healed today, or tomorrow, or the next, but they can be healed by degrees.” – Barack Obama, COP26 speech, November 2021

A Cry for Nature (Poem by Alan Ardy)

A Cry For Nature

They’re cutting more and more trees down, have you seen?
And replacing them with concrete that’s quite obscene

In the name of development and urban renewal. 
Destroying wildlife habitats isn’t just cruel

But also short-term thinking at its very worst
Because such gross devastation can’t be reversed.

But they don’t care about Nature, just the pursuit of wealth, 
Indifferent to the effect upon the nation’s health.

They say it’s for progress but they don’t see the dangers
Of our next generation growing up as strangers

To the undisturbed beauty of a forest glade
And the calm tranquility that Nature has made

Quite unaware that ecological destruction
Isn’t progress at all but spiritual corruption.

Do they seriously believe that more urban sprawl,
Industrial estates or another shopping mall

With architectural designs in dubious taste
Is worth the cost of the country they’re laying waste?

They’re so insensitive without realising
Their rapist mentality is vandalising

The environment’s pure and natural aesthetic
With cheap vulgarity that’s quite pathetic.

So please feel for the trees as they slowly die
And remember these words which are Nature’s cry.

By Alan Ardy
Writer,
Creative Director

A case for conservation of Tengah forest in Singapore

Why we need the forest 🌳🌳🌳🌳

A couple of days ago, I took time off after my morning shift for hiking.

It is part of my voluntary project for nature conservation and environmental awareness.

The photos and videos of the hike serve to preserve the memory of Tengah forest for posterity.

I am also inspired to make a special video that combines video clips from my previous hike to make a case for conservation.

Why?

Because climate change affects all of us, including plants, animals and humans.

According to an article:

“New research has found strong evidence that climate change is spurring conflict, which is driving people to abandon their homelands and seek safety elsewhere.”

In Singapore, it is already happening in some ways.

Birds and animals have been displaced from their homes ever since urban development started some 200 years ago.

With the ongoing clearance of Tengah forest, the baya weavers, otters and other animals are in danger of losing their homes.

It probably wouldn’t be long before more and more of us humans will also become environmental refugees due to climate change affecting the liveability of our environment.

To where will we seek asylum?

To where can we really migrate since the effects of climate change are ubiquitous?

What happens in one country will affect other countries, as seen in the case of the Sumatran haze and many other examples.

The future is in our hands.

Nature is free and abundant

(Picture sources: Google)

Nature is free and abundant.

When it rains, Nature provides an umbrella in the form of a banana leaf free of charge.

All of us have equal access to the benefits of Nature.

Nature does not discriminate anyone.

You don’t need to pay anything.

You only need to take care of the environment, and Nature will take care of you.

Conserve the forest, and the forest will preserve you and your posterity.

We and Nature are one and interconnected.

Stubby squids and other mysteries

A National Geographic article shared by a colleague invites readers to watch a video of a googly-eyed sea creature that cracked up scientists. The purple stubby squid is intriguing indeed. I googled about it and found another video of this “muppet” swimming on the ocean floor.

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 The cartoon-like eyes of the squid make me wonder… who came up with the idea that big round eyes make for cute, cartoon-like creatures? Before the discovery of this squid with cartoon eyes, one would probably have thought that big round eyes are the invention of human cartoonists and muppeteers, which are often featured in cartoons ranging from Mickey Mouse to Dragonball to Sesame Street. But Mother Nature surprised us through this discovery, as if to proclaim that such big-eyed cartoon characters have always existed all along since time immemorial in real life – in the form of stubby squids and the like, way way WAY before such cartoons came on the scene through the invention of media like televisions and comic books in the modern world.

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Perhaps another mystery is… how did human beings conceive of big round eyes of a stubby squid when they first drew cute cartoon characters, long before they had ever seen such creatures in real life? Are we human beings an extension of the Universe such that we are all interconnected with all other living beings, and by some telepathy or mysterious soul imprints and mystical connections, we intuitively create works of art resembling some other creatures without knowing of their existence or seeing them before?

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Maybe there is something deeply profound in the imaginations of human beings, which may be a key to unravel the ancient mysteries such as pyramids, crop circles, UFOs, and so on…

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Meanwhile, life goes on… in a world where students are often told by the education system to not daydream and study hard so that they can work in a rank-and-file capitalistic system and live a nondescript life, while the mysteries of life continue to stay hidden in the deep recesses of human consciousness, unexplored and unexplained.

What kids teach me

By taking a detour from the main road in Batam centre, I was hoping to find a short cut back to the hotel. Instead, I stumbled upon a poor neighbourhood district where kids played on polluted streets amid wooden huts. One would wonder why the authorities have chosen to spend the nation’s budget on building lavish shopping malls instead of improving the basic infrastructure of the residents. Nevertheless, one lesson I took away from this experience is the inverse relationship between happiness and material attachments.

The closer we are to Nature, instead of being cooped up in concrete buildings or hemmed in by motor traffic, the happier and healthier we are. The more we allow ourselves to be carefree and not rush hither and thither, the freer and lighter we feel. And the more simply we live our lives instead of making our lives complicated, the more joyful we become.

 

Cameron Highlands notes (An exploration of Nature conservation theology)

Having spent a couple of days in the cool and green Cameron highlands in Malaysia, which happens to bear some ominous signs of increasing development and air pollution from the traffic and from the surrounding regions (specifically the temporary haze from the forest peat fires in Sumatra), and especially after taking part in a tour of a tea plantation and mossy forest that is soul expanding, thought provoking and spirit connecting, I felt a need to type a blog and try to make sense and articulate some of my thoughts while taking a long, sleepy bus ride back to Singapore on the third day.

