| Announcements |
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Season's greetings from the Institute of Policy Studies!
The management and staff of IPS would like to wish everyone a happy 2009. Thank you for your support and we look forward to seeing you in the new year.
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| Upcoming Events |
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Singapore Perspectives 2009 to tackle four issues facing Singapore
Singapore Perspectives is IPS' flagship event. To be held on 19 January at the Shangri-la Hotel, the conference will tackle four issues of high importance to Singapore: Can Singaporeans afford a high-cost Singapore? Can Singaporeans remain rooted? Can Singapore preserve its hub status? Can Government do less and Singaporeans do more? Registration is now open.
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Will 2009 be another horrible year for the global economy?
Following the global economic meltdown precipitated by the subprime mortgage crisis, will 2009 be another equally horrible year? Economic history Professor J Brad DeLong from the University of California, Berkeley, will answer that question in a talk entitled "2009: Another Annus Horribilis?" by drawing on lessons from past financial crises. The event, on 6 January, is organised jointly by IPS and the Economics Society of Singapore.
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Creative ideas for fostering creativity at Young Singaporeans Conference
Don't just hot-house the hand-picked few but provide a general environment where bright new ideas can flourish. Foster greater tolerance for diversity so creativity can thrive. Get rid of the perception that the best and brightest should do science instead of the arts. These are the many ideas thrown up at the recent IPS Young Singaporeans Conference by speakers K Shanmugam, Kishore Mahbubani, Ho Kwon Ping, Haresh Sharma and others.
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Call for a clear vision of what society we want to build for elderly
A conference on ageing has thrown up some ideas including moving away from the current focus on chronic issues and addressing issues that arise from the natural process of ageing, bringing the elderly in society's mainstream, and promoting inter-generational activities. Outstanding issues such as the feminisation of the elderly population were also discussed, and a call was made to replace ad hoc policies with a clear vision of the kind of society that Singapore wishes to create for its old.
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"Journalists themselves are the barrier to quality journalism"
Mr P N Balji, former Editorial Director of Mediacorp Press' Today newspaper, spoke at an IPS seminar on the possible drivers of change in Singapore's media industry. He placed an especial emphasis on the role of journalists themselves in the delivery of quality journalism to the reading public, and fielded questions on the possibility of an alternative but financially viable online newspaper like Malaysiakini in Singapore.
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"Singapore needs to move beyond an export-oriented economy"
Amidst the ongoing financial crisis, the 10th IPS Singapore Economic Roundtable has made a call for Singapore to relook its export strategies and tap more into Asian growth. Co-organised with The Business Times, the event also examined recent economic developments in Singapore, the macro-economic outlook, and competition policy in Singapore.
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"The power to save the earth for our children is in our hands"
HE Oscar Arias Sanchez was the latest distinguished speaker in the IPS Nobel Laureate Lecture series. He spoke of how the Arms Trade Treaty, the Costa Rica Consensus and the environmental initiative Peace With Nature would make the world a better place. He exhorted the audience to help do their bit for Peace With Nature to keep the earth as our children's birthright.
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"Be selfish, have more children!"
Having children has usually been seen as one's contribution to society and country, but a speaker at an IPS seminar argues that it is more effective to convince parents-to-be that there are good selfish reasons for having kids. Dr Bryan Caplan, Associate Professor of Economics at George Mason University in the US, and author of the forthcoming book "Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids", debunks the notion that having children makes people less happy, and illustrates how having children could actually be good for individuals.
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Malaysian media expert suggests that Internet will play a bigger role in future elections
Did the Internet play an influential role in the Malaysia General Election of 2008, where a "political tsunami" occurred with the Barisan Nasional coalition losing an unprecedented number of seats? Yes, said Associate Professor Baharuddin Aziz of the Universiti Teknologi MARA, in Malaysia, at a recent seminar at IPS. He presented the results of a survey he conducted on Internet usage during the March 2008 election.
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Not just 'stayers' or 'quitters'? Study reveals young Singaporeans' attitudes towards emigrating
Dr Leong Chan-Hoong, head of Psychology at SIM University, conducted a survey on the migration attitudes and four types of young Singaporeans: the 'Explorers', the 'Disenchanted', the 'Connected Stayers' and the 'Marginalised Stayers'. Speaking at an IPS seminar he also answered questions about what makes people want to stay or leave.
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"Consultative management does not result in the best decision-making"
The United States and the world have seen much unexpected change in the last few months. Under such conditions, is any kind of decision-making possible? Dr Steven Popper, who is a Senior Economist at think tank RAND Corporation and CEO of decision-making consultancy Evolving Logic in the US, suggests that good decision-making is possible in conditions of deep uncertainty, provided that decision-makers adopt methods that are robust and adaptive.
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"Small countries may stay resilient by banking on the future"
Futures expert Sirkka Heinonen of Finland spoke at an IPS seminar on a forecasting method called "back-casting" which allows policy makers to imagine desirable futures and project backwards to the policies needed to bring them about. She also provided insights into a current Future Studies process commissioned by the Finnish Government and involving stakeholders from various segments of Finland society.
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"Specialisation crucial for success in the electronics industry"
Specialisation in a niche market, the presence of an educated workforce, a sustained focus on research and development and collaboration with other industries were cited as the main ingredients of success in the electronics industry in the case of Taiwan and Korea by Mr Francois Guibert, CEO Asia-Pacific of ST Microelectronics. He was speaking at the first of IPS' Roundtable in the City series of discussions.
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"Singapore needs a Triangle of Virtue" -- Ambassador Ong Keng Yong
IPS Director Ambassador Ong Keng Yong talks about how the three elements in the "Triangle of Virtue" -- social service, good governance and graciousness -- must be inculcated in Singapore in his keynote speech at the National Council of Social Services Annual Conference.
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"What the World can Expect from Obama"
IPS Chairman and seasoned diplomat Professor Tommy Koh welcomes the election of Barack Obama to the White House and lays out what may be in store for us in the rest of the world.
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On creativity, society and schools
IPS Senior Research Fellow Tan Tarn How gave a talk at the National Institute of Education on 8 November on the relationship between creativity and education, and offers suggestions on how Singaporeans can become more creative.
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Do existing regulations of the Internet make sense?
Tan Tarn How spoke at the LASALLE College of Arts on 5 November on the topic of Internet censorship and its impact on Singapore society, and suggested that regulation may not be practicable for a number of reasons.
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IPS in the news
Media coverage of IPS events.
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Sound Bites
IPS staff members and researchers give their insights in the media on a variety of topics.
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Publication schedule change for this newsletter
The next issue of IPS Update will be sent out on 1 May 2009 instead of 1 April 2009, and will be published every three months after that.
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