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In the Spotlight
On 17 July 2026, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information and the Institute of Policy Studies jointly held a forum on child safety in the digital age, bringing together global regulators, community and industry partners as well as academics and experts to drive meaningful conversations on shaping a safer digital future for children in the social media age.
The first panel debated whether social media minimum-age restrictions are inevitable, with speakers weighing bans against safer platform design and digital literacy. The second panel explored how parents, platforms, and policymakers can build child-safe digital space.
In her closing remarks, Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister for Digital Development and Information, reiterated that the Government is considering an age-based approach to children's access to social media, stressing that regulation must be paired with platform accountability and a whole-of-society response.
Learn more about the event
here.
Recent Events
 | Spottiswoode Park Neighbourhood Renewal Programme (NRP) + Participatory Budgeting (PB) Community Exhibition and Selection Exercise
On 11 July 2026, Spottiswoode Park residents gathered for the unveiling of their estate's Neighbourhood Renewal Programme masterplan and the launch of Singapore's first Participatory Budgeting pilot. Residents submitted 162 ideas, of which six feasible proposals reached the final stage. Residents must now decide together which projects will proceed with results expected in late July. The pilot is a collaboration between IPS, Tanjong Pagar Town Council and Grassroots Adviser Foo Cexiang.
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 | Citizens ReAssembled - Effect of AI on Culture and Creative Industry
How is AI reshaping film, music, visual art, and literature — and what should we do about it? Citizens ReAssembled pairs citizens' panels with public polling to test whether people who initially disagree can find common ground.
This first workshop, held on 18 July 2026, brought together some 50 participants — developers, artists, business leaders, educators and students — selected across the AI Cautious, Supportive, and Ambivalent spectrum. In the weeks ahead, the group will explore international practices, assess what could be adapted to Singapore's context, and put forward proposals at the institutional, creative sector, and individual levels. |
Announcements
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Alliance for Action on Integration of Foreign Professionals (AfA-IFP)
Through the Alliance for Action on Integration of Foreign Professionals (AfA-IFP), spearheaded by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), the IPS Programme on Race, Religion and Intergroup Cohesion (RRIC) has developed initiatives to help organisations foster inclusive workplaces, address biases, and navigate multicultural dynamics: cultural sensitivity training, a corporate Integration Playbook, and tailored workshops for new Employment Pass holders.
Check out some of the workshops conducted by IPS RRIC:
Read the AfA-IFP report here. |
What holds a multicultural society together as identities shift? IPS director Janadas Devan joins this youth-led panel discussion, moderated by Xu Zirong of Zeitgeist — a youth-led think tank on geopolitics, public policy and current affairs.
Join us on Monday, 3 August 2026, 5.30–7pm, at NUS Bukit Timah Campus.
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Articles |
 | | By Nicholas Thomas (The Straits Times) • 9-min read
When mid-year exams were scrapped, some parents turned to tuition centres for mock papers. This commentary argues that Singapore's education arms race is sustained by social behaviour, not policy alone. Proposed actions include a students' panel, wider secondary school visits for Primary 5 families, and alumni networks supporting school clusters. | By Ryan Kueh (IPS Commons) • 8-min read
This IPS Commons commentary by Ryan Kueh examines how the surge of Mainland Chinese restaurants and queues for a film like "Dear You" expose a quiet anxiety — and a harder question: how confident are we in what makes us Singaporean? |
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