IPS Update Issue October 2019

IPS recently held the Singapore Bicentennial Conference, which brought together eminent historians and international thought leaders. Speakers discussed the global and regional context of Singapore’s history before, during and after British colonialism, the evolution of governance post-independence up till the present-day, and offered thought-provoking reflections on and hopes for Singapore’s future. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Heng Swee Keat, was the Guest of Honour.

The sessions examined a wide range of topics, such as the importance of maritime connections and the paradoxes of war, the US-China trade war, the importance of multilateral institutions, the role of the Orang Laut in Singapore, Singapore’s history of connections and separations, Singapore vis-à-vis Hong Kong, the varying results of decolonisation, historical dynamism and diversity in Southeast Asia, the question of a caring and inclusive society, inequality and climate change.

Check out the videos of the respective sessions and additional material from the Singapore Bicentennial Conference here.

Commentary — “Promote sharing as one way to reduce waste, combat climate change”
(The Straits Times)
By Carol Soon and Nadzirah Samsudin
• 4-min read

“Being environmentally friendly has become an existential to-do.” Governments and businesses have stepped up efforts to combat climate change, and more than half of households in Singapore recycle regularly, but many are not recycling right. Our researchers write about how we can promote sustainable consumption, and generate less waste in the long run, through sharing initiatives.

This report is the first to examine the entire sharing landscape in Singapore. The study examined the motivations, enabling factors and barriers that influenced people’s participation and non-participation in sharing, as well as conditions for the success and failure of sharing initiatives in Singapore.