No (as I would like to clarify to myself), this is not a diary or journal for the sake of romantising Nature or academic meandering (as much as there is sometimes an inclination for me to do so). This blog is neither for development nor against development in an absolute sense. It also isn’t really about modern civilization versus ancient civilization. If anything, it is about bridging the gap between these two (if that were possible at all). Ultimately, it is an attempt to put together seemingly raw unfiltered thoughts, like raw apple cider vinegar, hoping to find a coherent message or two from the mishmash of ideas.

The natives or the original inhabitants of Malaysia who have sought to modernize Cameron highlands, or Malaysia in general, appear to have lost sight of the natural beauty and heritage of their lands. Why? Because in their quest to develop the economy and build infrastructure, they are trying to generate more income at the expense of the environment, the wildlife and the remnants of the indigenous people (eg Orang Asli) who retain their ancient self-sustainable lifestyle and culture.

It takes the outsiders such as the westerners to bring the message of nature conservation to the Malays, to remind them to save their own land and culture. The strange thing is that these westerners do not speak their native language; rather the Malays were taught to speak the English language.

Through colonisation, the Malays became westernized and sought to be modernized and ended up destroying their own environment and culture. Now, westerners – many of whom used to colonise Southeast Asia – are telling the Malays (or more specifically, the government and large corporations) to conserve their own heritage of nature and culture.

Can anything be more paradoxical than that?

One question may arise at this point: why is it considered strange that the westerners do not speak the language of the local Malays? Wouldn’t that be expected of foreign colonialists?

Yes, but I believe there is a significance to this self-evident fact. For example, isn’t there a passage in the Bible that says “you shall be ruled over by people whose language is foreign to you” (Deuteronomy 28:49)? Doesn’t it sound like the experience of the indigenous people in Malaysia when they were colonised by westerners for a period of time?

Similarly, isn’t there a passage that says “because you have rejected the gospel, it shall be preached to the Gentiles and those who did not seek me shall find me” (Romans 11:25-26)? Wasn’t it the case whereby the inhabitants of Malaysia refused to listen to their own native prophets and continued to destroy the environment in the name of development, while the good news of nature conservation was preached to the foreigners, who in turn would bring back the gospel to the inhabitants of Malaysia, not in their native tongue but in the foreign English language? By rejecting their own and risking doom and destruction to their land, the message of salvation comes from outside their land.

Once again, how paradoxical can it be?

Now, who is the messiah? Who are the prophets? What is the gospel in this context?

I venture to say in this context that the messiah is our true self that defies time and space, and any form of outward identification, such as nationality, gender, race, language or religion. The prophets are the voices of the ancient spirit that reminds people of who they really are and warns the people who are oppressing the less privileged and destroying the environment. The gospel is the good news of our true identity and the call for us to reconnect to Nature, thereby reconnecting to our own soul and humanity.

Life is easy. Why do we make it so hard? | Jon Jandai | TEDxDoiSuthep

I enjoy and resonate with Jon Jandai’s message very much as I also support the carefree, Nature-based way of life. I noted that in his farming village, people work only 2 hours a day, and 2 months a year during the planting season and harvesting season. I totally agree with him that when people have time to be with themselves, they can understand themselves and can see what they want in life, such as happiness, love and enjoyment of life, and they also see a lot of beauty in their life, which they can express in many ways, such as making handicrafts.

I am happy for him to have chosen to go back to the countryside and live life freely like when he was a kid, and it is awesome that his sustainable way of farming rice and more than 15 varieties of vegetables and growing fish in two fish ponds can produce more than enough food to feed his family and to sell, and it took him only 3 months of working 2 hours a day to build an earthly house.

Indeed, such sustainable, nature-based lifestyle gives us a lot of freedom to do what we want in life and time to be with ourselves and connect with ourselves and one another. I like how he learn to spend time to go back to himself during times of sickness and learn to heal his own body the natural way too where possible, such as using water and earth to heal himself.

I agree with him that true civilisation is where food, house, clothes and medicine are easily available and accessible for everyone, as compared to the so-called modern society where these things are hard to get, and it is no surprise that he considers this era the “most uncivilised era on planet earth”. I also like how he chooses to focus on living easy and light, and not be concerned about what others think of him because he considers himself normal and those who follows the system are abnormal.

Interestingly, his video message is similar to a recent video message by Ralph Smart which I listened to yesterday morning, in which he said that creativity comes when we relax and do nothing.

Like Ralph Smart said, “sometimes, doing nothing is the most productive thing in the world.” Yes, I agree that meditation, for example, enables us to become more creative, and I noted that he also shared how simplicity has helped him become his greatest version because the more simple he becomes, the more creative he becomes.

Origins (2014) documentary

“Origins (2014)” is a very important and meaningful documentary. I found it to be a useful reminder and summary on how looking back on the origins of our species some 20,000 years ago can enable us humans to understand the keys to the survival of ourselves and our planet. Yes, I have always believed that, however simplistic as it may sound, one way to resolve the problems in modern societies, whether chronic health issues or socioeconomic woes, is to go back to Nature, back to the original and ancient wisdom and ways of our ancestors who live and thrive in traditional, nature-based societies.

Indeed, our bodies and souls are designed to flow in synch with the timeless rhythm of Nature instead of the artificial clocks of the system, and it is like experiencing the deep reset in our circadian rhythms whenever we retreat and re-immerse ourselves in the bosom of the forest or the coolness of the river or the breeze of the sea. I like especially the part shown in the 48-minute segment of the video on how people can reconnect to their true selves and Nature by doing qigong and meditation in the peaceful nature sanctuary, such as by the river.

I also agree with the need for people to support traditional local farms and farmers’ markets that offer live, grass-fed, free-range, organic food – indeed each of us has the power to help ourselves and the environment through the choices we make, such as choosing where to get our food from.